Millions of pensioners gripped by fuel poverty
Posted on January 23rd, 2012
A growing number of UK pensioners are falling into fuel poverty as a result of high gas and electricity prices, according to a new study from Age UK.
An ICM survey conducted on behalf of the charity found that nearly half of the 1,000 pensioners polled said they turned their heating down when not warm enough in an effort to save money.
The study also revealed that 2 million pensioners around the country are regularly going to bed when they are not tired just to keep warm.
Mervyn Kohler from Age UK was quoted in the Guardian as saying, ‘The figures are stark and show that people have been shaken rigid by the enormous rise in prices we saw in the second half of last year, and for individuals living on fairly straitened incomes, that hike in one of the two essential areas – the other being food – has really put the frighteners on our older population,’
She continued, ‘People who are cutting back on the amount of fuel they are using are jeopardising their health. They are g
Tags: Fuel Poverty, Poverty
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