Britain braces for next big freeze
With Britain facing another cold snap that looks to last well beyond Christmas, retailers are preparing for a surge in panic buying of those much needed essentials.
From food and toiletries, to medicine and entertainment, it seems Brits are experts on how to stock up and sit tight. Yet despite our stockpiling habits, it seems many forget to check their heating system is still up to the job, according to the npower hometeam.This month has been the busiest of the year for boiler breakdowns, with calls to npower hometeam increasing by 80%.
Richard Cotton, head of sales for npower hometeam, comments that this peak in mid-winter breakdowns is a result of boilers working overtime without regular services or checks.
“Most homeowners will agree that keeping their home warm is a priority during the winter period, but people often don’t even think about it until something goes wrong.
“With boilers working at full capacity, an unexpected breakdown can happen at any time and can be extremely disruptive, not to mention costly. By following a simple winter checklist homeowners can be better prepared for the season, and this year, npower has a series of incentives to try and make winter that bit easier,” he said.
npower’s winter checklist:
1. Healthy heating system
Make sure your heating system is working as efficiently and responsively as possible. Older systems work at reduced efficiency and are at a higher risk of breaking down, so make sure your system has been serviced recently.
By signing up to central heating care, you will also be protected if anything should go wrong. npower is currently offering its hometeam 50 care product for just £15 a month, which is £2 cheaper than British Gas’s equivalent product and includes a 30 point service. Should anything go wrong with your system, you can call out an engineer at no extra charge to fix the problem. And if you are an npower gas and electricity customer and don’t need to call them out during your agreement npower will give you a 50% refund on your one year anniversary.
2. Keep well insulated
Research suggests that 43 percent of homes have less than half the recommended amount of insulation in their roof spaces, whilst 73 percent are not aware of the correct amount they should have. 1 Insulating your loft with up to 270mm of insulation will help your home retain heat, and in turn help you to save money.
npower is offering fully fitted loft insulation from just £149, which could save £145 every year on heating bills. It takes less than a day to fit and you don’t need to be an existing npower customer.
3. Go green this Christmas
By making your home more energy efficient, you will not only be doing your bit for the environment, but can also save money in the process. npower is encouraging customers to go green by switching their electricity to its green energy tariff, npower Juice.
npower Juice is npower’s certified green energy tariff with electricity that matches every unit of normal electricity that you use and feeds the same amount, generated from renewable sources, into the electricity network.
Richard Cotton, head of sales for npower hometeam, comments: “With everybody turning up their heating over the next few months many will be looking for more cost-effective, greener alternatives. An efficient and regularly serviced heating system, combined with adequate insulation, is the best way to keep your home warm and the energy bills down.
“npower Juice offers customers a greener alternative and a way of reducing their carbon footprint without compromising on warmth or comfort.”
What’s more, any customers who act quickly and sign up for a new boiler installation before 21st December, will be able to save money by taking advantage of this year’s VAT rate, even if the installation takes place after 3 January when the VAT increase takes effect.
For further information on hometeam 50, loft insulation or npower juice, visit npower.com.
