Tuesday 19 December 2017

Inviting Christmas guests into your ho-ho-home could cost you

Hosting family and friends over the festive period could cost the UK as much as £825 million in additional energy bills.

Each household hosting guests is likely to spend around £55 more on gas and electricity than they would otherwise, according to new data from price comparison site uSwitch.com.

More than half of the country's households are expecting guests over Christmas, with an average of five guests staying for three days.

More than two fifths of hosts are planning to keep their heating on for longer than usual to make sure their guests are warm and comfortable.

The use of more rooms in the house will also mean more lights are switched on, for an average of four extra hours.

Around 28% of Christmas hosts say they will be keeping the television on for four and a half hours longer than they would normally.

Shona Eyre, uSwitch.com energy expert, says: "Christmas is all about spending time with our loved ones but if it’s your turn to host you might spend more than you’re expecting – and that’s before we’ve even factored in the cost of all the presents."