Users of Storage Radiators For Heating Get Bigger Savings From the UK Budget

2nd December 2025

So many details in the UK budget announcements and it was easy to miss some things. Bigger savings for users of storage radiators is one of them.

The recent Rachel Reeves 2025 Budget included measures that affect energy bills, and in particular the government says households with electric heating like storage-heater households could see greater savings than the "average household."

What the Budget says and how that helps storage-heater homes

The Budget abolishes the levy under Energy Company Obligation (ECO), which will reduce electricity bills.

It also shifts most of the cost of the Renewables Obligation (RO) from electricity bills onto general taxation — reducing unit-rate costs for electricity.

Overall, the government estimates an average saving of ~£150 per year on dual-fuel (gas + electric) household bills as a result.

For households that rely entirely on electricity (i.e. “high-use electric storage-heated households” — no gas), the government's own example shows a much larger estimated saving: £442 per year.

Independent commentary from Nesta (a UK think-tank) also suggests that for storage-heater households, the effective saving could be as much as £250 per year.

What this means practically for people with storage radiators in the UK

If you live in a home heated by storage radiators (electric heating only), and you pay your electricity via standard tariffs (i.e. not gas or dual-fuel), then the Budget’s changes could lead to considerably higher savings than the average household — potentially in the hundreds of pounds per year rather than £150.

The “£442/year” figure from the government example suggests that for high-usage electric households, the cut in levies and obligations could meaningfully reduce your electricity bills.

Even if your usage is lower, you’re likely to get more benefit than a typical “gas + electric” user — because the savings are concentrated on electricity-related costs, which storage-heater households tend to pay more of.

Complications
These savings come from removing levies and obligations from electricity bills — not from a reduction in wholesale energy costs. So if wholesale prices rise, or your usage goes up, bills can still be high. The measure simply lowers the “policy cost” component of bills.

The savings quoted are “on average” (or “typical”/“high-use” scenarios) — actual savings depend heavily on how much electricity you use.

For households previously benefiting from subsidies or support for energy-efficiency upgrades (e.g. insulation, heat pumps) under ECO or other schemes — those supports are being scaled back or restructured, which may offset some long-term benefits for efficiency or insulation improvements.

The Budget’s changes do appear to offer greater savings for people in the UK using storage radiators (i.e. electric-only heating) than for “typical” mixed fuel households. If you fall in that group, you could realistically expect savings of several hundred pounds a year, depending on your electricity use.