Britons have been stripping their homes bare to cover the rising cost of living with many selling even their fridges and freezers to get by.

Almost one in 10 Britons have parted ways with a household appliance or vehicle to raise funds to cover their bills.

A poll of 2,000 people found 14 percent had sold their fridge while 13 percent had flogged their freezer and 11 percent had cashed in their washing machine.

Six percent of respondents were in ‘appliance poverty’, lacking a fridge, freezer, cooker or washing machine.

The most popular items to cash in were vehicles, with almost one in four people trading in their car.

Many people also had to sell their coffee machines, with 23 percent of people selling theirs, and televisions, with one in five ditching their gogglebox.

Faced with rising energy bills, almost seven in 10 people had turned down their heating or switched it off entirely.

More than half of people had reduced their use of the washing machine, while one in four people had trimmed back their use of the tumble dryer and oven.

More than 25 percent of those polled had also reduced their use of the kettle and dishwasher while one in four had trimmed back their social activities to save money.

A spokesperson for OnePoll, which commissioned the research, said: "As the shorter nights close in and temperatures begin to dip, people's focus will start to shift towards those winter months.

"Our research shows there is a burgeoning amount of people who are having to rely on others to get by.

"Only 74 per cent of people say they have not needed any financial help - but it could mean more than a quarter do still need financial help."

Only two percent of those spoken to said they were confident the economy would recover in the next 12 months.

A further 11 per cent said they believe their household financial situation will get tighter and they may have to further reduce their use of appliances.

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