Why do people in the UK not take their shoes off in each others house?

18 comments

1. Not sure I always do some people find it weird though

2. Not me that has to clean the floors. Why should I care?

   Bacteria is going to be on the floor anyway. Bacteria is everywhere.

3. Because I have neuropathy in my feet and it can be hard to walk without shoes.

4. It’s weird. I enforce a shoes-off policy at the door. If I’m expecting workmen, then I’ll put down dust sheets so they can come in and out.

5. I always politely ask BEFORE entering anyone house . If shoes are at the door that’s good indication of the house rule

6. We never kept our shoes on in the house when I was a kid, and no one keeps their shoes on in my house, either.

7. Weirdly I always take my shoes off when I go to my parents house, but they don’t do the same when they come to mine. 🙈😂

8. This drives me bananas too. Don’t even get me started on people putting their feet up on a sofa or a bed WITH SHOES. Nightmare fuel.

9. I go with what people are doing, but going into someone else’s house and taking off my shoes when they’re not feels too much like I’m making myself at home. Like sitting on the couch and unbuttoning my trousers.

10. Because I’m not planning on staying long.

    Because my socks are manky after travelling to get there.

    Because your floor is manky.

    Because I don’t know you well enough.

    It feels, to me, a bit intimate to take your shoes off in someone else’s house, like you’re staying for a significant amount of time or overnight. If I’m just going to be hanging out for a few hours, I’ll leave them on unless asked to take them off, but I’ve never been asked – unless I am staying overnight.

11. This is asked a lot here!

    I guess every culture is different.

    And within every culture, there are also differences.

    So within the UK, I have a) observed very big differences and b) seen that over the years, people take their shoes off more than before.

    As you say, there is probably greater sensitivity to dirt!

    Why would it vary from European countries, say? Well, one possibility might be historically we dont tend to live in flats/ apartments unless we have to, so people are always going in and out. And it may be that a combo of hard floors and carpets that are made from natural materials (wool, and carpets called Saxony) are robust in terms of cleaning dirt off.

    FWIW I grew up in a town where nobody took shoes off, but Mrs tmstms in a ton where everybdy did and does- hers is typicl of working-class Northern England, and mine is very aberrant- I grew up in a town where my parents’ circle of frieends and colleagues dressed like scruffs and had crap houses.

12. Here we go again.

    We don’t take shoes.off in restaurants or in the pub (public house, an extension of home), so why do it in houses?

    Look at something like Downton Abbey – no-one takes shoes off. Shoes are an integral part of an outfit.

    As a host, I would never ask anyone to take shoes off (muddy boots would be an exception) – they might have a hole in their sock and be embarrassed, not want cold feet, etc, and it’s like sitting around in your bra – something you don’t do in front of others.

    Britain has a cold damp climate and shoes are the best way to keep feet warm that generations have stuck to. The terror of germs and the idea of protecting carpet from them is a very modern terror. Mostly a nouveau-riche thing from people wanting to boast about their new carpets and owning a hoover.

    (Yes, somewhat tongue-in-cheek because the topic is boring)

13. Easy one of my dogs will take your socks off so if people want there socks they keep shoes on .

14. If I’m visiting friends and family I take my slippers, i used to get weird comments, but now I think most agree, and other friends have started to do the same, to the point we have slippers at each others houses. I don’t make folk take their shoes off but I do secretly wish they would sometimes. Husband is a pain for tracking mud in but we have hard floors so easy to clean.

15. If I go to someone’s house I will normally ask ‘do you want me to take my shoes off?’ and then do whatever they say. I expect same from people coming to my place.

16. Because most of us don’t work on farms.

17. I always have, in our house if you didn’t take your shoes off you’d be in trouble. So I always extended that to every house I went to as a kid and still now. However I do remember my Muslim friend’s family from Saudi Arabia were pleasantly surprised when I took my shoes off at the door the first time I went there. And some friends being like “what are you doing?” when I’d take off my shoes before going into their home.

18. Because our pavements aren’t that dirty, we have doormats, and shoes keep you warm and look nice.

    It’s also a massive pain to keep putting shoes on to go into the garden.

    I take mine off only when I know I’m not leaving the house again.