Five million households in debt to their energy supplier

Research by uSwitch has found that almost five million British households are in debt to their energy supplier, collectively owing £624m.

The average amount of energy debt per household now stands at £126. And while this figure is lower than last year`s level of debt, it`s still 10.5% higher than 2008`s average energy debt of £114.

The comparison site revealed that despite energy prices falling in 2009 and 2010, the UK`s major suppliers have since put their prices up by an average of 5.9%. This leaves the typical energy bill at £1,132 a year.

Almost four in ten (38%) say they`re carrying more debt today than they were last year. Just 14% say they owe less than they did 12 months ago.

When it comes to repaying the debt, nearly a quarter of households (23%) plan to repay it by lump sum, while 42% intend to increase their Direct Debit payments. However, almost a quarter (22%) won`t be taking any action to tackle their debt, hoping it will `go down naturally over time`.



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