How Much are You Paying for Electricity or Gas?

New research out yesterday revealed that 80% of people do not know how much they are paying for their electricity or gas. In addition to this the survey of more than 1200 people across the UK contacted by telephone in January 2008 by Drummond Madell, the majority believed that energy bills were the most difficult to understand.

The findings suggest that smart meters, may be able to reduce our energy usage and reduce CO2 emissions. Basic visual displays will be available free on request from energy suppliers from April.

Smart meters have been trialled in countries ranging from Sweden to the US but are not widely available in the UK yet. These trials have shown that householders who use smart meters can reduce their energy bills by between five and 10 per cent.

Based on savings of five per cent the Energy Saving Trust estimates that if everyone in the UK switched to smart meters British householders could save £1.2bn a year and the equivalent of 7.4 million tonnes of CO2.

"While the Energy White Paper outlined the need for energy suppliers to make better displays available to households free of charge on request, we would like to see the Government act more boldly and offer the support necessary to enable smart meters to be rolled out across the UK.

Smart meters are better than clip-ons because they offer two-way connectivity with the energy supplier - not only for electricity but also gas too; this means that the energy cost displayed would exactly match what you owed the energy supplier. You would also know the carbon cost of what you are doing.

In addition, smart meters offer the opportunity to track usage over a set period of time, meaning householders could identify when consumption is highest and therefore where energy savings are possible. And the energy supplier would also be able to see this information and offer solutions."

Philip Sellwood, Chief Executive, Energy Saving Trust

Other smart meter benefits identified in the Energy Saving Trust's report include:

• Frequent data on energy consumption (both gas and electric).
• Time of use data; historical use data.
• Differential tariffs based on time of use.
• Greater control over peak demand.
• Ability for the energy suppliers to send energy saving tips to consumers based on their usage.
• They monitor the energy renewable energy sources installed in the home, such as solar panels and wind turbines, are using and producing.
• The ability to switch between credit and pre-payment functions.

You can download the Green Barometer IV report here.

Interestingly I note that those in Northern Ireland, which is serviced by only one electricity supplier, were substainially less interested in having a smart meter installed, and the benefits of this were of little interest. The highest proportion of people who found it uneasy to understand their energy bill also came from this region, and likewise the least people knew which energy tariff and the price they pay for electricity.

As NIE are one of the contributors to the Energy Saving Trust, Im sure they have been informed of the report. It would be interesting to see if they will implement changes to try to rectify these issues. However, being an NIE customer, I find my bill easy to understand, and know the unit price and tariff that I am on.