BT is offering its business customers a free service upgrade for the next month to tackle problems caused by the bad weather. 

BT Business will provide free access to BT Assurance Plus for the next month, waving the usual £9 per line cost. 

The premium service offers 24/7 fault reporting across lines, broadband and BT Mobile services.

If a problem is found, BT Business manages the fault repair, handles call diversion and replaces handsets.

BT Assurance Plus can also setup a personalised messaging service where calls are diverted to a personalised mailbox.

In extreme cases BT Business can provide a mobile office, including a mobile phone with airtime, fax machine, a 3G GPRS data card or a mobile GSM terminal.

"With over 1.2 million small and medium-sized enterprise customers in the UK, BT Business is concerned about the impact on the business community, particularly those in the worst affected regions of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the Midlands," a BT statement said.

"While the first priority is personal safety and safeguarding people's homes, BT Business has a team of service professionals on hand to offer support and advice to get IT and communication services back up and running as the clean-up operation begins."

BT Business customers who have a fault can call 0800 990088 and quote reference 'Extreme Weather Offer'.