More than a third of Brits have already started Christmas shopping

The survey of 1,067 UK adults conducted by heating oil supplier, Super Saver Oil, revealed 34 per cent have already begun to stock up on essential items to beat the pre-Christmas supermarket rush, as many found that popular items run out by the time people need to restock.

A quarter of Brits run out of batteries before the Christmas season begins and a further 21 per cent said they had run out of drinks.

For 19 per cent it was running out of cleaning products such as washing-up liquid and dishwasher tablets, while 16 per cent said they ran out of laundry detergent. A further 11 per cent even claimed to have used up all the toilet roll.

Other popular items likely to dissipate are kitchen foil, parcel tape and firelighters.

Mark Hackett, project manager, said: “It’s not surprising that so many are stocking up early, as despite people’s best intentions, the research shows that many often run out of household essentials well before Christmas day itself, resulting in unwanted trips to the shops when stocks are at the lowest.

“With less than 100 days to go until Christmas, our advice would be to ensure that you stock up on items such as heating fuel as early as possible, particularly for those in the countryside where access to amenities or major supermarkets can be limited.”

With the average Christmas estimated to cost £506 per family, Super Saver Oil is urging people to think ahead this year to avoid unnecessary dashes to the shops.

The items consumers are most likely to run out of at Christmas are:-

Food – 48 per cent

Home heating fuel (coal, logs and oil) – 26 per cent

Batteries – 24 per cent

Drinks - 21 per cent

Cleaning products – 19 per cent

Laundry detergent - 16 per cent

Loo roll –11 per cent

Kitchen foil - 9 per cent

Parcel tape – 5 per cent

Firelighters - 3 per cent