The Pest Phobias giving UK Homeowners Nightmares
Spiders - traditionally one of the most common phobias in the UK - are facing a strong challenge from hornets, rats and wasps for the title of most feared pests in the land.
In a survey of 2,000 Britons by HomeServe, the home emergency experts, respondents were asked to rank their fear response to several common household pests out of 10, and the answers were used to calculate the fear index - a definitive table of the creepiest crawlies.
Hornets, wasps and mosquitoes scored highly, indicating that fear of being stung may be the biggest factor for many. Scuttling creatures like spiders and cockroaches also kept homeowners awake at night, and those perennial pests, rats, were nominated by many as their least favourite intruder.
Almost 1 in 10 (9.4%) of households reported rats invading their homes and gardens, with a massive 87% stating that they believed there had been an explosion in rat populations in their area over the past decade.
Population increases were reported across a wide range of pests - in particular, UK homeowners felt that wasps, mosquitoes, foxes and mice were booming in numbers.
Many also reported seeing new, larger or foreign species of pests, with the rising worries over stinging insects attributed to newspaper reports of invading exotic species such as harlequin ladybirds and Chinese hornets.
67% noted a marked increase in the size of rats, with many stating that they were now scared of rats where they had not been before.
When encountering a wasp or hornet in their home, 56% of respondents said that they would either open the window and leave the room, or tell their partner to deal with it - and the bravery of British men was called into doubt as figures showed that they were just as likely to pass the buck to their wives and girlfriends as vice versa. Between 32 and 33% of either sex chose this option.
When dealing with rodents, the majority of Britons like to call for a pest control expert or use ‘humane’ traps. 7% claimed that they would kill a mouse or rat 'with their bare hands', although details were not forthcoming.
The Fear Index - Which Pests are the Most Feared in the UK?
1. Spiders 67%
2. Hornets 65%
3. Rats 64%
4. Wasps 58%
5. Cockroaches 55%
6. Mosquitoes 51%
7. Foxes 49%
8. Mice 35%
9. Fleas 13%
10. Pigeons 13%
11. Slugs and Snails 12%
12. Moths 8%
13. Flies 6%
14. Ants 4%