Energy bills: Britons’ simple changes save £22 a month

Families forced to be more power-conscious amid constant price cap rises

British households have reduced their energy bills by £22 a month by making simple changes since the price cap rise in April, such as leaving hair to dry naturally, switching devices off at the socket and limiting use of the tumble dryer.

In a survey of 5,000 adults, 28 per cent said 2022 was the first summer they had tried consciously to reduce their energy use.

These attempts included turning off unused lights (49 per cent), switching off appliances at the socket (39 per cent) and disconnecting phone chargers at the mains (37 per cent).

Hanging washing outside as opposed to using a dryer (38 per cent) and letting their hair dry naturally instead of using a hairdryer (26 per cent) were also popular, commonsense changes.

For those who adjusted their energy habits for summer, bills fell by an average of £22.09 a month. The monthly financial saving over the course of the year would amount to almost £270.

The research was commissioned by Smart Energy GB. TV presenter Dominic Littlewood, who is working with the company, said: “Visiting homes across Great Britain was an eye opener.

“It’s clear that people have become more energy conscious – even though sometimes it’s one member of the household leading the change.

“Whilst many people are taking lots of positive steps to manage their energy use, by working directly with families we found we were able to identify more simple steps they could take.”

The survey also found 28 per cent of households used fans to cool off during the warmer months, with nearly one in five (17 per cent) leaving them on all night, according to the OnePoll figures.

Charlene Lijertwood, who was visited by Dom Littlewood as part of a promotional campaign, said: “We’ve been making a lot of changes around the home to try and reduce our energy bills.

“And with bills increasing as much as they have, my husband and I have also taken on extra work to increase our income.

“We considered ourselves to be on top of it but speaking to Dom has shown us ways to save energy we wouldn’t have considered otherwise.”

Victoria Bacon, director at Smart Energy GB, added: “The summer is traditionally a time that energy use and bills are pushed to the back of our minds, but the energy price cap increase has changed that.

“It’s encouraging to see that during the cost-of-living crisis, households are making positive changes to take back control of their energy use and household budgets.

“With another price cap rise in October, instilling these habits during the warmer months will have a positive impact on energy bills as usage starts to rise again in winter.”

Top 10 energy-saving tactics

• Turning lights off when not needed
• Boiling the kettle with only the water necessary for your drink
• Turn devices off at the socket instead of putting them on standby
• Leaving the heating off completely
• Hanging washing to dry outside instead of using a dryer
• Unplug phone chargers/turn them off at mains when not in use
• Minimise use of electrical appliances
• Washing clothes on a cooler temperature
• Reducing heating usage
• Letting hair dry naturally rather than using a hairdryer