Solar Blog

New figures released by the government have revealed that more than a fifth of all UK households were in fuel poverty in 2009. With energy bills rising all the time, this figure could be set to soar over coming years.

A household is said to be in fuel poverty if more than 10% of its income goes on heating the home. With electricity bills rising by 75% between 2004 and 2009 and gas up by 122% in the same period, the DECC figures could be construed as not being much of a surprise.

However, it is a surprise when realised that fuel poverty in the UK was falling steadily up until 2003. Indeed, it is a major cause for concern, with an ageing population and all energy suppliers likely to replicate the hikes announced recently by British Gas and Scottish Power.

There are initiatives in place to help households become more energy efficient though, whilst installing viable renewable energy supplies such as solar panel installations could also have a significant positive effect.

One such initiative which also promotes the use of renewable energies is the feed in tariff scheme. Administered by the government, it allows homes to produce their own energy which can be used at source, and any surplus sold back into the grid.

Under the scheme, households can expect the solar panels to pay for themselves within 10 years, whilst fuel bills will be cut drastically. Interested parties should research solar panel suppliers carefully of course, but for thousands of homes, they are proving to be an economical and environmentally friendly solution.