Brits are a nation of pamper addicts who hoard more toiletries than they use, according to a survey from national fitted bathroom experts Dolphin

Britain is officially a nation of pamper addicts with four out of five people admitting to having up to 20 toiletry items clogging up their bathroom cabinets whilst the rest have as many as 50 products, according to a survey of 3,000 participants conducted by specialists Dolphin Bathrooms.

With the UK’s bathrooms in dire need of a spring clean, almost 70% of those surveyed said they currently had up to 10 unused pamper products, with the remainder having up to 30 bottles, packs and tubes simply gathering dust.

Shampoo is the most wasted product, closely followed by shower gel (which came top with men as the most wasted item) and moisturiser, (which was the most neglected beauty product by women). Over a quarter of respondents said their bathroom also held host to out of date medicines but most shockingly, 54% said that they would still use them regardless, with men proving to be particularly lax on this issue.

The most common reasons provided for hoarding so many unused or out of date items in the bathroom was  because people ‘forgot they were there’ and ‘always buy too much and never get round to using it’, whilst 58% said the majority of their unused toiletry items were from unwanted gift packs.

Special store promotions were also cited as a key reason why Brits buy more products than they need, with 61% saying they would still take up a multi-buy offer even if they knew they wouldn’t get around to using it all.

One fifth of those surveyed by Dolphin estimated that they had wasted just over £20 on unused pampering products whilst it seems the Welsh spend the most, at an average of £24.72, compared to the more conscientious West Midlander’s spending £19.85. This isn’t surprising as the Welsh also have the highest average number of unused toiletries within the UK and are more likely to take advantage of ‘buy one get one free’ offers despite the fact that many products simply get stored away never to be used.

The bathroom cabinet takes most of this strain for half of those surveyed, followed by the windowsill and around the edge of the bath. A quarter of respondents claimed that too much bathroom clutter was a cause of argument at home, with 57% of households choosing to have a clear out every so often to keep on top of everything.

Geoff Wells, planning expert at Dolphin Bathrooms, comments: “Whilst we may be a nation of pamper addicts, we accumulate too many beauty products that we never intend to use (according to 40% of participants) and this often means bathrooms can be cluttered. It comes as no surprise to us that over 60% of those we questioned wished they had more storage space in the bathroom, as it is often the smallest room in UK homes but despite this, we can’t seem to stop ourselves hoarding and so end up losing precious space. 

“However, with careful planning, any bathroom can be designed to keep lotions and potions well organised and easy to find. Clever use of cabinets, sink space and shelving will make sure you optimise every inch of space whilst keeping your bathroom beautiful - plus you can avoid wasting money on new products you don’t actually need after all.”

View coverage of this survey from Express.co.uk: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/167862/Rows-Why-they-gel-in-the-bathroom