Fuel bills too high for pension households, expert claims

Wed, 30 Aug 2006

Rising energy prices have led to many UK residents struggling to pay their energy bills after reaching retirement, an expert has claimed.

Some one in four Britons reliant on a pension for their income are struggling with energy costs, compared with 14 per cent of those aged 25 to 34, MoneyExpert asserted.

The credit agency also cited government statistics, which suggest that for every £100 spent by UK residents over the age of 75, £6 was spent on fuel bills, with the average pension household spending 3.4 per cent of their income on energy.

Sean Gardner, chief executive, MoneyExpert, said: "There have been around a dozen fuel price increases since the beginning of this year, and these have hit many homes hard.

"Those hardest hit are pensioners where already one in five is below the poverty line.

"Rising fuel bills, which are primarily a result of increased wholesale prices, are having a terrible effect on many homes."

Recent research from Clerical Medical shows that inflation for pension households has risen 34 per cent in the last ten years.


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