Waiting In Line Adds Up

Toronto, ON - It appears Canadians are spending an great deal of time completing simple transactions in their life. According to a new poll conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of Capital One, Canadians are spending an average of 19 minutes per day - over 115 hours (5 days) annually - simply completing routine transactions, including purchasing coffee, newspapers, movie tickets or renting movies.

Thinking about what annoys them most about standing in line, four in ten Canadians (38%) say that waiting for the person in line in front of them to pay is what does it for them. For others, digging in their pocket to find change (5%), waiting for the cashier to give back the right amount of change (3%), forgetting your own PIN number (2%) or the time it takes to process debit/credit transactions (2%) is the most frustrating part.

When frustrated by standing in a long line, seven in ten (71%) Canadians try to calm themselves by reminding themselves that "patience is a virtue". Other things that Canadians say they do in these frustrating situations include dropping their items on the closest shelf and leaving the store (24%), sighing loudly (22%), complaining to other customers in the line (21%), complaining to the cashier or store manager (11%), cursing and swearing (7%), cutting in front of other customers in line (2%), and even yelling at the Cashier (1%).

Thinking about what other things they could do with the time they spend in line, Canadians say they would much rather be spending time with friends and family (20%) or reading (19%). Other responses include relaxing (10%), going for a walk (9%), and watching TV or movies (8%).

Not only are Canadians spending much of their time completing routine transactions, but an awful lot of money too. Canadians are spending an average of $14 per day on small purchases such as coffee, snacks, fast-food, and movie passes. Over a year, this adds up to overall expenses of approximately $5,000. Canadians between the ages of 18 and 34 ($16.25/day) are the most liberal spenders, compared to those aged 35 to 54 ($13.98/day) and those over the age of 54 ($11.83/day).

These are the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Capital One from 04/29 to 05/01, 2008. This online survey of 1000 Canadian adults was conducted via the Ipsos I-Say Online Panel, Ipsos Reid's national online panel. The results are based on a sample where quota sampling and weighting are employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to Census data. Quota samples with weighting from the Ipsos online panel provide results that are intended to approximate a probability sample. An unweighted probability sample of this size, with a 100% response rate, would have an estimated margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.