Downtrodden, recession-battered Britons are in the midst of a ‘Luck Lull’ – feeling less lucky than ever before. That is the conclusion of research released today which discovered that the current economic situation combined with a general feeling of doom and gloom has not only hit our wallets, but it’s also sapped the nation’s luck. As a result a leading expert is warning that people could be missing out on a wealth of opportunities because they are afraid to take a chance.
“The ‘Luck Lull’ research results give an interesting snapshot of the current state of the nation’s psyche, one that has been hit by a relentless, daily barrage of news about job losses, failing banks and falling house prices,” said Dr Glenn Wilson, social psychologist and ‘luck expert’, who was involved in the investigation. “There is a large body of evidence out there which says luck is primarily a state of mind – so if you think you’re unlucky, you’re more likely to be unlucky.”
The research, conducted by YouGov on behalf of www.perfectholidayhome.co.uk, found that one in 10 Brits feel their luck has deserted them in recent months while over two million Brits* describe themselves as ‘very unlucky.’ Other findings included:
· The older you are, the less lucky you feel – only one in 14 over 45s (seven per cent) think they are lucky as opposed to one in seven under 35s (14 per cent)
· 20 per cent of those questioned claimed negative stories in the media made them take less chances
· One in three people (32 per cent) feel less confident about the future than they did 12 months ago
· Wales, Midlands and the North are the unluckiest regions
Dr Wilson continued: “With ‘Luck Lull’ taking hold UK consumers could be missing out. For example, while a staggering 41 per cent of Brits agreed “you’ve got to be in it to win it”, one in ten of us are entering fewer competitions than we used to. Right now it’s understandable that people feel hesitant about taking chances – research showed more than one in seven people (15 per cent) think things will automatically go wrong for them at the moment. But of course being lucky and achieving the best out of life often relies on taking a chance.”
One family experiencing ‘Luck Lull’ first hand is Colin and Sue Stafford. The couple set up the UK’s first online overseas holiday home competition, www.perfectholidayhome.co.uk, after failing to sell their $1.25 million Florida home. For just £25 entrants are offered the chance to win the Stafford’s five-bedroom home in addition to a lifestyle package including all related taxes and running costs for the 1st year, a car, passes to Disney World and membership to local health and golf clubs. Even with odds of winning a prize at one in 430, entry levels to the competition are disappointing.
Colin Stafford commented: “We understood the property market both in the UK and the USA were tough, so we thought a competition was an ideal solution. It offers one ‘lucky’ person the chance to win this total holiday home package for just £25. But the competition has been running for five months and so far we have fewer than 500 entries. The competition closes at the end of May so we’re really hoping to meet our target of 45,000 entries. It’s almost like people won’t take a chance – but you could potentially win so much for so little, and the odds are thousands of times higher than a big win on the lottery.”
The Staffords aren’t the only ones suffering as a result of the ‘Luck Lull’. Sales figures for traditional lottery draw games are down and up to 200 bingo halls are expected to close**. Dr Wilson notes that competitions are a perfect demonstration of how lucky you feel: “One in four of us (24 per cent) admit we have the mindset ‘I won’t win’ so we don’t even bother entering competitions. But three out of four people admitted they had previously won something in a competition – certainly a higher number than those who class themselves as ‘lucky’. This current ‘Luck Lull’ can actually provide a great opportunity for those willing to take a risk – if there are fewer people out their grabbing opportunities then those who do can reap even greater rewards.”
Dr Glenn Wilson, Colin and Sue Stafford of www.perfectholidayhome.co.uk and entrants who have already tried their luck in the competition are available for interview. For further information please contact Quest PR on 01423 564192.
ENDS
Issued on behalf of perfectholidayhome.co.uk by Quest Public Relations. Media contacts are David Child, Shona Nutter and Paul Rayment on 01423 564192.
Notes to Editors
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2229 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 1st - 5th May 2009. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).
* Calculated using an adult UK population of 48,780,000
**Lottery figures from http://www.guardian.co.uk/
Further results from the research:
· 16 per cent of people say that as it could be seen that taking big risks contributed towards the recession, they now feel less inclined to take even small risks.
· The economy is partly to blame as one in four (24 per cent) agrees a recession goes hand in hand with them taking fewer risks
· 16 per cent daren’t risk a single penny with the economy the way it is, and this figure is higher with women than with men (18 per cent vs. 13 per cent)
· 11.7 million people (24 per cent) think they should take more chances*
Regional variations
London and the East have the highest proportion of people who would define themselves as lucky at 14 per cent. The Midlands has the least (five per cent), followed by Wales (7 per cent) and Scotland (8 per cent). The Midlands, North and Scotland had the highest proportion of people who classed themselves as very unlucky, at around one in 20.
The luck tables***
1. London (the luckiest)
2. East
3. South
4. Scotland
5. North
6. Midlands
7. Wales (the unluckiest)
*** Based on asking people to rank themselves as 1-10 in terms of how lucky they are.
The Perfect Holiday Home competition was launched by Colin Stafford in November 2008. The property’s address is: 100 North Goodman Road, Kissimmee, Florida 34747, USA. Tickets are £25 and available from www.perfectholidayhome.co.uk
A British ex-pat who has lived in Florida for a decade, Colin and his wife Sue oversaw the design and construction process, which ran between 2006 and early 2008. In addition to the Florida holiday home, the prize includes:
· All property taxes and running costs covered for the first year.
· A brand-new family size Chevrolet Malibu or Toyota Rav 4 (or equivalent)
· Forty free rounds of golf
· A year’s premium pass to Disney World or ten days unlimited entry
· One year family membership to a local health club and spa.
To comply with UK gambling law, the raffle involves three trivia questions and a £25 ticket. The winner will be chosen from 105 randomly selected entrants who pay the £25 entry fee and answer the competition questions correctly.
In addition to the winning prize there will be:
· One 2nd prize of £10,000
· One 3rd prize of £5,000
· 4th and 5th prizes: £2,000 each
· Final 100 prizes: £100
Closing Date: the Competition will close (1) at 10:00pm UK time on 31st May 2009 (2) when 45,000 Entry Fees have been collected or (3) if an event occurs that is outside the reasonable control of the Promoter, whichever occurs first. Full terms and conditions are available at www.perfectholidayhome.co.uk/
