24 November 2008
Six out of ten UK households have no heating cover in place to meet the cost of repairs should their boiler or heating system break down this winter.
This is the finding of a survey carried out by uSwitch.com, which also revealed that one in 20 households have cancelled their heating cover to save money.
In addition, 42% of households are putting their safety and their finances at risk by failing to get their boiler serviced regularly.
According to the independent price comparison and switching service, almost one in three boilers break down within six years of installation.
uSwitch calculates the average cost of replacing four key boiler parts is £1,200, which could leave consumers significantly out of pocket if their boiler were to break down unexpectedly.
Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, said: "Boiler cover can cost as little as £5.99 a month and some policies also offer a free annual gas safety check as part of the scheme, so you can get real peace of mind for very little cost."
James Parkinson, a green technology expert with the boiler manufacturer Vaillant, said recently that households could save up to £240 a year on their heating bills by ugrading to a more energy efficient boiler.