Partner Article

Lack of energy awareness highlights Green Deal needs

Joel Hagan, CEO of Onzo, shares his views on the need for smart meters in the Green Deal, and why individuals need to understand the savings they stand to make.

After repeatedly brushing off calls for a high-profile communications campaign to support the Green Deal initiative, the government appears to have finally seen sense and is reported to be working on a £2 million public relations strategy. Previously, the powers that be have insisted that communicating the incentive’s benefits was not their responsibility. Now, they seem to be admitting that reaching consumers and businesses is vital to the Green Deal’s success.

The problem of consumer engagement is one that applies to all areas of the drive towards energy efficiency and management, because this effort essentially calls for an overhaul in behaviour and also business strategy. Nowhere is the issue more pertinent than in the case of smart meters, which have been dogged by concerns not just about privacy, but whether they are likely to deliver energy savings at all. It is important to remember that both specific roll-outs and wider initiatives depend on individual and corporate participation —and trust — to fulfil their potential.

The primary – perhaps the only – way to achieve behaviour change is through education and engagement. A recent study by YouGov revealed that a massive 81% of UK adults fail to understand their energy bills and are unaware of the true cost of the energy they use every day. Clearly, it’s a stretch to ask a population to reduce its energy use if does not understand that use — and it doesn’t take much to imagine how this lack of knowledge infiltrates the workplace. Moreover, misunderstanding easily breeds mistrust, a sentiment that energy companies and governments both suffer at the hands of.

Thankfully the government has had the foresight to specify that smart meters be installed alongside in-home displays (IHD), which show real time information about energy consumption and help home owners to identify with it. When individuals are educated about their energy use and understand the savings they stand to make by better managing it, they will be empowered and encouraged to change their behaviour.

Advanced technology and appropriate information presentation give smart meters an even better chance of success. For example, smart data specialists Onzo have developed a data analysis engine that is able to identify those appliances that are costing the most and highlight old or faulty appliances that could be costing the bill payer more than they should, thus creating practical, actionable insights.

Of course, as communication is crucial, the way in which these insights are presented to — and accessed by — individuals is of great importance. Onzo’s data can be presented through a variety of media, including websites and smart phones, and the company’s energy reports clearly explain how a customer’s money is being spent and help to inform money-saving behaviour change.

The positive impact of consumer engagement is well documented; in a recent deployment of IHDs to over 80,000 energy users, smart data specialists Onzo revealed a sustained, self-motivated 8% reduction in overall energy use and a further 5% shift away from using energy at peak times.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Joel Hagan .