The cold weather has seen a “surge in demand” for repairs to council properties in Perth and Kinross over the winter period - reaching around 100 calls a day.
Calls to PKC’s Housing Repairs Service Centre rose by 150 per cent during the peak of the lower temperatures earlier this month with most calls related to leaks, frozen pipes or frozen condensate pipes.
Council staff worked to make urgent repairs and delivered temporary heaters and bottled water to tenants as required.
It comes on top of the warm homes packs - including blankets, flasks and hot water bottles - handed out to struggling families by the council over the same period.
Although the number of calls has returned to normal levels, housing and social wellbeing convener councillor Tom McEwan is urging householders to take steps to protect their homes this winter.
He said: “Prolonged cold snaps like we saw before Christmas inevitably put pressure on our housing repairs team.
“Sadly, the cost-of-living crisis means people worried about their fuel bills will be reluctant to heat their homes as well as they normally would.
“Although the weather has improved, I’d ask tenants to prepare as best they can for further cold weather and protect their homes as much as possible.
“If there is another drop in temperatures, remember that our phone lines may get busy so please be patient if you don’t get through straight away.
“We will do everything we can to deal with repairs as quickly as possible.”
Councillor McEwan added there is advice and support available to help tenants protect their homes.
“SCARF can provide information about energy efficiency and heating their homes while our Welfare Rights Team can make sure tenants are receiving all the winter payments and benefits they are entitled to,” he said.
“Our Support and Housing officers are targeting those tenants most at risk and providing tailored advice and assistance, particularly to those struggling financially and are providing advice on how to protect their homes this winter.”
He concluded: “Our website also has plenty of information on how to protect your home. If you can, leaving you heating on at a low temperature, around 15C, overnight will prevent freezing and the problems that can cause.
“We’ll also have staff working throughout the Christmas period to make sure we can support our tenants affected by the recent cold weather.”
