One in 8 Brits fake broadband blackouts to get out of doing work, study finds

BRITS are increasingly resorting to fake broadband blackouts to get out of doing work at home.

A survey this week found that the number of times people pretend they’ve got a dodgy connection to avoid doing things has soared 50 per cent since the start of the pandemic.

It comes as the UK today reaches the second lockdown anniversary with Brits depending on their home broadband more than ever.

Pulling a sickie (34 per cent) remains the top excuse to get out of work but one in eight (12 per cent) now points the finger at their router to avoid unwanted activities, according to figures from broadband service Plusnet.

Those who admitted using the excuse said they’ve done so more than five times on average since March 2020.

Before the first Covid-19 lockdown, the average was 3.5 times.

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The research shows work is the top thing Brits use their broadband crashing as an excuse to get out of.

Seventeen per cent of respondents used it to dodge online meetings with their boss.

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Others used it to skip exercise classes, virtual quizzes with family or friends, awkward online dates, and online job interviews that were going badly.

Plusnet also found that nearly two thirds (63 per cent) of people admit their home broadband is so reliable it rarely crashes.

One in five said that they wished it would crash more.

Sales executive Ronan Collins, 25, from Waterloo, London said he blamed his late start at work on his broadband to grab an extra hour’s sleep the day after a Six Nations rugby match.

He said: “I’m usually a very honest person, but when my colleague scheduled an 8:30am video call on the Monday after the Six Nations rugby, I knew I needed an extra hour in bed.

“If this happened before remote working I would have had to face the music, but instead I managed to sneak an extra half hour of recovery sleep by saying my broadband was down.

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“I woke up feeling marginally better and put in an extra couple of hours of work that evening.

“My home broadband is very reliable, but my Monday morning meetings definitely have me wishing it would be a bit less reliable from time to time.”

Joanna Carman, Director at Plusnet, said: “We’ve all been roped into doing things we would rather give a miss but with fast and reliable broadband available, consumers are going to have to get more creative with their excuses.

“Now the world is becoming increasingly simplified through technology – gone are the days when unreliable home broadband holds you back. Plusnet’s broadband is so user-friendly that you simply plug in and play.”