Research from Eon has found almost half (48 per cent) of people “secretly adjust” the temperature of their heating to avoid conflict.
More than two-thirds (65 per cent) admitted switching the heating on causes “conflict” in their household. This causes consumers to resort to “stealthy” behaviour when turning up the thermostat, Eon’s research finds.
The research revealed women are the main decision-makers when it comes to turning the heating on, with 33 per cent making the call while 36 per cent of men say their wife or partner makes the decision.
Conversely only 19 per cent of men make the decision to turn the heating on.
Not being able to agree on when to switch the heating on is the main cause of conflict, with 39 per cent saying it being “too warm or not cold enough” is the main reason and just over a 10th (12 per cent) say the conflict is about what temperature to have the heating on in the first place.
When asked about their preparations for the winter months 23 per cent said they either have not or do not plan on having their boiler serviced this year, with 39 per cent citing cost as being the chief reason behind their choosing not to. Over a quarter (26 per cent) say they would rather “leave it and take the risk”.
Worryingly – almost a fifth (19 per cent) say they did not realise their boiler needed an annual service.
Eon recently launched a fixed annual tariff to help customers “personalise” their bills.
The Eon “secure bill” will fix an energy price based on a customer’s previous year’s energy use, giving “complete reassurance” their bill will not change, the company said.
In August Eon announced “important milestones” had been reached in its transaction to acquire Innogy from RWE.
The major asset swap was announced in March this year and will see Eon concentrate on the retail arm and networks, while RWE focuses on renewables.
In its H1 report published on 8 August Eon said it had passed several milestones toward implementation.