Households in the UK have, once again, been found out to be stockpiling valuables worth several thousands of pounds. While it was jewelleries that were stashed in hundreds of homes sometime back, this time a new study discovered that homeowners in the country have amassed kitchen gadgets that are hardly used.
In this case the perpetrators are over 250,000 households and the appliances in question are worth about £2.6 billion or £500 per home. The gadgets range from spice shakers to blenders.
The study, from Halifax Home Insurance, highlights the danger homes, and kitchens in particular, are exposed to as homeowners undertake risky culinary experiments. A couple of months backs this issue was extensively discussed as it was found that many people were trying to copy celebrity chefs in the class of persons of no less standing than Gordon Ramsay.
With the risks being so obvious and households are insisting on not just stocking the appliances, but also putting them to use even when many lack the required experience to use them, having adequate home becomes a very important step.
Men, who hardly read instructions before jumping into using the appliances, were found to be in the forefront of buying the culinary tools. While they spend an average of £119 purchasing, women lag behind with about £88. Men therefore outspend them by about a third.
Among the tools that were owned and hardly used by their owners are toasted sandwich makers, which topped the list of the unused with 32 per cent of owners admitting to not utilising them. There were also blenders, which came next with 21 per cent of owners admitting to the same habit.
Others in the roll call of the unused were steamers, juicers and electric carving knives etc. These were owned by 17 per cent of people who left them redundant.
The irony, however, is that even when used some of these appliances have caused more harm than good in homes. For example kitchen blow torches and electric carving knives were said to have been misused and the result was often a costly accident in the house. Accidents caused with gadgets like slicing through worktops have resulted in about £64 million of damage.
Men, unlike women, as enthusiastic as they have been in leading the way to amassing the tools need to realise that beyond buying them they should used them. And beyond merely putting the gadgets into use, they should think of the likely results of not reading instructions or keeping to safety rules.
Women are not entirely exonerated from blames. They too have been found to contribute immensely in making this a major issue. While it is important to buy the entire appliances one would need in their kitchen, they need to know that time should be created for using those and above all, making use of the appliances safely.
Even when playing safe, one can not completely rule out the possibility of accidents. The precaution here is for households to make sure they take out the right home and contents insurance to protect their homes and possessions in case things suddenly go wrong. But, prevention still remains the best antidote.