ISLAMABAD/LONDON: The cost-of-living crisis in Britain has turned into a bitter winter for households struggling to keep their energy bills down. Some suggest flat mates for keeping the lights on, while others shift to better-heated homes.
Common energy-saving practices also include avoiding heating systems during the day and switching from radiators to electric blankets.
These measures could be complicated and difficult for people sharing accommodations, with relationships complicated by different salaries and lifestyles, which means they have to compromise to decrease their bills.
Joe, a 33-year-old schoolteacher, who shares his accommodation with other 5 people in east London, said that everyone tries to not leave lights on.
The housemates have agreed to switch offthe heating systems in the bedrooms. Conflicts can flare up, especially when housemates bring partners to stay over.
Tenants leave notes to reduce energy bills
Trying to reduce energy bills, the residents leave sometime notes, reminding housemates to turn the heaters down.
Joe said that he and his friends have received some passive and sometimes aggressive messages to turn off the lights when not in the room.
Other housemates opted to avoid the heating systems unless the temperature falls to a really cold level.
Household gas and electricity bills have rocketed across Europe this year, after main energy producer Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
In Britain, the rising bills have helped push inflation to the highest levels in 4 decades.
A campaigner End Fuel Poverty pressure group told AFP that the fuel crisis was affecting everyone and nobody is spared.
All people are suffering from this inflation crisis, it does not matter how much a person earns, he added.
He said that those people whose earnings are low are obviously the most affected. It could lead to conflicts and arguments between them and their flatmates whose earnings are higher.
A 29-year-old Frenchman Simon Knoplioch who works in the finance sector in London, said that he recently abandoned his previous house for a more modern and efficient building that retains heat.
He told AFP that landlords were not interested in installing installation as they enjoy high rents and strong demand in the city.
He expressed concern that some tenants whose rents included energy bills might not benefit from state assistance packages.
Energy crisis forces Britons to choose between eating and heating
The deepening energy crisis has created deep concerns in a number of Britons forced to choose between eating and heating.
Campaigners are expressing their worry that more households could face fuel poverty, as they spend more than ten percent of their income on fuel.
Francis said that it was expected that around 7 million households in the UK to be in fuel poverty this winter. –AFP/APP
