Europcar Discovers Travel Stress Giving Brits a Serious Case of PHT
Europcar has discovered in its latest survey that for over half a million Brits*, their last trip to the airport was 'one of the most stressful experiences of their lives'.
According to the new survey** 24% of Brits admitted to suffering PHT (Pre-Holiday Tension) as their best-laid travel plans start to unravel. Nearly a million*** holidaymakers (2%) have actually missed their flight altogether due to one of the causes of PHT, which include delayed or cancelled buses or trains (suffered by 16% of Brits); booked taxis that are late or don't turn up (14%); anxiety about leaving something behind (12%) and having to turn back mid-journey because they've forgotten something (5%).
The survey also found that it was Londoners who appeared to be the worst sufferers of Pre-Holiday Tension, with 31% reporting that their last airport trip was stressful.
With plenty of Brits still to jet off on their summer break, 11% said that they expected their next trip to the airport, by train, bus or taxi, to be the worst part of their trip and 2.4m**** holidaymakers (6%) admit that they are 'dreading it'; but the journey to the airport doesn't always have to be a stressful start to a holiday.
The Europcar Airport Connect service offers an alternative to risking delayed or cancelled trains and taxis, as well as providing free hire car delivery to the doorstep at a time that suits them.
* 1.2% of population (49.121m) = 589,425
** Opinium Research surveyed 2,004 UK adults between 21st and 22nd July 2010. Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.
*** 1.9% of population = 933,299
**** 4.9% (which equates to the 6% who are planning a holiday) of population = 2,406,929
