Many of the UK’s poorest households are reducing their energy usage by 21% during colder weather, leaving them to cope in uncomfortably cold and damp homes, according to recent research by UCL Energy Institute, Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, and Cambridge Architectural Research.
The findings highlight that low-income households on prepayment meters, particularly those identified as vulnerable, often face disconnection from their energy supply during severe cold.
This includes households on the Priority Services Register, such as the elderly, disabled, young children, and those with health condition.
The researchers propose a new “Extreme Weather Payment” system to replace the Cold Weather Payments.
This new system would provide £10 per day, credited directly to energy accounts of eligible households on days when the Met Office forecasts temperatures below -4°C.
Payment would occur daily, and the scheme would apply to all vulnerable households, aiming to offset the effects of extreme cold.
