Frustrated consumers are having to resort to Stanley knives and screwdrivers in their efforts to get through the packaging of some everyday products.
According to new research by consumer organisation Which? householders have, in fact, used any number of implements to try to open packaging: 89% have tried scissors, 66% knives and 4% razor blades. Stanley knives were the weapon of choice for 8% of the 2,000 people surveyed, while 6% chose a screwdriver. A truly desperate 2% even got the hammer out.

Which? also found that 67% of people get frustrated trying to get into everyday products, while a quarter of those surveyed regularly need help to open packaging. Moulded plastic is the biggest bugbear for consumers, with 54% finding the packaging irritating.

Forty per cent have hurt themselves while attempting to open packaging in the last two years, with tin cans the biggest cause of package-related injuries: more than 1m people are estimated to have gone to their GP or A&E in the last two years as a result of opening a tin.

Which? editor, Richard Headland, said: "With one in four people telling us they regularly need help to open everyday products, bad packaging is not only frustrating but is causing injuries too. We want manufacturers to improve the design of product packaging and make opening instructions much clearer."