Traditional festive feast costs Brits £15 million in energy bills

CHRISTMAS lights cost the UK a whopping £3.75 million per day to power while dishing up a turkey dinner with all the trimmings leaves Brits with an energy bill of £15 million.

The shocking figures from Love Energy Savings highlight the rising expense of using electricity and gas to keep families fed and warm over the festive season.

Yuletide celebrations are an energy-sapping time as it is, be it racing around busy shops to buy presents or battling hordes at the supermarket to fill the trolley for a festive feast.

But the holiday season is also a big drain on household energy, with appliances such as boilers and ovens working overtime.

On average, UK households will spend an extra £50 on their energy bills during December.

Cooking a turkey for five hours, while also roasting potatoes and boiling vegetables, will cost £1.50.

Fairy lights are one of the larger additions to winter fuel costs, with many hanging them not only on their tree but also outside their homes.

But there are measures you can take to slash bills.

Looking at a standard household running seven strings of 100 incandescent lights for six hours per day through the entire month of December, the cost of electricity would be £8.94.

But if energy efficient LED lights, which reduce consumption by 90 per cent, are used instead, the price would drop dramatically to 90p.

Phil Foster, CEO of price comparison specialist Love Energy Savings, said: “Some of the figures for the cost of energy usage over the festive season are jaw-dropping.

“Most of us love tucking into a Christmas dinner with family and friends on December 25, but the fact that the UK bill for cooking turkey and all the trimmings is £15m is stunning.

“We provide our customers with the best tariffs possible so they can bring the costs of their energy bills down and not be hit hard by events such as Christmas.

“Not only do we want to save people money at a time when they are plenty of other expenses mounting up, we are also keen to reduce the impact of energy usage on the environment.”