Victorian households are being hit with skyrocketing energy bills during COVID-19 lockdown
Victorians stuck working from home during the tough COVID-19 lockdown are being slugged with energy bills worth hundreds of dollars more than usual, with some appliances proving more costly to run than others.
Saver HQ
Don't miss out on the headlines from Saver HQ. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Victorian households have been hit by soaring energy bills during lockdown which is slugging them up to an extra $680 a year.
More than 5 million Melburnians remain under tight stage four restrictions including being confined to their homes 22 hours a day, which has significantly pushed up their power bills.
New analysis by financial services firm Canstar Blue found for those stuck at home it could increase their electricity costs by as much as 45 per cent.
Based on the calculations the rise in the usage of appliances including computers, televisions, cooktops and heaters, the average annual electricity bill could jump from about $1490 to $2170.
This includes monthly costs climbing from $124 to $181.
Canstar Blue’s spokesman Simon Downes said the last thing Victorian households – many of whom are under financial strain during the pandemic – need is climbing power bills.
“A strong lockdown that sees people spend almost every hour of the day indoors is clearly going to have a huge impact on energy running costs," he said.
“It’s unavoidable, you really can’t expect families to use less energy in these circumstances, especially when boredom is a major factor and everyone wants to watch something different on TV or use any other technology.”
The analysis looked at the most common household appliances used and the daily increases per month including 10 hours of computer and monitor use, 10 hours of television, 45 minutes of electricity stovetop use, two hours of heater use and two hours of lighting use.
WFH COSTS ‘SKYROCKET’
Pieter Oosterloo, 35, and his wife, Victoria, 34, who are both teachers have been working from home during the pandemic.
In the past two months their electricity bills have been on average about $230 per month, compared to about $188 per month this time last year – an increase of $42 per month.
“We’ve been at home so much more whereas usually we would both be at work five days a week, whereas now our internet usage has skyrocketed because we are teaching classes remotely,” she said.
“Also we’re using the heating more, both our gas and electricity bills have gone up.”
Origin head of retail Jon Briskin said they had seen the usage by their 1 million Victorian customers climb during the pandemic due to more people working form home.
“We are seeing households in Victoria using on average around four to seven per cent more electricity compared to the same time last year, with most of that increase coming during the day with people at home more,” he said.
“I encourage anyone with high energy bills who is having difficulty paying to reach out so we can help because we know many people are doing it tough and there is support available.”
Mr Downes said it was critical for Victorians to get in touch with their retailer if they were struggling financially during the pandemic.
EXTRA ENERGY COSTS
APPLIANCE MINUTES/HOURS PER DAY MONTHLY COST COST PER YEAR
Computer/Monitor 10 hours $8.30 $99.60
Television 10 hours $10.80 $129.60
Electric cooktop 45 minutes $13.70 $164.40
Microwave 15 minutes $2.10 $25
Coffee machine 10 minutes $0.85 $10.20
Kettle 2 minutes $0.70 $8.40
Heater 2 minutes $20 $240
Lighting 2 hours $0.20 $2.40
TOTAL $56.65 $679.80
Originally published as Victorian households are being hit with skyrocketing energy bills during COVID-19 lockdown