Economy 7 and Off-Peak Tariffs: Money Saver or Hidden Danger

Economy 7 tariffs are currently offered by all major energy companies and work on the premise that you will pay less to use energy during off-peak hours. But is it encouraging people to charge their devices while they are out or asleep? And are people aware of the risks that they could be exposing themselves to?

Economy 7

The majority of Economy 7 tariffs run on the basis that the day rates are higher than the average but the off-peak (or night rates) are much better than the average. Therefore, if you use 70% of your energy in off-peak times, you could save around £250 a year on your bills.

Many Economy 7 tariffs class ‘off-peak’ as midnight until 7 a.m., meaning that the majority of energy use has to be done between those hours to make the most of the lower rates. If you don’t, you could actually end up paying more!

Money Saver

It’s easy to see how this could be a money saver for some. You can do the following high-energy tasks overnight when they cost less:

• Use the dishwasher
• Use the washing machine
• Use the tumble dryer
• Charge phones, laptops, and tablets
• Charge electric cars and scooters

And much more!

However, these are all tasks that you should NOT do while asleep.

Hidden Danger

It is well known that the above appliances, such as tumble dryers and car chargers, can be a fire risk.

Fire safety experts have been warning consumers for years that they should not be used when you are out, or asleep.

If you do, and any issues do occur, the fire could get out of hand before you could take any action.

The Firechief team, and Fire Rescue Services across the UK, have been working hard to highlight the risks and dangers of Lithium-ion battery fires. These batteries are found in electric cars, laptops, phones, cordless hoovers, and more! All things that you could tempted to charge overnight as you sleep.

With the higher daytime rate and lower night-time rate, it would make the most financial and economical sense to charge these items overnight while many of us are sleeping. However, by doing so, people are putting themselves at a higher risk.

Our Advice

We share the following tips to avoid lithium-ion battery, and other types of, fires:

• Do not charge electronic items while you are out or asleep
• Ensure that you use the manufacturer’s charger when you do charge
• Do not charge electronic items in bed or on soft surfaces
• Charge large items such as cars, a safe distance away from your home (e.g. not in the garage or in a carport)
• Do not use appliances such as washing machines and tumble dryers while you are out or asleep

To find out more about economy 7 tariffs, we got our information from MoneySavingExpert, and to learn more about fire safety and batteries, we have more information on our website: https://batteryfiresafety.co.uk/

The Firechief range includes high-performance fire extinguishers, fire blankets, first aid kits, lithium-ion fire extinguishers and the Kitchen Stove Guard.  For more information, call us on +44 (0)330 999 0019 or email sales@firechiefglobal.com.

The information contained within this blog is provided solely for general informational and educational purposes and is not intended as a substitute for professional advice. Before taking any actions based upon this information, we advise the reader to consult any and all relevant statutory or regulatory guidance and where necessary to consult a qualified fire or industry regulation professional. The use or reliance on any information contained herein is solely at the reader’s risk.