“How can you live like that?”: energy vulnerability and the dynamic experience of fuel poverty in the UK

Recent evidence documents a dramatic reduction in average direct UK household energy consumption between 2005 and 2011 (ONS, 2013). This in a time when energy prices rise yearly, and incomes are static or declining. Meanwhile, the government's definition of fuel poverty is changing following the Hills review. Here we draw on qualitative data to explore the experience of fuel poverty in the UK and to suggest a dynamic set of qualitative indicators for household vulnerability. Among fifteen diverse participants from across the UK, a substantive shift has taken place in people's ability to cope, and their need to compromise on basic needs. In our data we identify six dimensions of energy vulnerability for the fuel poor, including the three commonly cited in the literature (quality of dwelling fabric, energy costs and supply issues, and stability of household income). Tenancy relations, social relations within the household and outside, and ill health also play a mediating role in households' ability to cope. Our findings problematize the existing measures of fuel poverty, and suggest that the emerging concept of energy vulnerability provides a useful lens with which to understand the dynamic nature of fuel poverty at the household level.