One in nine mortgages in the UK are now subject to a payment holiday, the data revealed.

For the average mortgage holder, the payment holiday amounts to £260 per month of suspended interest payments.

The number of mortgage payment holidays in place more than tripled in the two weeks between 25 March and 8 April, growing from 392,130 to 1,240,680.

This is an increase of nearly 850,000 or an average of around 61,000 payment holidays being granted by lenders each day.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the mortgage payment holiday scheme on 17 March and since then, lenders have been inundated by requests to freeze payments as Covid-19 threatens livelihoods and adds pressure to finances.

Stephen Jones, chief executive of UK Finance, said: “Mortgage lenders have been working tirelessly to help homeowners get through this challenging period.

“The industry has pulled out all the stops in recent weeks to give an unprecedented number of customers a payment holiday, and we stand ready to help more over the coming months.”

Robin Fieth, Building Societies Association CEO, said: “We know this is a difficult time for many homeowners with a mortgage, and building society staff have been working hard to offer individuals the right solution.

“For almost a quarter of a million so far, that has been a three-month payment holiday offering a much needed breathing space to families whose household income is under severe pressure during the current crisis.”