The Energy Saving Trust has revealed that thousands of households are wasting energy by leaving devices on standby.

A study by the Energy Saving Trust and two government departments found that households could be spending over £1bn needlessly because they are not switching off devices such as computers and TVs.

But it’s not just householders wasting money on energy. The Carbon Trust has said that businesses could slash their energy bills by 10% if they simply turned off appliances and turned down the heating.

The study looked at how 250 homes used electricity and discovered that they were spending between £50 and £86 on devices which had been left on standby. This amounts to as much as 9-16% of the average electricity bill.

Many modern devices have low energy modes or turn themselves off if they are inactive for a certain amount of time. However, it’s not economical for households to keep buying new products and therefore people need to be aware of how much it costs and how much money they could save by ensuring devices are turned off.

Making simple changes can help both householders and businesses to reduce energy costs. For example, householders can dry washing outside or on an indoor airer, rather than using a tumble dryer while businesses can ensure computers, laptops and monitors are turned off at the end of the day. The Hub has reported in the past that leaving a PC on overnight uses enough electricity to make 200 cups of coffee.

According to the Energy Saving Trust (EST) it costs around £80 a year to run a washing machine and tumble dryer and that’s not taking into account the cost of washing powder.

The chief executive of the Energy Saving Trust, Philip Sellwood, said “It’s crucial that households across the nation can make informed decisions by having the right advice to help them reduce their energy usage and fuel bills”.