The State of Electricals
The Cost of Living crisis is a topic on everyone’s lips. Specifically, the cost of our energy. It’s changing the way we live and urging us all to take a step back and assess our usage of electricals.
The average home in 2022 is overrun with gadgets, devices, and electricals that we rely on for everyday activities, whether we’re cooking, cleaning or binging Netflix. But with energy bills having increased by almost two-thirds, it begs the question – has the UK been pushed to cut out “essential” electrical items and what devices have been given the chop?
Here at Freemans, we conducted a survey asking over 2000 Brits to reveal their electrical habits since the rise in energy bills. We quizzed them on what devices they’ve unplugged for good, which ones they’ve reduced their use of, how they go about seeking energy advice, and the devices that, no matter how high the rates climb, they simply can’t live without.
Here’s what we found.
Castaway Devices
From our survey, we found that a whopping 65% of Brits have limited or stopped using certain electrical items due to the rise of energy bills to reduce costs.
But what are the most common items from around the home that people have been cutting out? We’ve given the top ten and have broken it down by purpose to find the top electrical items and devices that people have cast aside.
Overall
The most common item that people have been reducing their usage of is the oven. Just over two-fifths of Brits admitted that they have been keeping their oven switched off and opting for alternative ways of cooking since energy bills have risen. This doesn’t come as a surprise since the oven is one of the costliest gadgets to run at 68p an hour, and this is set to rise to £1.13.
The washing machine was the second most cast away item with over a third of people admitting they’ve reduced their usage. Although it seems like an essential, washing machines are usually left on for a significant amount of time, and can be viewed as big energy eaters as they use gas, electricity, and water.
Kitchen
The kitchen is the heart of the home and also home to the majority of our electrical gadgets, as we cook our meals, heat our food, and make our brews.
As well as topping our list overall, the oven was the most cut-out item from the kitchen, with 40% of people revealing they’ve limited their usage and resulted to alternative ways of cooking.
Speaking of alternative ways, we’ve all seen the recent rise of the air fryer, and our results show no different as we found the air fryer has seen a 10% increase in usage. And this may be for the greater good as air fryers are much cheaper to run at 57p an hour, and in line with inflation, eventually it will cost £1.02. This is substantially cheaper than the oven which, as we’ve already seen, costs 68p an hour and is set to rise to £1.13.
Despite being a nation of tea lovers, we were shocked to see that 31% have limited their use of their kettle. Surprisingly, alongside the oven, the kettle is one of the most expensive gadgets to run, meaning your hourly brew is going to be adding to your energy bill costing 85p an hour – and eventually set to climb to £1.53.
Entertainment
Nowadays, binging the latest show on Netflix or kicking butt on your favourite game is the nation’s chosen way to relax after a hard day’s work. But when stripped back, these activities are also eating away at your energy bill.
With home entertainment being such a big part of our lives, we were surprised to find that 88% of people are cutting down their screen time due to be more conscious of their bills, with people reducing their usage of their TV, laptop, tablet, and games consoles.
More specifically, our results showed that one in five Brits under 44 are limiting their TV consumption due to being conscious of energy bills. This may even include more people deciding to turn their TVs off at the wall as even leaving your TV on standby means it’s still using energy.
Household Maintenance
Even keeping the house clean and tidy requires us to plug things in and switch things on. So, we looked into which of the most common electrical household appliances we’re casting aside.
Turns out the most common household item we’re cutting down usage is the washing machine at 34%. As we’ve said, the washing machine is one of the big energy eaters, but there are many ways you can approach your laundry which make it much more energy efficient – ways in which more and more people may be opting for in the current climate. This might involve waiting until you have bigger loads, washing on a colder setting and tackling stains manually.
Surprisingly, 29% of people reduced their use of their vacuum cleaner, opting for more manual ways of cleaning including using a dustpan and brush. Within our survey, we found 15% of people have purchased or are thinking about purchasing a dustpan and brush since the rise in energy.
Personal Use
In 2022, electronic gadgets have not only crept into how we keep our home neat and tidy, but ourselves too! From hair styling, teeth brushing, to just having five minutes of meditation, it involves plenty of home gadgets that also add to our bills.
When looking at personal care, we found that the hair dryer topped the list of the most commonly cut item since the rise of energy bills, with 28% of people shifting to air drying.
