Just over half of the UK’s 11 million garages are not used to park cars, new research shows.
According to a survey, 53 percent of drivers have never put their car in their garage, with only 40 percent doing so on a regular basis. Eight percent use their garage for parking on an occasional basis.
Conversely, 70 percent said they usually put their car on the drive, while 18 percent leave their car in the street, said the RAC poll.
The main reason given for not parking in garages is that they have too much already stored inside them. This is the case for 68 percent of drivers with garages that they don’t park inside.
Among the items most commonly kept in UK garages are DIY tools and materials (90 percent), gardening tools and garden furniture (74 percent), bicycles and scooters (55 percent), wellington boots and shoes (36 percent), and camping equipment (24 percent).
House and garage
The RAC says more than eight in 10 drivers (83 percent) use their garage as a place to store additional stuff. Nearly half (47 percent) use it as a workshop or DIY space, nine percent as a home gym or exercise space, while eight percent say they have converted theirs into another room.
“Our findings show the vast majority of UK garages aren’t used for the purpose they were intended. At best, 40 percent of those with garages park their cars in them on a regular basis,” said RAC spokesman Simon Williams.
“It seems most garages are nothing more than additional storage, perhaps because many houses don’t have enough easily accessible space to store lots of household items. But in fairness to many people with garages, some just aren’t big enough to get a modern car in. And then there are some that you can drive into, but are then too small to comfortably get in and out of your car.”
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