Wet winter and rising energy bills driven by Middle East war spark damp and mould warning

Months of wet weather combined with increasing energy prices driven by the Middle East conflict risks leaving more people exposed to damp and mould, a health charity has warned.

Asthma + Lung UK said new Met Office data shows rainfall this winter has been above the seasonal average for the last three decades in most of the UK. Coupled with the fallout from the US-Israel war with Iran, it could see households struggle to afford to keep their homes warm if energy bills increase.

That risks creating the perfect conditions for damp and mould to form inside homes across the country, said Dr Andy Whittamore, clinical lead at Asthma + Lung UK, and a practicing GP.

 “Even before events in the Middle East raised the spectre of higher energy bills, we were already concerned about the wet weather increasing damp and mould and affecting people’s health,” said Dr Whittamore.

“A damp and mouldy environment can also put people at greater risk of chest infections, colds, flu and rhinitis.”  

Mould usually appears as fuzzy black, white or green patches on the walls, ceiling or tiles and often smells damp and musty.

It spreads via airborne spores to almost any organic surface with moisture, including walls, ceilings, furniture, carpets, fabric and wood and can be very difficult to get rid of.

A third of people with lung conditions (33%) said that mould and fungi were triggers for them, causing symptoms such as wheezing, coughing and breathlessness, Asthma + Lung UK’s most recent annual survey found.

Dr Whittamore added: “For the seven million people in the UK living with asthma and the three million people living with COPD being exposed to a trigger like mould can bring on a potentially fatal asthma attack, or cause a COPD flare-up requiring hospitalisation. 

“Studies have also shown that long term exposure to mould can bring on the development of asthma in previously healthy people, particularly children, as well as other lung conditions such as aspergillosis, a condition caused by breathing in aspergillus mould.”

Wet weather causes an increase in the moisture levels inside homes, creating the ideal environment for harmful mould spores to germinate.

One of the most effective ways to prevent mould from spreading is to keep homes heated to at least 18 degrees celsius.

But for many people struggling with the rising costs of living and fuel, reaching that temperature isn’t an option.

Before the recent spike in oil prices, 17% of people with lung conditions told Asthma + Lung UK said they couldn’t afford to keep their homes adequately warm.

One in five people with asthma surveyed by the charity in 2022, when energy prices last peaked, said that they’d had an asthma attack because of price hikes and had also had to cut down on heating, food and medicine.

The issue affects families like Decoda Smith and her two children.

The 36-year-old mother-of-two, from London, has spent years living in mouldy rented properties and both she and her two daughters, Georgia, nine, and Anastasia, two, have asthma, which is exacerbated by their living conditions.

Her problems with damp and mould have followed her through several homes since 2019, from faulty boilers and water leaks to her home being flooded with raw sewage in 2024, as previously reported by Big Issue.

She said: “We have all been hospitalised with our asthma several times and I am coughing and wheezing constantly and have to use my reliever inhaler a lot more than I used to.

“I worry a lot about my daughters and their asthma, because I know the mould is making their conditions worse. Georgina often wakes up in the nighttime coughing and I’ve had to call an ambulance out for Anastasia three times in the last year alone.” 

The Renters’ Rights Act is set to come into force on 1 May, pledging to introduce a decent homes standard and Awaab’s Law to address damp and mould in private rented properties in England. Scotland’s new housing legislation also looks to introduce the latter.

Ahead of the reforms, Generation Rent said renters are most likely to experience fuel poverty with 40% of tenants regularly struggling to pay their energy bills. 

Read more:

• Dad of boy who died due to mould in flat says he’s ‘proud’ of his son for saving lives
• Family trapped in damp and mouldy horror home for 10 years: ‘This family is owed respect’
• Awaab’s Law is about more than damp and mould – it’s about what kind of country we want to be

The renting campaigners have called for tenants to be able to claim rent back if landlords do not reach energy performance certificate C by 2030.

Ben Twomey, chief executive of Generation Rent, said renters could see “bill savings cancelled out by rent rises” if energy efficiency reforms aren’t handled carefully.

Asthma + Lung UK, as part of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, is also calling for the government to swiftly implement its £15 billion Warm Homes Plan, which was revealed in January this year.

Top tips for preventing damp and mould from the experts at Asthma + Lung UK

1. Open windows and doors so air can move around. But be cautious during high pollution or high pollen days if these are triggers for you.  

2. Try to avoid drying clothes indoors. If you have no outside space to dry them, make sure the room is well-aired. 

3. Try to keep your home at a good background temperature, at least 18 degrees.  

4. Use extractor fans in the kitchen and bathroom or open a window when cooking or after a shower to get rid of moisture in the air.  

5. Some people find that de-humidifiers help to dry the air and prevent damp and mould. But make sure you get the setting right as leaving the air too dry might make you cough.  

6. Know where your reliever inhaler is so you can take it quickly if you get symptoms and make sure you carry your reliever inhaler wherever you go. If you do need your reliever inhaler three or more times a week, see your GP or asthma nurse.

7. Use your preventer inhaler as prescribed and follow your asthma action plan.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. 

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