Father’s Day gift idea: Kids get their dads ‘the gift of moaning’
From messy binmen to late deliveries, unique complaints website gives dads (mums, or anybody) the chance to get their own back
British dads are the biggest moaners in the world, and their children will do just about anything for a bit of peace and quiet.
According to the 1750 13-18 year-olds surveyed by the unique Avenge.co.uk complaint letter-writing service, fathers will complain about anything from queues in the supermarket to being short-changed in the pub, but never seem to do anything about it.
Given the chance to buy a voucher guaranteeing their dad a genuine and unique letter of complaint about something that annoyed had them, many of the teens surveyed said they’d snap one up as a Father’s Day present if it meant ten minutes’ silence.
“You can’t deny that Britain is a nation of moaners,” said Avenge.co.uk spokesman Mark Hall, “And from what we’ve heard, our nation’s dads are the top of the Premier League. Our mission is to direct their fury in the right direction and give everybody else a bit of peace.”
Teenagers surveyed by Avenge.co.uk said that their dads complained about a wide range of subjects, often to no avail. Among the domestic whines heard by British kids were:
• Binmen leaving a trail of rubbish up the road
• Bags of dog mess left lying round the park
• Long queues in the supermarket during the weekend shop
• Getting overcharged in shops or at the pub
• Having to wait over an hour for a pizza delivery
• Roadworks making them late for work (or getting home again)
And at the more unusual end of the scale:
• “Someone put a dead badger in our recycling bin”
• “Stuck in a traffic jam because of a civil war re-enactment”
• “Couldn’t buy beer at the supermarket because he didn’t have ID. He’s 42”
• “Moaned for a week about a poor quality cream tea at the seaside”
Unfortunately, Avenge.co.uk says, instead of directing their ire at the cause of their problems, most dads take it out on their long-suffering families who’ve heard it all before.
More than three-quarters of the kids questioned said that their dads wouldn’t actually follow up their complaints with any concrete action. Two-thirds said that they’d happily pay someone to do their dad’s complaining for them if it meant he’d be quiet for a few minutes.
“That’s where Avenge.co.uk comes in,” says Hall. “For a reasonable fee, people get the chance to send an exquisitely-crafted letter of complaint to get it off their chest – all without having to leave their comfy chair.
“Not only that, people can buy their friends and relatives the gift of moaning through an Avenge gift voucher that can be redeemed against our letter-writing service.”
Avenge.co.uk says their bespoke letter-writing service can be used to send complaints to companies, officials or even to friends and family. Whether to get results, or to raise a laugh, Avenge hopes to put the fun back into moaning.
“And if it stops Dad’s moaning – even just for Father’s Day – that’s a bonus,” says Hall.
