Getting Warmer? Why recent progress on energy bills falls short for high-need households

Getting Warmer? Why recent progress on energy bills falls short for high-need households 1.49 MB

It is now four years since the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered a rapid rise in energy prices. In those four years, the price of energy bills has moved from a cyclical challenge to a structural threat to household financial stability in the UK. Energy bills are still high by historical standards and are around 54% higher than in January 2021, despite Government intervention.

While many households are now able to cover their energy bills, a significant proportion of households have found themselves in a deeper crisis. New, nationally representative polling commissioned by Citizens Advice shows how high energy bills remain a key financial challenge facing millions of households.

Hardship caused by high energy bills is increasingly concentrated among specific groups on low incomes, who cannot easily shift their energy usage. 

These include those on means tested benefits and those with higher energy needs such as households with children and those with disabilities or long term health conditions. Other groups, like renters, may be living in less energy efficient homes that they are unable to make upgrades to. 

While those who rely solely on electricity pay disproportionately high costs. In our survey, 35% of renters said they struggled to reliably afford their energy bills and 30% of those who only used electricity said they struggled to afford theirs. Furthermore, national statistics tell us that electrically heated households are twice as likely to be fuel poor, with an affordability gap which is nearly three times larger than those who use gas.