Pensioner shares an unusual €4.90 energy saving trick that has made a ‘huge difference’ to bills

A retiree shared an unusual energy-saving trick that she says made a “big difference” to her bills.

The woman, who did not want to be named, recounted how she turned to lighting her home with battery-powered fairy lights to save money on electricity bills.

It comes amid concern for older people in particular as energy costs continue to rise in Ireland.

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The 70-year-old from Wales says she pays £3.99 (€4.80) for a pack of 12 batteries and it’s “much cheaper” than turning on the lights.

She told North Wales Live: “At night I don’t have any of the lights on, I just put the fairy lights around the living room and in the bedroom.

“When I go to bed, I have a battery-powered lamp, which I use instead of a plug-in light, to keep costs down. Especially at today’s prices, I’ve noticed a big difference in my bills. It’s a marked difference.” .

She revealed the money-saving hack because she thinks other people could benefit from it too.

“I’ve been doing it for years and I’ve noticed a big difference. I’m not talking about pennies. I’ve saved a lot on electricity since I started doing this.

“Currently I pay £3.99 (€4.80) for 12 batteries, that’s a lot cheaper than turning on the lights. I’m not stingy, but I’m opposed to unnecessary bills and I think other people could benefit from it too.

“Especially when you’re retired, you don’t have any extra income, so you have to work with what you have. I use oil for heating and I was horrified when I got a quote and saw that the price had gone down.” she doubled since last time. Prices keep going up.”

It comes as the government is expected to temporarily cut VAT on certain energy products in a bid to help with rising costs.

This is in addition to a €200 discount that will be applied to electricity bills in the coming weeks.

It is understood that the VAT reduction will apply only to gas and electricity products and not to fuel for domestic heating or solid fuels.

Active Retirement Ireland has warned that it will not help most older people.

Commenting last week, Active Retirement Ireland chief executive Maureen Kavanagh said: “Proposals to cut VAT only on gas and electricity products ignore older people across the country, who are much more likely to be dependent of older heating systems using heating oil and solid fuel. fuels

“We are urging the government to include these more traditional heating methods in the proposed energy VAT reductions that currently offer little relief to older people and put more older people at risk of falling into poverty.

“Older people are already more vulnerable to the rapidly rising cost of living and the current energy crisis that is being felt hard in Ireland. Recent measures around Fuel Allocation do not go far enough.”

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