Everyone has a pet peeve or something that annoys them about someone they know, or just a daily activity that gets on their nerves, but what are the worst among Brits in 2024?
To find out the biggest grudges, greetings card marketplace, thortful, conducted a study1 to find out the most popular inner thoughts and annoyances in the UK.
From having loud phone calls on the train, to people having dog Instagram accounts, those who have ‘princess of board’ stickers on their cars, to people who simply can’t operate without a coffee, the nation has picked its biggest grievances.
As thortful’s research also unveiled that almost half (43%) would love to call someone out on a pet peeve every single day but don’t, they’ve created a range of hilarious cards that include the frustrating activities ranked below:
| Rank | Inner Thoughts / Pet Peeves | Percentage |
| 1 | Not cleaning up their dog’s poo | 61% |
| 2 | People looking at their phone when I’m talking to them | 37% |
| 3 | People who talk during a film | 35% |
| 4 | People who take up the whole path instead of going single file | 33% |
| 5 | People who put their bag on the seat next to them on a packed commuter train | 33% |
| 6 | When people take a phone call on the train | 26% |
| 7 | When people leave breadcrumbs in the butter | 25% |
| 8 | E-scooters | 22% |
| 9 | Being bad at replying | 18% |
| 10 | Those little yellow plastic tie wrap things you get on bread to keep it fresh | 18% |
| 11 | ‘Princess on board’ sticker on your car | 18% |
| 12 | Microwaving fish in the office | 18% |
| 13 | People who have dog Instagram accounts | 15% |
| 14 | People who say they can’t operate without coffee | 13% |
| 15 | When someone talks about a film and you say you haven’t seen it and they freak out like ‘omg HOW HAVE YOU NOT SEEN IT’ | 12% |
| 16 | People who say they have a bubbly personality | 11% |
| 17 | People who soak their dishes rather than washing | 10% |
| 18 | Not re-racking at the gym | 8% |
With a landslide 61%, the UK’s biggest pet peeve is when they see a dog owner not clean up their dog’s poo. This is followed by the workings of a phone addicted nation, for the people who stare at their screens whilst having a face to face conversation (37%).
People talking in the wrong situation is a bugbear to many. In fact, talking during a film received more than a third (35%) of the votes, whilst more than a quarter (26%) can’t stand those that have loud conversations on the train.
Other irritations include pavement hoggers, with a third (33%) frustrated at those who take up the whole path instead of going single file. Busy commuters also find it annoying when they see bags taking up seats on hectic morning train journeys (33%).
E-scooters in general are getting a bad rap with 22% voting them as their biggest pet peeve, whilst leaving breadcrumbs in the butter (25%), being bad at replying (18%), and ‘Princess on Board’ car stickers (18%) also hold a grudge for many.
When people can’t fathom that their friends or family haven’t seen a certain film, 12% can’t stand the surprised reaction as if they have meant to have seen every film that has every existed.
Cards are now available to call out the slow walking, breadcrumbs in the butter, ‘princess on board’ sticker, dog poo dumping, coffee reliant culprits in your life via thortful here: https://www.thortful.com/cards/vic24
A spokesperson for thortful adds “There are so many circumstances that cause funny annoyances on a daily basis, and we want to create the opportunity for people to highlight them, so the nation can let out their inner thoughts on cards. A small tip from us would be to please clean up your dog’s poo!”
Help keep news FREE for our readers
Supporting your local community newspaper/online news outlet is crucial now more than ever. If you believe in independent journalism, then consider making a valuable contribution by making a one-time or monthly donation. We operate in rural areas where providing unbiased news can be challenging. Read More About Supporting The West Wales Chronicle
