Lifts to school, sports clubs and friends’ houses are popular journeys
Even grandparents are roped in, spending up to 96 hours per year giving their grandchildren lifts
Parents often joke about being their children’s chauffeur service - and it’s no wonder they feel like that as recent research has revealed parents actually spend up to 573 hours per year ferrying their children around.
Research from insurance specialist RIAS also found that out of the 1,006 drivers with children surveyed, 76% spend just over three weeks behind the wheel per year through driving their children to school, after school clubs, sports clubs, friends’ houses and social events – and that doesn’t even include the waiting time.
Unsurprisingly, of the drivers who eventually stopped giving their children lifts, almost three in five parents (56%) felt they had much more spare time. More specifically when it came to mums, the research found more than two thirds (67%) felt they had much more spare time on their hands.
The study also revealed that even grandparents have been roped into providing personal taxi services for their grandchildren, with 61% spending their free time giving lifts.
On average, grandparents who give their grandchildren lifts spend 96 hours of the year dropping and picking their grandkids from various places. More specifically, more than a third of grandads (35%) stated that they have given their grandchildren more lifts than they gave their own children back in the day.
A spokesperson at RIAS, comments: “It’s interesting to see how much time is actually spent on giving children lifts to school, after school clubs, sports clubs, friends’ houses and social events. Parents really do devote a lot of time in ferrying their children around, and more than likely, it’s due to the safety and well-being of their off-spring. Even grandparents are helping out when they can, and actually, ending up being more hands-on with their grandchildren in comparison to the time they spent with their own kids.”
Infographic by: www.rias.co.uk
