Three quarters of Brits have been injured by their smartphone

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A new study has revealed that as many as three quarters of Britons have been injured by their smartphone, including dropping it on their foot leading to bruising, dropping their phone on their face when led down and scratching their ear and face with a broken screen.

According to the poll, almost half have even noticed a change in appearance of their little fingers from the way they constantly hold their handset.

The average Briton spends more than four hours on their mobile phone each day, experiencing as many as three injuries a month from using their device; including bruising their foot, bashing their face and even walking into objects, such as lampposts.

The research was carried out by as part of an ongoing study into Britons’ use of technology. 2,194 Britons aged 18 and over, all of whom stated that they have a smartphone that they use daily, were quizzed about their mobile phone usage.

Firstly, all those taking part in the survey were asked what type of smartphone they currently had, to which the most common ones were ‘iPhone’ (25%), ‘Samsung’ (19%) and ‘Nokia’ (13%). When asked to state how loyal they were to their phone brand, those with an iPhone had been loyal for on average 5 years, upgrading iPhone after iPhone. Those with Samsung and Nokia phones were revealed as being brand loyal for just two years, having switched over from a different make previously.

All respondents were then asked ‘How long do you estimate that you’re on your smartphone for each day, when you add the time of each use together?’ to which the average was revealed as 4 hours and 12 minutes. When broken down, that was revealed as 37 minutes before work, 85 minutes throughout the work day and a further 130 minutes in the evening.

Following on from this, all respondents were then asked ‘Have you ever received any injuries as a consequence of using your smartphone?’ to which three quarters of respondents, 77%, admitted that ‘yes’ they had.

All those who admitted they’d incurred injuries from their smartphones were asked what these were. When provided with a list of possible injuries and told to select all that applied, the top five were revealed as follows:

Bruised foot from dropping my phone from height (without shoes on) - 42%

Lying down using my phone and dropping it on my face - 33%

Scratches to ears/face from answering the phone with a cracked screen - 25%

Focusing on my phone and not my surroundings and walking into something (i.e. lampposts) - 16%

Repetitive strain injuries to hand and/or wrist - 14%

According to the poll, when asked how many times they injured themselves with their phone each month, the average was revealed as 3 times. Furthermore, as many as 47% of participants have noticed that their little fingers have become slightly bent from constantly using their smartphones and resting the device there when gripping it.

George Charles, spokesperson for, commented on the findings:

“For many, going a day without their mobile phone is simply not something they want to think about – it’s their life source; phone calls, text messages, social media, emails... it’s all right there on one device. And with us using our phones for more than 4 hours a day, every day, it’s no surprise that injuries can occur. Some can be avoided though – when you’re out and about you should really be paying attention to your surroundings more so than your phone, and when you’re lying in bed, maybe consider sitting up or lying on your stomach instead of your back.”