With a 5% increase in the energy price cap this January, households in the UK can still take measures to slash energy bills by following tips provided by the Energy Saving Trust (EST).
The new gas and electricity prices, revised by Ofgem on 1st January, prompted EST to recalculate potential savings, revealing that households can save up to £648 per year.
Ofgem’s energy price cap determines the maximum charges suppliers can impose for gas and electricity units, updating every three months.
For households in Britain paying through direct debit, the capped unit rate is 28.62p/kWh for electricity with a daily standing charge of 53.35p and 7.42p/kWh for gas with a daily standing charge of 29.60p.
According to Ofgem’s Typical Domestic Consumption Values, an average household can expect to pay around £1,928 per year on energy bills, reflecting a £94 increase from the previous quarter.
The EST suggests several tips to help households achieve energy savings, including turning off appliances on standby, reducing laundry load and washing at 30°C, running the dishwasher only when full and boiling the required amount of water in the kettle.
Furthermore, sealing windows and doors with DIY draught-proofing strips and making other adjustments to reduce heat loss could lead to substantial savings, according to EST’s recommendations.
In addition to these tips, the EST recommends investing in insulation against future price increases.
While insulating cavity walls and the loft may cost around £2,700 for a typical three-bed semi-detached home, households can expect an annual saving on energy bills of around £280.
