By Rachel Wait
Winter is on its way and with it comes higher energy bills. Much to everyone's frustration, energy suppliers have bumped up their prices for a second time in less than a year.
On the back if this, four in ten people say they will find it difficult to pay their monthly energy bills, according to a survey by B&Q. The average household bill now stands at £1,345 a year, double the £740 of five years ago.
Fortunately, there are a number of ways you can cut the cost of your energy bills – one of which is to fully insulate your house. In fact, cavity wall insulation could reduce your energy bills by £110 a year, while loft insulation could save you £145 a year.
Yet according to the B&Q survey, a third of homeowners have no loft insulation and two-thirds have no idea how much loft insulation they need to save money and energy. A quarter also admit they can't afford to insulate their loft.
Help towards your insulation
Fortunately, getting your home insulated doesn't have to cost the earth. In fact, you may qualify for a discount or even be able to get it for free.
The Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) came into effect in 2008 and means electricity and gas suppliers in Great Britain must help to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from homes.
Last year, CERT was extended from March 2011 to December 2012 - energy suppliers need to deliver measures to provide overall lifetime carbon dioxide savings of 293 million tonnes by then.
As a result, energy suppliers have an obligation to help their customers make their homes more energy efficient. One way to do this is to provide grants and offers to help customers pay for insulation. They may offer a free survey to see whether your home is losing heat and, even if you already have insulation, check whether it is still effective.
"All energy suppliers offer discounted insulation and it is even free for eligible households living on low incomes," explains Liz Lainé, energy expert at Consumer Focus.
"There is a pot of money waiting to be claimed for loft and wall insulation measures, as energy firms have not met their targets on insulating homes this year."
Those customers over 70 or on income or disability related benefits may be eligible for free insulation, while other offers vary between suppliers. For example, Eon offers a £150 discount on insulation and British Gas offers free loft and cavity wall insulation to all of its energy customers. This is a limited offer until 22 December 2011 so act fast if you want to take advantage.
Therefore it's well worth asking your supplier to find out whether you could benefit from a cash sum to put towards your insulation costs. Bear in mind that you can take up grants and offers from any energy company – whether or not they supply your gas and electricity. If you'd like to know more, there's a handy grant finder tool on the Energy Saving Trust website.
Other options
Local authorities also offer energy-saving grants and help with insulation. If you're on certain income-related benefits can get funding from the government to improve energy efficiency. Its scheme is are known as Warm Front in England, Warm Homes in Northern Ireland, the Energy Assistance Package in Scotland and NEST in Wales.
To qualify you need to own your home or rent it from a private landlord. You'll also need to be on certain income-related benefits and living in a property that's poorly insulated and/or doesn't have a working central heating system.
Qualifying households can benefit from insulation and heating improvements worth up to £3,500. To find out more, take a look at the DirectGov website.
Extra benefits
Finally, if you were born on or before 5 January 1951, you may benefit from the Winter Fuel Payment. This is a tax-free yearly payment from the government and is not means-tested.
Exactly how much you will receive depends on your personal situation – take a look at the DirectGov website for full details. To give you an idea, if you were born on or before 5 January 1951 and live alone, you'll receive £200. However, if you live with another qualifying individual, you'll get £100.
Those aged 80 or over on or before 25 September 2011 and live alone will get £300, while those living with another qualifying individual will get £200 or £150 depending on whether the other person is under or over 80.
If you're receiving certain benefits, you could also be entitled to Cold Weather Payment. A payment will be made for each seven day period of very cold weather (as recorded by a network of weather stations) between 1 November and 31 March.
You don't need to apply for this because if you qualify, you'll be paid automatically after each period of very cold weather in your area.
So make sure you don't miss out on any of these benefits if you're entitled to them – after all, anything that helps to keep your energy bills to a minimum can only be a good thing.