2020 was a year none of us will forget. Some months felt like they lasted an entire year and some months raced by. In 2020, we worked through notable stats, which as of time of publishing include:

• 10.3 M - how many people watched SpaceX's first astronaut launch¹
• 1,200,000 - how many Dua Lipa "Don’t Start Now" UK sales were certified²
• 82.8 - the % of service games Serena Williams won³
• 300-2000 - how many pubs are estimated to have been lost during the pandemic⁴
• 2.1M - number of UK Covid-19 cases
• 3 - how many lockdowns/circuit breakers we had
• £6B - amount spent in the UK on Black Friday/Cyber Monday⁵

As for Local Heroes? Through a once-in-a-century pandemic, we continued to provide our services safely and efficiently. We are a digital business driven by data and statistics. As we did last year, we have asked our data team to take a look at some of our numbers from 2020 and see what they tell us about our customers and our country.

Cyber stats

In 2020, Local Heroes installed almost 1094 smart devices, including Hive thermostats and Ring doorbells.

More than 85,000 electric vehicles were sold in the UK in 2020, at least a 125% year on year increase⁶

The number of electric vehicle sales in the UK reached over 85000, a 125% increase year on year6. While still small compared to the overall market, the shift towards greener modes of transport is growing. 5.8% of new cars purchased are electric, compared to 1.5% last year. There are now over 12,000 charging locations in the UK. Local Heroes launched our electric vehicle charger installation service in 2019 and have installed our chargers at an average cost of £491 (after OLEV grant discount).

Cold facts

While the temperature nation-wide was about 1.0 °C higher than the long-term average, the record highs of 2019 were thankfully not matched this year. With many more people at home, experimenting with baking and crafts, we fixed 115 blocked sinks and installed 400 taps.

As the temperatures dropped, many more people at home during the pandemic began to turn on their heating. Many would find that their heating systems, radiators, or boilers aren't working properly.

The average cost of servicing a boiler was £103.52, much less than other repairs.

In 2020, Local Heroes helped repair 6899 customers' boilers and central heating systems including:

• 392 boilers showing a fault code
• 299 radiators not heating up
• 39 broken thermostats and
• 1328 needing a Local Hero to investigate

We carried out over 2,600 boiler services in 2020. The average cost of a boiler service was £103.52, which was much lower than the average for all kinds of boiler repair, continuing to prove prevention is better than cure.

Rainy records

The UK usually gets about 133 days of rain every year a.k.a. at least twice a week! This year had even more than normal - with June, July and August having over 120% of their average amount⁷.

These amounts of rainfall make their mark on the pipes and drains at home. One of our most popular jobs, as you might imagine, is fixing leaking pipes.

In 2020, Local Heroes plumbers and drainage engineers fixed 742 leaking pipes, dripping overflows, broken waste pipes and blocked external drains. Increased rainfall can also find its way into our homes and we also helped 84 customers with dripping or damp walls.

We also engaged with you more than ever before. Our first ever Youtube ad campaign launched, we sent newsletters every month and made more than 10 exclusive offers to customers. Our customers gave us over 3,600 TrustPilot Reviews in 2020, with an average score of 4.7 out of 5 which we are incredibly proud of.

Maddy Howlett, head of Local Heroes, says "As a data-led business we're always keeping track of our customers' needs to make sure we can keep a step ahead, and that has been more important than ever this year. We're really proud to be helping people adopt new technologies into their homes, and our data and insight are key to help us listen and prepare so we can be there right when we're needed."

Thank you for being part of the Local Heroes journey in 2020. Here's to a successful and healthy 2021!