Martin Lewis warns homeowners to act now or face whopping £9,000 bill this winter

The consumer champion has issued a stark warning to households across the UK as the weather gets colder. Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis took to social media to issue the plea

Martin Lewis has issued a stark warning to homeowners about locating a hidden switch in their homes to avoid a potential £9k bill this winter.

The BBC Sounds and ITV star's advice comes as the weather takes a turn for the worse, with temperatures dropping significantly.

On his website, Mr Lewis highlighted the importance of knowing where your home's stopcock is - a mains water tap also known as the off switch. He said: "If you don't know where yours is, your house could be flooded with water everywhere, while you have no idea how to stop it.

"A stopcock is your mains water tap (the off switch). Everyone should know where theirs is, especially at this time of year when pipes can burst due to frost."

The off switch helps to halt the flow of water through these pipes, and according to Mr Lewis, "before winter hits, it's good to know how to turn your water off should you need to."

Taking to social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, he asked: "Do you know where your stopcock is" and warned that "burst frozen pipes create on average £9,000 + of damage."

If your stopcock isn't functioning properly, he advises calling a plumber now – before any issues arise. Money Saving Expert readers shared their own experiences, with one revealing: "Mine is in the bathroom at the side of the bath. V. strange," while another said: "Ours is next to the front door, behind a screwed-on panel! Great in case of emergencies (not)," and a third added: "In our area, the stopcock is in the front room next to the fireplace, so another place to find them,".

"Mine's underneath the oven – we have to lie on our stomach and wriggle to reach it! " one person shared. "Behind the sink in the bathroom," chimed in another.

A third contributor mentioned, "Some people may have a posh stopcock button, rather than a turntable valve," "Under the floorboards in the dining room," revealed yet another.

Earlier, we reported on the numerous ways to save a bit of extra cash on your energy bills this winter if you are worried about the cost of the cold season.

There are all sorts of strange tips and bits of folklore about keeping warm in winter, from painting your radiators black to putting tea lights inside plant pots. In response to these claims, Martin Lewis ’ team at the Money Saving Expert website put together a list of heating myths to bust.

Interestingly one of the commonly recommended heating hacks they said actually worked was using radiator panels to keep heat in. “Radiator panels can save energy, but not very much,” the team said. “It's more important that your walls are insulated, to prevent the heat leaking out of your home altogether.”