A LOCAL firefighter has warned that following Tik Tok tips on how to heat your home “could lead to disaster.”

The warning came during a discussion over whether to cost of living crisis could lead to people engaging in risky behaviour to cut down on energy bills.

During a meeting of West Yorkshire Fire Authority’s Community Safety Committee Councillor Karen Renshaw (Lab, Leeds) raised concerns that rising energy bills and tightening budgets would lead to more people using candlelight to light their homes – increasing the risk of fire.

She also questioned whether people would skip changing the batteries in smoke alarms to save cash.

Scott Donegan, area manager with responsibility for operations and risk reduction at West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said there were concerns that more people may use candles more regularly.

He has also recently raised concerns that households may start lighting fires in fireplaces that could be blocked after years of inactivity.

He said some people had also been sharing risky tips on how to save on heating bills online. He said: “There are TikTok trends about how to cheaply heat your home that I could see ending in disaster.

“I don’t particularly want to say what this advice is in the record, because I don’t want anyone to go and try it.”