Twice as many Brits prepared to pay more for energy efficient bulbs than not

LED bulb price drop years ahead of predictions, shows new analysis

New ComRes research, commissioned by the National Federation of Women's Institutes (NFWI) and the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, shows that six out of ten (60%) British people would be happy to pay a bit more for an energy efficient light bulb compared to three in ten (29%) who disagreed.

The polling comes as new analysis by a consortium including the Danish Energy Agency and energy performance experts CLASP has found that LED bulbs across Europe have become much more affordable than predicted. Compared to the last review for the European Commission, published in 2013, some bulbs are already as cheap as they were expected to be in 2025. For bulbs used three hours a day the payback period can be less than a year with significant savings over the lifespan of the bulb.

According to CLASP, over its 15,000 hour lifetime, an LED lamp purchased and installed today will save a household £100 per socket when replacing a halogen lamp.

Commenting on the ComRes polling research, Marylyn Haines Evans, Public Affairs Chair of the National Federation of Women's Institutes, said: “It’s great to hear that savvy shoppers – like many WI members – can save money by investing a bit more upfront in a bulb that’s not only going to waste less energy, but last longer too. Together, all of these people will be saving significant amounts of energy, which means less need to generate it in the first place, and ultimately lower carbon emissions which is the main cause of climate change.”

Commenting on the new Danish research, Nick Clack, Senior Energy Campaigner at the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) said: "The research published today makes it clear that greater use of LED lighting would mean significant energy savings, reducing people's energy bills, and helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the need for new energy infrastructure in the countryside. Our own forthcoming research also makes it clear just how unsustainably we're living at the moment - LED lighting can play a key part in turning this around."

Iain McIntosh of ELG, UK distributor for Heritage Lighting, which has supplied specialty LED technology in many National Trust properties said: “LED lamps are now the best technology on the market, providing excellent lighting colour, using up to 90% less electricity and saving money over their long lifetime. Beyond these obvious points, they have other benefits such as generating much less heat which is ideal for heritage properties where old style lamps can damage paintings and fabrics over time. You also may not need to change one for up to 10 years which is particularly helpful in hard to reach spots such as chandeliers.”

These developments follow research published late last year by the Energy Saving Trust showing that the UK has been using less energy even as the economy grows, a trend partly driven by energy efficiency regulations on household devices.

ComRes interviewed 2,003 GB adults online between 6th and 8th February 2015. Data were weighted to be representative of all GB adults aged 18+.