UNNECESSARY maintenance calls cost Dudley Council more than £110,000 last year.

Council bosses have urged council house tenants to hit the nail on the head after it was calculated that during 2013, more than 8,000 repairs requests were lost due to customers not being present to let staff in, or because the visits were not required.

The money spent on staff time and fuel to get to those calls could have been used to replace approximately 30 kitchens or bathrooms or install more than 350 double-glazed windows according to Councillor Steve Waltho, cabinet member for housing.

He said: "The vast majority of our tenants use the repairs and maintenance service responsibly, for which I’m grateful, but a small number of residents are losing us a lot of money. £110,000 is a shocking amount which could be better spent.

"Please consider whether you really need us to conduct a repair, and if you do, please don’t forget the appointment. Tenants can contact our Repairs Management Centre at any time to re-arrange an appointment if it’s no longer convenient.”

Council house tenants can request repairs or maintenance work 24-hours a day, seven days a week by visiting www.dudley.gov.uk/housing or calling 0300 555 8283