Aunts & Uncles Buy Worst Christmas Presents
Aunts and Uncles are the worst culprits when it comes to giving bad Christmas presents, according to a new poll out today.
Nearly a quarter of us (23 per cent) admit that when it comes to the gifts under the tree, those from our Aunties and Uncles are the ones we dread opening the most, according to the survey by veterinary charity PDSA.
And whilst family members top the poll it seems Brits also share anxiety over the office Secret Santa present trail, with work colleagues coming a close second (19 per cent) in the bad present stakes. Perhaps surprisingly only four per cent of women reported poor present choices by their husbands.
Bad Christmas Present Culprits:
1. Aunts & Uncles - 23%
2. Work colleagues - 19%
3. Grandparents - 16%
4. Friends - 14%
5. Mums - 10%
However, the season of goodwill to all men it seems doesn’t always ring true when it comes to gift giving. Over a third of women (34 per cent) admitting giving someone a present they received themselves last year.
And nearly a fifth of men (18 per cent) owned up to deliberately buying a bad Christmas present on purpose for someone they didn’t like.
But inappropriate gifts needn’t sit redundant in garages and loft spaces gathering dust. Veterinary charity PDSA is launching an appeal on Boxing Day to take unwanted gifts, which will be sold in its UK-wide charity shops to raise funds for sick and injured pets.
Worst Christmas presents to top the poll included the familiar obligatory gifts of talcum powder, socks and badly knitted jumpers. Some of the other weird and wonderful presents received included a plastic clock in the shape of Australia, an out of date German sausage, a broken duck-shaped hairdryer and a burial plot.
The poll also revealed that Dads are the most difficult person to buy presents for, closely followed by husbands. And unsurprisingly, the present that women are least likely to want to receive is a household appliance.
Andrew Holl, Director of Business Services for PDSA said: “Bad Christmas gifts are an all too common occurrence at Christmas, despite the best intentions of the present giver.
“However, rather than leaving the unwanted gifts gathering dust in the loft, or worse simply thrown away, we’d encourage the public to donate the presents to their local PDSA store allowing dogs, cats and other pets our vets care for to benefit from their human counterparts’ gift misfortunes.
“While you might not like the gift, no doubt someone else will, plus their purchase will help sick and injured pets. Some of our shops are opening especially on Boxing Day, and others are operating extended opening hours over the festive period to help relieve people of their unwanted Christmas gifts.”
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