Brits last an average of eight minutes and 22 seconds before they lose their temper, according to new research.

It found that the Internet has increased people's service demands and is eroding the classic British trait of patience as more than half admitted they lose their temper quicker than ever before.

People have become so used to the speed and convenience of the internet that more than seven in 10 get angry if forced to wait longer than one minute for a web page to download.

Being kept on hold made Brits see red more than anything else, with the average person reaching their impatience threshold after five minutes and four seconds.

In today's fast food culture, restaurant rage kicks in after only eight minutes, 38 seconds, when the average diner will start to wonder whether the meal they have ordered will ever arrive.

People running late to meet a friend should not leave it any longer than 10 minutes, one second if they do not want to face their wrath.

And tradesmen arriving to a job more than 10 minutes, 43 seconds late should not expect a cup of tea from their impatient householder.

Finally, when receiving a text or voicemail, be warned that the clock is ticking as the average Briton expects a response within 13 minutes and 16 seconds.

Mark Schmid, of telecom giant TalkTalk, which commissioned the research among 2,050 people, said: The speed of the online world is making us less prepared to wait for things to happen in the offline world.

"This is prompting people to reach the point of impatience earlier than ever before."

Top points of impatience:

Waiting for an Internet page to load 3 mins 38 secs

Waiting on hold on telephone 5 mins 4 secs

Waiting for the kettle to boil 5 mins 6 secs

Waiting for food in a restaurant 8 mins 38 secs

Waiting for friends to show up 10 mins 1 secs

Waiting for a tradesman to show 10 mins 43 secs

Waiting for someone to reply to a vm/text 13 mins 16 secs

Average 8 mins 22 seconds

(Read by Guanny Liu. Guanny Liu is a multimedia journalist at the China Daily Web site.)

(Agencies)