Statistics news from 2023
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- December 2023
Additional £1.5 billion announced for Boiler Upgrade Scheme until 2028
An extra £1.5 billion has been allocated to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme until 2028, funding around 200,000 further vouchers for homeowners in England and Wales.
UK public EV charging network grew 45% year on year
The UK had 53,906 public EV charging stations across 31,056 locations as of December 2023, a 45% rise on December 2022, according to figures published by an installer.
- November 2023
Boiler Upgrade Scheme applications tripled after grant increased to £7,500
Applications to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme reached 1,150 in the first week after the grant rose to £7,500, more than three times the previous weekly average, the government said on 30 November 2023.
Prepayment meter regional rates for January to March 2024 added
The government has published Energy Price Guarantee regional unit rates and standing charges for prepayment meters covering January to March 2024, the final quarter of the scheme.
MCS announces Data Dashboard Phase 2 for early 2024
MCS has announced a second phase of its Data Dashboard for early 2024, adding contractor numbers, battery storage uptake and month-by-month timelines to the free public platform.
Ofgem price cap set at £1,834 for winter 2023/24
Ofgem's price cap for a typical direct debit household stands at £1,834 a year until 31 December 2023, with the next level set from 1 January 2024.
Good Energy Default tariff rates change for non Direct Debit customers
Good Energy has ended the Direct Debit discount for non Direct Debit customers on its Default tariff from 1 November 2023, raising rates for those paying by other methods.
Survey finds 29% of UK population experiences mould at home
Research for the Warm This Winter campaign found 29% of UK adults, about 15.4 million people, experience mould at home frequently or occasionally, with 10% affected frequently.
- October 2023
Ofgem announces price cap fall for October 2023
Wholesale prices fell below the level of the Energy Price Guarantee, and the price cap was set to fall to £1,923 in October 2023, a Commons Library briefing has noted.
Ofgem announces energy debt at highest ever level of £2.6 billion
Ofgem has reported household energy debt of £2.6 billion, the highest level on record, prompting National Energy Action to call for a Help to Repay scheme and an enduring social tariff.
Energy debt question first asked in tracker at 8%
Consumer Scotland's energy tracker shows the share of Scottish households in energy debt rose from 8% in October 2023 to 19% in winter 2026, with total GB debt and arrears reaching £4.55bn.
Energy Bills and the Price CapScotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Energy price cap reduced in October 2023
The energy price cap fell on 1 October 2023, cutting the maximum unit rate suppliers can charge on standard variable tariffs, before Ofgem confirmed a 5% rise for the following quarter.
- September 2023
Proposed EPC C by 2025 rental standard increases scrapped
Proposals to raise the minimum energy performance standard for rented homes in England and Wales to EPC C by 2025 were dropped in September 2023, the Welsh Government has confirmed in its heat strategy.
Stock take of Britain's energy system published
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition's September 2023 stock take records record unit costs, rising standing charges, £1bn of prepayment meter debt and 4,706 excess winter deaths in 2022/23.
- August 2023
Nesta analysis finds UK has third-highest electricity-to-gas price ratio in Europe
Nesta analysis published on 8 August 2023 finds the UK had the third-highest electricity-to-gas price ratio in Europe, averaging 3.8 between 2011 and 2021 and 4.4 between 2018 and 2022.
Battery electric vehicles reach record 20.1% market share in August 2023
Battery electric cars took a 20.1% share of UK new car registrations in August 2023, an August record, as the SMMT warned that delays to the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate threaten decarbonisation goals.
Consumer Council research estimates 51% of Northern Ireland households in fuel poverty
Consumer Council research estimates 51 per cent of Northern Ireland households were in fuel poverty in early 2023, up from 34 per cent in 2022, with 48 per cent unable to afford to heat their homes.
- July 2023
First Warm This Winter Tariff Watch report published
The first Warm This Winter Tariff Watch report, produced with Future Energy Associates, says suppliers could make £1.74bn in permitted profit over the next 12 months and sets out regional price differences.
Prepayment meter premium ended
From 1 July 2023 households on prepayment meters are no longer charged more for their energy than direct debit customers, ending a long-standing price premium.
Price cap becomes default price as it drops below Energy Price Guarantee level
The price cap became the default price for Great Britain on 1 July 2023 after it fell below the Energy Price Guarantee, which had held the average household bill at £2,500.
- June 2023
Committee on Fuel Poverty publishes annual report and NEA responds
National Energy Action has responded to the Committee on Fuel Poverty's annual report, warning that the least efficient homes face heating bills of around £4,000 to £5,000 a year and that England's efficiency targets are decades behind schedule.
