Overview
- A Uswitch survey reports households entering winter owing £780 million to energy suppliers, with 3.5 million homes in arrears after a 46% year-on-year rise to an eight-year high.
- Ofgem data show customers owe energy firms more than £4 billion, an increase of over £750 million compared with last year.
- Martin Lewis calls tumble dryers a “demon appliance,” saying typical use costs about £1 per load, and he urges airers or dehumidifiers as cheaper options, noting dehumidifiers draw far less power than heating.
- He also recommends reflective panels behind external‑wall radiators (with tin foil as a lower‑cost alternative), turning off radiators in unused rooms, sealing drafts, checking TV energy settings, and lowering boiler flow temperature, which he says can cut gas bills by over 9%.
- Uswitch notes shrinking bill buffers, with average household credit slipping to £98 and many homes holding no credit, and advises maintaining roughly two months’ credit if possible and contacting suppliers early if bills are unmanageable.