I replaced a couple of tyres today (one of them apparently hadn't been changed in 13 years) and the guys at the garage told me that I had a loose wheel bearing. They tightened it up for me, but told me to watch out for it going again as "the wheel might fall off". Would it be an expensive job to get it replaced? My mileage is pretty low (5-6k a year) so is it worth bothering with at all?

front or rear?

the front ones are set by torque (f####ing tight) but the rears are just taper bearings and set by hand really and locked in place by a split pin, its common to have a small amount of play in the rears but maybe worth having them repacked with grease sometime

The rear are relatively easy to replace. Bearings cost me around £8-10. It might take a bit of effort to knock the outer race out of the drum but I just used a large socket and hammer.

I had to get my uncle to do the front ones, I think he ended up replacing the whole hub on one side as well, as the bolts had snapped trying to get it out.

The rear are relatively easy to replace. Bearings cost me around £8-10. It might take a bit of effort to knock the outer race out of the drum but I just used a large socket and hammer.

I had to get my uncle to do the front ones, I think he ended up replacing the whole hub on one side as well, as the bolts had snapped trying to get it out.

Yup, it's one of the rear ones. Sounds like it's not that big a deal to get it fixed, so I'll probably have it done next time I take it in for something else. Thanks for the advice guys, much appreciated.