Energy bills: Britons could save up to £189 a year with a simple hack – check now | Personal Finance | Finance
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One man has shared the benefits of of turning off standby mode on certain ‘vampire appliances’. The Reddit user explained that these vampire appliances continue to drain energy – even when they appear to be turned off.
He said that by switching them off at the socket, rather than leaving them idling in standby mode, it can dramatically reduce people’s energy bills.
As the cost of living crisis continues, saving money on energy could be vital for families on low incomes fearful for the upcoming months.
Recent forecasts from Cornwall Insight have predicted that Ofgem’s price cap could reach above £4,266 a year for gas and electricity from January 2023.
The savvy saver estimated that vampire devices were adding £189.43 a year to his household bills.
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He said this could then jump to £322.02 at the next price cap increase, taking into account an expected 70 percent rise.
Britons can cut down these costs by turning off the vampire appliances at the wall. For people who work remotely, properly unplugging laptops and powering down desktops and computers could help cut down bills.
According to his calculations, he found that the biggest appliance draining energy was his Sky box, especially when left recording.
The Redditor calculated his device would cost £35.76 to leave on standby for a year at current rate.
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The poster said: “Plug-in air fresheners should be banned.”
As well as this, the Redditor also suggested that using a timer may prevent you paying for power that is not being used.
He suggested that people put their broadband router on a timer to cut costs further.
Timers work by switching the device off for eight hours a day during the night.
Costing around £7 to buy, it would pay for itself within a month from the savings.
Cornwall Insights expects the cap to hit £3,582 from October, an increase of £200 on its last forecast.
It expects bills to begin easing next summer, to £3,810 in the third quarter and then £3,781 in the final three months of next year.
The cap, which is set quarterly by the energy industry regulator, Ofgem, was at £1,400 a year as recently as October last year.
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