Ofgem’s energy price cap is increasing from £1,277 to £1,971 on 1st April, adding £693* a year for people on their supplier’s standard variable rate tariff (SVR). If you’re on a prepayment meter, you could see an increase of £708from £1,309 to £2,017.
So, what can you do to cut your energy bill? Here are a few simple tips to save money and reduce your carbon footprint:
- 1) Washing your clothes at 300C instead of higher temperatures, uses about 40% less energy, saving you at least £75 a year — just ensure you have a suitable laundry detergent.
- 2) The average UK household spends £60 a year* powering appliances left on “standby” (50kgCO2e) – so switch it off at the plug!
- 3) Turning off appliances after use, such as laptops, TVs, printers and washing machines at the plug could save you roughly £45 a year.
- 4) Laptops typically use 85% less electricity a year than desktop PCs. Choosing a laptop over a desktop and reducing the time on “standby” could save up to £38 per year (25kgCO2e). Tablets have even lower energy usage: on average tablets use 70% less power than laptops.
- 5) Smart speakers generally cost around £8 per year (6kgCO2e) to run, with most of the cost from running them on standby. Do you really need them on 24 hours a day? Digital radios are similar to smart speakers and should be switched off when you leave the room, instead of leaving them on standby.
- 6) Three quarters of us admit we at least occasionally boil the kettle with more water than we’re going to use. Buying an ECO kettle that only boils the amount of water required can use 20% less energy than a conventional electric kettle, or even easier, just avoid overfilling and save £8 a year on your electricity bill (10kgCO2e)!
- 7) Microwaves are often a much more energy efficient way of cooking food than in the oven. Unlike ovens, microwaves only heat your food and not the air-space inside.
If you apply all the above you could cut your electricity bill by about £234, not bad for doing very little!
GreenChew 