Cold spell to see more spent on heating oil?

21 February 2012

Posted by Bob Burton

The cold snap at the start of this month may have led to many households using more heating oil in order to keep their homes warm.

It was estimated by Moneysupermarket.com that across the UK as a whole, individuals have had to spend an extra £1.6 billion on heating costs to cope with the cold temperatures.

The organisation found 81 per cent of people said they used more fuel then normal as a result of the conditions, with almost 30 per cent saying they left their central heating on constantly.

It calculated that if the average household doubled its energy usage since the Met Office issued its first severe cold weather warning in late January, homeowners could see their annual bill increase by six per cent due to the last fortnight.

Energy manager at Moneysupermarket.com Scott Byrom said: "Many of us have upped the use of our heating over the past few weeks to cope with the bitterly cold temperatures and snow."

He added that with the expensive Christmas period not long behind us, cash-strapped customers could have difficulty finding the money to cover this usage.

The company's survey also found 38 per cent of respondents to its survey admitted they were concerned about how they would meet the additional costs they have incurred recently.

Additionally, 11 per cent of individuals said they have avoided increasing their fuel usage in order to keep their expenses to a minimum, while 2.4 per cent stated they cannot afford to use their central heating at all.

Individuals who are looking at ways of cutting their heating oil use may like to consider adding efficiency measures to their home, as Mr Byrom said this will "go a long way to cutting the cost of your bills during the rest of the year".

The National Insulation Association recently stated customers could reduce their bills by up to 50 per cent by fitting effective lagging to lofts and walls.

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