Energy Price Guarantee ended
The Energy Price Guarantee kept household gas and electricity prices constant from October 2022 until June 2023, after which Ofgem's price cap again set the maximum prices suppliers could charge.
- May 2023
SMMT reports quadrupling of BEV model choice and 25.6% rise in BEV registrations
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reports that battery electric car model choice has quadrupled in five years and that new BEV registrations rose 25.6 per cent year on year.
- April 2023
Budget 2023 equalises prepayment meter and direct debit prices
The Spring Budget 2023 confirmed that prepayment meter prices would match direct debit prices from April 2023, ending the long-standing premium paid by households who top up.
Constituency fuel poverty estimates published on basis of £3,000 average annual household energy bill
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition has published modelled fuel poverty estimates for every English Parliamentary constituency, based on the average household energy bill reaching £3,000 a year from 1 April 2023.
Electricity-to-gas price ratio fell to 3.2 under the Energy Price Guarantee
Nesta analysis finds the electricity-to-gas price ratio reached a low of about 3.2 in April 2023 under the Energy Price Guarantee, against 3.5 under the default tariff cap.
Energy price cap due to rise in April 2023
The National Insulation Association has told a government consultation that a further 20% rise to the energy price cap was expected in April 2023, as it pressed for faster delivery of insulation under the ECO+ scheme.
Energy price cap falls to £3,280 for a typical dual fuel direct debit household
The energy price cap for a typical dual fuel household paying by direct debit fell to £3,280 on 1 April 2023, down almost £1,000 from the previous level.
Money Advice Trust research finds 5.5 million UK adults in energy bills debt
Money Advice Trust research estimates 5.5 million UK adults are in energy bills debt, with 2.1 million more people in arrears in April 2023 than in March 2022.
Scenario modelling projects 920,000 fuel poor households from April 2023
Scottish Government modelling published on 30 May 2023 projects 920,000 fuel poor households in Scotland, 37 per cent of all households, from April 2023 once the £400 Energy Bills Support Scheme ends.
- March 2023
Fuel poverty forecast to rise to 7.5 million UK households
National Energy Action forecasts 7.5 million UK households will be in fuel poverty, up from 6.7 million, after the Energy Bill Support Scheme ended and the Energy Price Guarantee was extended.
Almost 1.2m customers disconnected from energy supply
Ofgem figures show almost 1.2 million customers were disconnected from their energy supply in the first three months of 2023, with average household energy debt above £1,200 on electricity.
UK government announces plan to equalise prepayment and Direct Debit tariff costs
The UK government said in March 2023 that it would work to equalise the cost of prepayment and Direct Debit tariffs, addressing a gap in what households pay for the same energy.
Spring Budget announces alignment of direct debit and pre-payment meter charges
The Spring Budget confirmed that charges for comparable direct debit and pre-payment meter customers would be aligned, ending the premium pre-payment customers pay for their energy.
Tesco raises EV charging prices
Tesco raised the cost of charging an electric car at its stores in March 2023, with the 7kW rate rising from 28p to 44p per kWh, ending the free charging it once offered.
- February 2023
Government releases Fuel Poverty Statistics for England showing 3.26 million households in fuel poverty
Official figures show 3.26 million English households in fuel poverty, with National Energy Action estimating the 2030 efficiency target is now 300 years away on current progress.
Rooftop solar installations double in a year to post-subsidy record
Solar Energy UK reports 130,596 MCS-registered rooftop solar installations in 2022, more than double the 2021 figure, with a post-subsidy monthly record of 16,043 registrations in January 2023.
- January 2023
Fuel Poverty Monitor 2021-22 published by NEA and Energy Action Scotland
National Energy Action and Energy Action Scotland have published the UK Fuel Poverty Monitor 2021-22, recommending a mandatory social tariff from April 2024, backed by 95 charities and non-profit organisations.
Energy price cap forecast to reach £4,266 a year from January 2023
Forecasts put the energy price cap at £4,266 a year for a typical household from January 2023, up from the £2,800 expected earlier in 2022, with low-income homes facing the sharpest squeeze.
EPC fuel prices updated with increases to all fuels
The January 2023 six monthly update to the fuel prices behind Energy Performance Certificates raised every fuel, but the new figures remain far below what households actually pay.
Gas costs push consumer electricity prices to four times 2021 levels
Ember analysis finds UK consumers paid four times more for electricity in January 2023 than two years earlier under Ofgem's price cap, as soaring gas costs drove the crisis peak.
Wind generation overtook gas in early 2023
Zapmap reports that in early 2023 wind farms supplied more UK electricity than gas, a figure it cites in a guide rebutting common claims about electric vehicles.