Big freeze 'cost households £2 billion' for emergency repairs » Housing » 24dash.com

Millions of Britons will be forced to fork out for hefty snow-related repairs to their homes from their own pockets, according to a new report.

The cost of last month's big freeze on households topped £2 billion - and millions of homes were uninsured.

An estimated 5.9 million homes were hit with average repair bills of £343, a report by HomeServe, the home emergency and repair firm, revealed.

Its research suggested that just one in five of those households, or 21%, were insured for the emergency.

That means a total of 4,779,000 households were uninsured - and a worrying 472,000 of those claim they cannot afford repair costs.

Boiler repair call-outs hit a massive 2.2 million households during the big freeze - average bills were £351.

That headline figure represented almost one in 10 UK households (9%), and proved to be the most common problem.

A total of 1.24 million households suffered central heating misery, 5% of UK homes, paying an average £294 for repairs.

A similar total of 1.24 million households also suffered water leaks, and were charged an average £242 for the repair.

Almost one million households suffered a burst pipe (4%), paying £31 on average to put right.

The most costly repair was for roof damage, hitting a total of 999,000 (4%) households and costing £546 on average to put right.

The survey also reveals that the North East was hardest hit during the cold snap, with 42% of people suffering home emergencies.

Jon Florsheim, chief executive officer of HomeServe Membership, said: "Having to cope without hot water and heating, or suffering a burst pipe or leaking roof, is distressing enough but for many people receiving the repair bill is the biggest upset.

"The recent cold snap will see many households wondering how they will pay for these unanticipated costs.

"On average we've attended 24,000 call-outs every week during the cold spell and we've found around six in 10 people are taking out insurance so that they are covered the next time they face an emergency of this kind."

HomeServe compiled its survey using ICM research data of 4,000 people conducted over January 23-24 2010.

A total of 24% of people reported problems with their property that were related to the cold weather.

Numbers have been extrapolated based on the 24,700,000 households in the UK.

Household emergencies experienced during the cold spell (Showing the problem, numbers affected and average repair bill):

Boiler 9% 2.22 million £351

Central heating 5% 1.24 million £294

Water leaks 5% 1.24 million £242

Burst pipes 4% 990,000 £31

Roof 4% 990,000 £546

Electricity 3% 741,000 £302

Pests 3% 741,000 £64

Source: HomeServe