According to insurers Aviva, more than half of empty nest parents are still being called upon to help with home improvements around their grown up children’s homes, carrying out jobs that could equate to over £1,280 per year if carried out by a professional tradesman. 

Heather Smith, director of home insurance at Aviva, said: “While the majority of us cherish our homes and take pride in making them our own, it seems the knowledge and willingness to take on these tasks ourselves is diminishing over time.

“It’s great to see that parents are still happy to help their children with their own home improvement and renovation projects, but inspiring them to learn for themselves and gain this skill set will undoubtedly help them make the most of their homes in the future.”

The survey showed parents spend the equivalent of nearly one hour per week (51 hours per year) carrying out home improvements for grown up children aged 20-40 living away from home.

Over half of these parents give up their free time to lend a hand, with some setting aside theirs chores to help with garden maintenance (47%), painting (46%) and building and assembling furniture (34%).

But some grown-up children still call upon their parents to help with bleeding radiators (9%) and even changing light bulbs (8%).

Despite the time and investment from mum and dad, it seems the ‘Do It For Me’ generation are in no hurry to learn how to do these tasks themselves.

If parents were unavailable to help their grown up children, two fifths (42%) believe their children would leave the tasks until their parents are available and 40% believe their children would hire a tradesman instead of tackling the job themselves.

Craig Phillips, TV personality with over 20 years’ experience in the building and DIY industry, is working with Aviva to give homeowners advice on how to handle simple home improvement and maintenance tasks. Craig comments:

“Home improvement tasks can appear daunting the first time you turn your hand to them, but learning a new skill such as painting or hanging simple fixtures can help you to transform your home.

“Aside from helping to personalise your home, additional home maintenance know-how will help you be confident in dealing with common minor problems that can arise.”