With that said, a further 22% of people have said they have embraced the natural look and also ditched the straighteners to alleviate the pressure on bills just that little bit more.
From hair care to dental hygiene, our survey also found that one in five have purchased manual toothbrushes and manual flossers in hopes to decrease energy use.
Seeking Ways to Save
Help & Advice
Cutting your usage on certain electrical items isn’t the only way people are looking at reducing their electricity bills. People are putting on their thinking caps and really looking into ways they can flip their usual way of living to make electricity bills a little easier to look at as prices continue to rise.
Since the news of the energy price increase, alongside it there has been an increase of readily available advice online – from TikToks to energy advice bloggers and reporters.
We asked Brits what their preferred platform is when it comes to seeking help and advice surrounding their bills and energy usage, and money guru Martin Lewis came out on top with 30% of people revealing they visit his site.
Alternatively, we found that one in four Gen Z seeks advice on how to reduce energy bill costs from TikTok. Emerging as a rival search engine to Google, TikTok is climbing the ranks as a one-stop shop for all hacks, tips and tricks and is giving advice to young people on the current cost of living crisis.
Swaps & Hacks
When it comes to cutting out devices, instead of being left with nothing, our survey revealed that many people are making manual swaps and even getting ‘two for the price of one’ for some devices.
In terms of swaps, here are the top ten products that people have picked up since ditching their electrical counterparts:
Alongside swaps, our survey also revealed that 31% of people admitted they had used a sole electrical device for multiple purposes, whether that’s hair drying your clothes dry, ironing with a straightener, or a baby monitor as a security aid.
This seems to be the favoured alternative for the younger generation as we found 66% of Gen Z have used an electrical item for dual functionalities versus only 7% of those over 55.
In regard to what people have been purchasing to save money in the long run, here’s what Esther Hughes, Head of Media Optimisations at Freemans, has said:
“In today’s modern world, we can’t help but rely on lots of electrical appliances. They’re part of our everyday lives. So instead of cutting out all electric appliances, it’s best if we approach our electricity usage and assess what we can realistically limit, and how we can use what we already have in an energy-efficient way.
“According to our research, only one in three Brits knew they could use their electrical items for dual functionalities. This is where you can use your devices for other purposes other than it’s main functionality. For example, a smart home security camera can also be used as a home baby monitor. or a handheld clothes steamer can also be used as a cleaning device for soft furnishings.
“Along with this, Brits can also save money by making energy-conscious swaps. Our research found air fryers and slow cookers have seen an increase in use since the energy bill crisis. Using energy-draining draining appliances less often will help to keep costs down.”
Brits Simply Can’t Live Without…
Despite our concerns over electricity costs, our survey found the ultimate list of devices that no matter the cost, we simply cannot live without.
Entertainment – Mobile Phones are still our best friend as 80% have seen nothing but increased usage of them. This can be put down to the limited charging time versus its wireless usage. With unlimited usage, your phone can be used for the internet, music, and other things that would usually use outlets and electricity.
Household – 33% of people are continuing to use their smart home devices as, like the mobile phone, they have a multitude of uses and are actually one of the cheapest things to run at 1p an hour. And this is only set to rise by another 1p.
Personal care – Influencers unite! 17% of people said they’ve continued to use their ring light, if not more, in spite of the fact that its cost per hour is set to double.
Kitchen – Everyone loves a slow-cooked meal, and with fewer people using their oven, 40% of people have been using their slow cooker more as it’s substantially cheaper to run than an oven at 7p an hour. However, even that’s set to double. And we just need our coffee: 29% are still using our coffee machines despite the rise in bills, but even the price of this per hour is set to rise from 37p to nearly a £1.
Summary
As we’ve seen, the The Cost of Living Crisis and rise in energy prices has impacted our home lives dramatically and made us do some pretty questionable stuff just to reduce our energy bills, whether that’s reverting to the air fryer to cook up our meals, or cutting down on our brews.
That said, we’ll always have those electrical devices that we simply can’t live without, especially when they aren’t pulling on the purse strings as much as others. If you’re looking to buy with bills in mind, be sure to check out our Ways to Save guide for smart swaps and energy-efficient electricals.
Methodology
We surveyed 2017 Brits regarding their usage of different electrical items in light of the increasing price of energy bills. We wanted to see how their habits have changed, what items have seen limited usage, and what items we simply can’t live without.