Martin Lewis has addressed the long-running debate over the cheapest time of day to run energy-intensive appliances such as washing machines, clarifying that cheaper overnight electricity only applies to households on specific tariffs.
During a special energy bills episode of The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, broadcast on ITV1 on Tuesday (November 10) and still available on ITVX, Lewis responded to a question about whether energy is cheaper to use after 10pm and before 6am. He made clear that reduced night rates are only available to those on special overnight tariffs or EV charging tariffs.
Only Some Tariffs Offer Cheaper Night Rates
Lewis said: "It was only ever the case if you were on a specific Eco 7 or Eco 10 tariff. Now you could also be on a time of use tariff or an EV tariff."
He also criticised media reports on the subject, saying: "But I've read newspaper articles, some of them, and they quote me as well where it says, yknow, you need to be careful using too much overnight."
Most Households Pay the Same Rate All Day
Lewis explained that the vast majority of people are on the same rate 24 hours a day. He noted that 60% of those on a price cap tariff pay the same rate throughout the day. "Unless you know you are on a time of use tariff, same rate right across the day, it isn't cheaper at any particular point in the day," he added.
He expressed regret that the current system does not encourage off-peak usage, saying: "Which is actually a shame because you know, what we want to do is encourage more people to use energy off-peak which would help protect all of us, because we wouldn't need as much peak energy usage and it would bring down more bills. But at the moment, it doesn't work like that."
Economy 7 and Economy 10 Explained
Economy 7 and Economy 10 are special tariffs aimed at people with night storage heaters, often used in flats and smaller homes. These tariffs provide a cheaper rate at night to charge up storage heaters, which then release heat during the day when rates are higher.
Most households do not have these heaters, meaning energy is no cheaper at night unless they have an alternative arrangement such as a time-of-use tariff for charging an EV overnight. The episode remains available to watch via ITVX.
