UK energy providers are being urged to do more to promote renewable energy after a survey commissioned by energy supplier ENGIE revealed just 1% of the population is on a green tariff.
Half of the respondents said they avoided a green tariff because they thought their bills would rise, with 80% saying price was their priority.
This perception of higher costs is despite years of education and falling prices, with some green energy tariffs now offering to put every unit of electricity used back into the grid from a renewable source with no additional cost.
“With so few people choosing green energy tariffs, it is the responsibility of energy providers and the wider industry to offer solutions that appeal to and persuade consumers,” said ENGIE home energy business chief executive Paul Rawson.
One-fifth of the respondents admitted to doing nothing environmentally friendly over the past year.
However, two-fifths of them said that they had cut down on their energy consumption, and almost half of the households had increased their level of recycling in the past year.
