Lloyds TSB arms customers to tackle household bills

On Monday, Lloyds TSB will become the first bank to help customers tackle spiralling household bills. A new website, lloydstsbcompare.com, will let customers compare gas, electricity, telephone and broadband providers, as well as motor and travel insurance. The site also has supermarket and petrol price checkers, helping customers to secure the best deals in and around their local area.

Stealing the crown from TescoCompare, lloydstsbcompare.com will also launch as the number one car insurance comparison site, as rated by Defaqto, the independent product research company.

The site is launched as new research reveals the impact rising energy bills are having on households across the country. One in four (27 per cent) households has seen their energy bills rise by more than £40 per month and 30 per cent think they could rise by a further £40 per month this winter. A concerning 40 per cent said they don't know how they will cover their bills if prices continue to increase, or if we have a particularly cold winter.

Helen Wylde, Lloyds TSB Compare, said: "Customers have told us they're worried about meeting spiralling household bills this winter. Our research shows that 80 per cent of households are already feeling the impact of rising bills, and nearly all expect the situation to get worse. Through lloydstsbcompare.com, we're hoping to give customers all the tools they need to cut their household bills."

Despite the pressure from rising bills, one in three (36 per cent) households has never switched energy providers and one in four believes shopping around will not make any difference. But those who have used comparison sites to switch providers have, in the last month, benefited from average annual savings of £284. If all 26 million households in the UK were to switch their bills, Britain could save a collective £7 million2.

Anticipating rising bills, households are taking the following steps to keep costs to a minimum:

1. Have a ‘turn on', rather than ‘turn off' approach to heating (59 per cent)

2. Turn appliances off properly, rather than leaving them on standby (58 per cent)

3. Switch to energy saving light bulbs (53 per cent)

4. Cut back on other household spending (35 per cent)

5. Insulate home (26 per cent)

6. Cap fuel bill (20 per cent)

7. Make more use of hot water bottles and woolly clothing (18 per cent)

8. Shut down some rooms (18 per cent)

9. Share bathwater (8 per cent)

10. Switch to ‘pay as you go' metres (4 per cent)

If costs continue to spiral, households will make the following sacrifices to pay their bills:

1. New clothes (64 per cent)

2. Meals and days out (63 per cent)

3. Holidays (53 per cent)

4. Christmas presents (29 per cent)

5. Satellite/ Cable TV (27 per cent)

Helen continues: "It's astonishing that we're prepared to make such sacrifices before we've even investigated the significant savings that can be made, simply by shopping around for utilities and day to day items. Many homeowners have never switched energy providers and could be paying hundreds more a year than they have to."