Misled by Energy Efficient Star Ratings: A Case Study

Graham and Linda have just come back from visiting Linda’s twin sister in Seattle, in the USA. “Linda married an American teacher 7 years ago and we go out there about twice a year if we can. We like to see how their lifestyle is different to ours in some ways,” says Linda.

Their recent visit was, however, somewhat marred by Chloe and Kurt (in the USA) discovering that their efforts to be environmentally friendly have been set back by buying appliances for their home on the basis of energy ratings that don’t actually work.

Energy Efficiency Rating Stars

“As in this country, consumers in the US are told the energy ratings of new appliances using a star rating - we actually have and A, B, C, D and E rating system but the principle is the same,” explains Linda. While she and Graham were in the US, a report was published that showed that no checking has been done in the ratings put on appliances by their manufacturers. “As a result, most of my sister’s appliances turn out to be much less energy efficient that she had thought and she was bitterly disappointed,” says Linda.

A recent report in the US shows that the government has not checked the ratings systems in the last few years. “Chloe is really worried about the environment now they have two small children. They had spent hours choosing a new refrigerator, freezer, cooker, hot water boiler, even the windows they had put in, all using the star rating system and now they don’t have any idea whether they are meeting their environmental aims at all,” says Linda.

The UK System of Energy Ratings

Once back home, Graham was interested to find out more about the UK system and to investigate whether similar problems had been going on here. “I was very impressed to find out that our system is excellent and is working very well and is to be trusted,” reports Graham.

Electrical appliances are given an A-E rating, and the information on the ratings label should show how many kilowatt hours of electricity the appliance is likely to use in one year. Buying an electrical appliance like a freezer that is A triple plus rated will save you about £40 a year in electricity bills, based on today’s prices. Similar ratings systems help you choose the most energy efficient boilers and double glazed windows. “The savings get really significant when you add up all your appliances and windows - you stand to save hundreds of pounds each year, so I can see why Chloe and Kurt were so angry with the way things had gone in the US,” says Graham.

Will the US Catch Up with the EU?

Eventually, it will have to and the regulations will have to be tightened up. Europe has been doing this for some time - no manufacturer of electrical appliances on this side of the Atlantic has been able to make appliances less efficient than a D rating since 1999. “Kurt was rather jealous when I told him about my research…,” adds Graham.

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