The average upfront cost of remortgaging is estimated to be £1,100, which means Britons regularly remortgaging could be paying nearly £14,000 too much, according to Abbey.

New research shows almost half (48 per cent) of all homeowners have switched lenders at some point, with 52 per cent of these people doing so in the past five years. However, people planning to remortgage could be saving money by choosing lenders which do not have upfront costs.

Jeff Scott, Abbey's head of mortgages, explained: "Remortgaging can save a borrower a significant amount of money in monthly mortgage payments but it is important to consider all fees and charges involved, not just the headline mortgage rate.

"The average cost of remortgaging could be £1,100, so a new rate would have to be more than 0.8 per cent cheaper over two years in order to balance out that cost.

"People should therefore consider mortgage deals with no up-front fees to reduce costs, or consider switching to a mortgage with a lifetime rate so they don't have to remortgage again."

Two-thirds of homeowners want to switch lenders for a better rate to reduce monthly payments.