Survey reveals what some eligible households plan to use £100 energy payment for

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More than half of eligible households do not intend to put any of the Government’s £100 payment to help with energy costs towards their bill, a survey suggests. Some 57% of households in council tax bands A to D will not use the January payment as intended, while one in seven (15%) of those eligible said they planned to use some of the money for a summer getaway, the poll for package holiday provider On the Beach found. Among 18 to 44-year-olds, 24% said they would put some of the cash towards a holiday deposit.

Around a third of those surveyed (32%) said the money would go on groceries, 13% intend to use it to pay off debt, and another 13% said they would place it into savings. Chancellor John Healey announced the payment, to be paid directly to the bank accounts of households in council tax bands A to D at a cost of £2.6 billion, as part of last week’s Budget , saying it would give “breathing space” to households coping with soaring energy bills.

If follows Ofgem’s price cap rising by 3.6% to £1,723 for a typical household on October 1, with a further rise of around 22% forecast in January. However, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition warned on the day of the announcement that the payment would “barely dent” the predicted rise in energy costs, and that because it is to be paid directly into household accounts “it may not even be spent on staying warm this winter”. Caspar Nelson, vice-president of marketing and customer at On the Beach, said: “We know how precious holidays are, and everyone deserves something to look forward to.

“While household bills will rightly be the priority for many, it seems some Brits are already dreaming of a bit of summer sun.” An HM Treasury spokesman said: “This Budget is about giving families breathing space at a difficult time. “On energy, the new £100 Household Energy Payment is on top of the £150 of costs we already took off bills in April, and we’re extending zero VAT on electricity, which is expected to take around another £50 off the April price cap.”

Censuswide surveyed 1,425 householders in council tax bands A to D between October 30 and November 2.

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What we found (1)

The Evening Standard reports a commercial poll on how eligible households plan to spend the £100 energy payment. It names the holiday firm behind the poll and gives the sample and dates. In one sentence it turns a stated intention into a flat prediction that households "will not use" the money "as intended", a small overstatement of what a poll can show.

Uses a loaded word
Minor
“will not use the January payment as intended”
Why this matters
The words "will not use" and "as intended" state as a settled future fact what respondents said they planned to do, and judge them against an intention the payment does not impose.
The impression it gives
A reader comes away believing 57% of households are certain to misuse money that was earmarked for their energy bill.
The context
The figure is a stated plan in a poll of 1,425 people for a holiday company. The payment goes straight into bank accounts with no condition attached, and the Chancellor described it as "breathing space" for households. Many respondents said they would spend it on groceries, debt or savings, which are household costs too.
How we know
- Elsewhere in the article“a survey suggests”
- Elsewhere in the article“said the money would go on groceries”
- Elsewhere in the article“Censuswide surveyed 1,425 householders”
Show it in the article

What it gets right

“the poll for package holiday provider On the Beach found”
It names the commercial firm behind the poll and its business, so the reader can weigh the holiday finding against the sponsor's interest.
“Censuswide surveyed 1,425 householders in council tax bands A to D between October 30 and November 2.”
It gives the pollster, the sample size, the population and the dates, so the reader can judge the figures.
“the payment would “barely dent” the predicted rise in energy costs”
It sets a fuel poverty campaign's warning against the Treasury's claims, so the government does not have the field to itself.

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Survey reveals what some eligible households plan to use £100 energy payment for

Uses a loaded word

What it gets right

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