Finance

69 expensive fails that hurt so bad to look at, you may physically feel it

Bored Panda · Apr 22, 2026 20:20 · 6 min read

69 Expensive Fails That Hurt So Bad To Look At, You May Physically Feel It

Mistakes are a part of life. It’s how we learn and grow as individuals, and for the most part, we can eventually brush them off and move on. However, some mistakes are so costly that simply charging them to experience can be painful. Here are some examples, as featured on the That Looks Expensive subreddit.

We all make mistakes. They are essential for our growth as individuals. And oftentimes, we can eventually brush these blunders off and move on.

However, some slip-ups can be costly. And as much as you want to charge it to experience and soldier on, the amount incurred may be too painful to simply walk away from.

Here are some specific examples, as featured on the That Looks Expensive subreddit. If the name itself isn’t enough of a giveaway, check out some of the posts from the page, which we’ve compiled for this list.

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#1 Oopsies

#2 A BMW Wrecked By A Tree

#3 So Thats How You Make A Convertible Car

Workplace mistakes are not only costly, but they can also lead to an adverse company-wide ripple effect. A 2024 report by Siemens revealed that unplanned downtime often results in a 11% revenue decrease, amounting to $1.4 trillion in losses globally.

For context, $1.4 trillion is almost 100% of Spain’s GDP of that same year.

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#4 In 2007, A Brand-New Airbus A340-600 (For Etihad) Was Wrecked During A Ground Engine Test In Toulouse

No wheel blocks were used; parking brake failed to hold it. Plane rolled forward, crew delayed cutting engines - hit a wall at ~35 mph. Nose smashed through; plane totaled before delivery

#5 A Family Left Their House Over Winter And A Water Boiler Broke, Causing Mold

#6 Sinkhole In Germany Yesterday

The importance of cybersecurity has been underscored in recent years, given the cases of compromised accounts that led to numerous data leaks. However, Proofpoint’s 2024 Voice of the CISO report revealed that 74 percent of data breaches are caused by human error.

#7 Supercar Storage In Cheshire Burned Down

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#8 Bus Crashed Through A Glass At The Train Station In Hamburg

#9 A Fire On A Private Jet Hangar Triggered The Foam Extinguisher System

Company payroll isn’t exempt from human error, and yes, these blunders can be very costly. According to a 2024 report by Axiom, 1 in 5 payrolls contain errors, and each mistake costs an average of $291.

Ernst & Young’s research also found that a company with 1,000 employees could spend nearly $1 million each year correcting payroll errors.

#10 “We Have Destroyed Iran’s Offensive Capabilities”

#11 Dumb Truck 70mph+ Hits Interstate Bridge

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#12 Ferrari

Mistakes are definitely avoidable, especially those that could leave you in deep debt. Author Dr. Alice Boyes, who specializes in social psychology and cognitive behavioral therapy, shared a few tips. One of them is not to expect to be the exception.

#13 Expensive Tip

#14 That's An Expensive Paint Job!

#15 Duct Tape Won't Help

“Search out data about reality versus the best-case scenario,” Dr. Boyes advises. “Plan for what's typical rather than what's ideal. When we assume what usually happens will happen to us, we can often handle those scenarios more smartly.”

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#16 Someone's Insurance Company Isn't Going To Be Happy

#17 Giant Beehive Takes Over Roof. That's A Lot Of Honey

#18 Tractoff

#19 Silly Tank Can't Pole Vault

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#20 My Buddy Hit A Muskrat Hole While Out On The Lake

#21 I Think We Need Some Aircraft Tape

#22 In Germany, A Fully Loaded Truck With Meat Scraps, Tipped Over On The Highway

#23 You Know It's Expensive When You Need A Seat To Call The Insurance Company

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#24 Someone Spent ~$850,000 USD On Roses To Fill An Entire Apartment Lobby In Moscow. The Person They Did It For Still Hasn't Shown Up

So this happened in Moscow's luxury residential building.

Someone ordered 1 million roses (yes, million) and had delivery crews unloading them all night. Total cost - roughly $850,000 USD.

The entire first floor lobby is now a wall-to-wall carpet of red roses. Looks like a movie set.

The person they were for hasn't shown up.

Neighbors say nobody has come to claim the flowers.

#25 A Fokker 50 Turboprop After Suffering A Malfunction On Takeoff Today In Mogadishu, Somalia

#26 Customer Ignored The Pressure Rating Of His Cylinder And Shot Oil Out At Such A High Pressure It Cut 1 Inch Thick Steel

#27 The Genesis Space Probe, After Its Parachute Failed To Open

Genesis was a NASA mission to collect samples of the solar wind in 2004. It was to have returned these samples to Earth in a capsule that would have landed by parachute in the Utah desert, but the parachute failed to open, so the capsule crash-landed at over 200 miles per hour.