NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Sitting on your couch for hours waiting for the cable guy, a kitchen cabinet delivery or Internet technician to show up is not only frustrating, it's a huge waste of money.
Time spent waiting for in-home services and appointments cost American workers $37.7 billion in 2011, according to an IBOPE Zogby poll of more than 1,000 adults conducted on behalf of cloud-computing software company TOA Technologies.
Nearly three-quarters of respondents (72%) perceived the cost of one hour of their time to be worth more than $15 an hour, with the average consumer losing close to $250 last year waiting to show up at their home.
More than half, or 58%, of Americans said they waited for in-home appointments in the past year, for an average of four and a half hours. The average number of times they waited last year was about three.
Who keeps us waiting the longest? It may not come as that big of a surprise but the vast majority of Americans, or 57%, say they spent the most time waiting for the cable guy. Other appointments that kept respondents waiting included Internet service and repair, furniture delivery, computer repair and phone services.
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