More than 1.7 million households say they will not turn on their heating this winter, according to research by comparison site Uswitch. This has risen sharply from the 972,000 who said they took this drastic step last year.
The research reported that 55% of households cited rising living costs as the reason they would hold out on heating their homes, while a quarter of pensioners put it down to the loss of winter fuel payments, despite it being a potential health risk.
Searches for hot-water bottles on the Argos website have increased by 257% year on year, while demand for heated blankets is up by 224% as people prepare for evenings at home.
Elise Melville, the energy expert at Uswitch.com, said: “Cold weather can be challenging for households struggling with their energy bills, but spending winter in a cold home can be a health risk and households should keep the temperature at safe levels.”
Heated apparel can be a “huge cost saver”, said Johanna Lueders, the director at heating solutions retailer Snugel.
“With heated blankets and heated gilets, we’ve seen customers save £100 per month on winter heating bills,” she said. “Even including the initial purchase price of a heated garment, there are still huge savings over time.”
When Ben and his partner, James, moved into their new house in Kent in 2020, some of their first investments were thermals, hot-water bottles, hoodie blankets and onesies.
With rising living costs, and energy prices rocketing, winter gear that once felt excessive had become a “godsend”, he said. This year, they are going to resist turning the heating on for as long as possible to try to keep costs down.
Janette, who is retired, plans to keep the heating turned off for as long as possible, and to heat only one room, rather than the whole house.
“This place was all electric heated, and I found that was much too expensive, so I had this gas fire put in. It’s much cheaper,” she said. “It’s a small living room, so that’s what I’m going to use when it gets cold.”
When her daughter stays over once a week, she puts out a “little space heater” to keep her warm and to prevent any damp or mould.
She puts hot-water bottles in bed before she gets in and was given an electric blanket by a friend.
“I have one of those blankets that you plug in and put on you if you happen to be watching television or something,” she said.
“But the thing is, your face gets cold when the air is cold around you, so it’s still not good if it starts snowing.
“It’s going to be really, really cold and I’ve got to keep warm. So it might mean having just more of my income go on heating, which means you can’t do other things.”
Thermostats should be set to between 18C and 21C, Melville said, “so households should try to keep within this range even when trying to save money”.
More than one in six (17%) households are planning to set their thermostats below the recommended levels to save money, with nearly one in 12 (8%) planning to heat their home to 17C, and 11% at 16C or lower, it found.
Melville added: “Electric blankets are a good way to keep warm, and cost a lot less to run than electric heaters. Hot-water bottles can also be a good option, offering hours of warmth for the cost of boiling a kettle.
“There are plenty of fixed energy deals currently available that are cheaper than the October price cap. By opting for a fixed deal, you can lock in those rates for the duration – usually 12 months – which means households could have more price certainty.”