More than seven in 10 Brits have experienced ‘JOCO’ - the joy of cancelled outings

We’ve all been there – agreed to meet someone or take part in an activity only to wish we hadn’t.

But then something wonderful happens – the get-together is called off.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And a new term has been coined for this very occurrence, ‘JOCO’.

Unfortunately for those polled though, it’s a rare event – with 77 per cent experiencing it only once a month or less.

Regretting social plans

A poll of 2,000 adults found as many as 58 per cent have agreed to a social plan they went on to regret.

And a third have even made plans knowing they will never transpire.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The term JOCO was coined by Checkinstays.com, whose spokesperson said: “It's a wonderful feeling, when something gets cancelled that you weren't looking forward to.

“You don’t want to look like a bad friend by saying no all the time, but you’d far prefer alone time.

"JOCO is something millions of us can relate to, which is why we coined the phrase.

“But ducking out of plans isn’t always straightforward when you have things booked, which is certainly something to consider.”

Cancellation Relief

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The survey also found 52 per cent are more likely to feel relief when events are cancelled now than ever before, with almost one in 10 calling time on plans as regularly as once a week.

And 82 per cent have been known to withdraw scheduled events last minute, with 53 per cent having lied about their reasons for the bail out.

A further 38 per cent have an average of three friends that always seem to pull out of plans last minute.

‘I’m ill’, ‘a family thing has come up’ and ‘my schedule is hectic’ are among the top excuses they make.

Although a third of adults rarely believe these cop outs.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The study carried out via OnePoll also found Brits are most relieved when nights out, pub trips with a big group of people and birthday parties are postponed or called off.

On the other hand, simpler occasions, such as nights in, meals out and coffee catch ups emerged as the social events people love the most.

Millions have lost money

It also emerged that a third have lost an average of £54 due to last minute cancellations, leaving 42 per cent frustrated.

The spokesperson from Checkinstays.com added: “It's interesting to see so many are more likely to cancel things since the pandemic, perhaps this is because we are more comfortable in our own company after the lockdowns.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I wasn’t expecting cancelling occasions to be such a regular thing for so many, but we must be careful when doing this, as it could result in still having to pay, as the results highlight.

“We realised that when plans change, it isn’t always easy, so we created a service where you can re-sell your non-refundable hotel bookings to others, so you don’t lose out on your hard-earned cash.”

Find out how much you love JOCO by taking the quiz: https://www.checkinstays.com/