NHF figures reveal that UK renters pay an average £750 a month, over double the European average of £343. UK renters also spend the highest proportion of their income on rent, with 40 per cent of their pay covering rent on average – compared with a European average of 28 per cent.

By comparison, Swedish renters pay an average of £356 monthly (34.8 per cent of their monthly income), French renters £426 monthly (29.5 per cent), German renters £428 (25 per cent) and Dutch renters £446 (28.5 per cent).

In terms of rent cost, only rental tenants in Switzerland come close to UK levels, with an average rent of £586 – although this represents 31.9 per cent of their monthly income. Tenants in Spain spend 39 per cent of their monthly income on rent, just behind Britain – although a typical months’ rent in Spain is £443.

NHF figures also indicate that shorter tenancy agreements in the UK have resulted in 77 per cent of renters in the UK moving home in the last five years, compared to a European total of 43 per cent.

The NHF report follows Halifax statistics which suggested that growing numbers of people are moving back in with their parents, despite mortgage rates at record lows, and an increasing availability of mortgages for those with small deposits, and two thirds of UK consumers now rely on financial support from their parents to purchase their first home.

“UK rents are the highest in Europe – but not only do British renters face crippling rents, they have almost no certainty about whether they will be able to stay in their home from one year to the next,” said David Orr, chief executive at the NHF.