Millions of households to be given free plug-in batteries that can slash energy bills by £250 under government plans

FREE plug-in batteries worth roughly £500 could soon be handed out to millions of hard-up households in a bid to slash sky-high energy bills. The gadgets, no bigger than a cabin suitcase, act as a handy power bank for your home, soaking up cheap electricity overnight and then releasing it when prices spike during the day. Government insiders told The i Paper that officials at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) have quietly worked up a scheme to buy the devices in bulk and hand them to families on lower incomes. Unlike bulky traditional battery systems, these plug straight into a normal wall socket, no electrician or rewiring needed. Sign up for the Money newsletter Thank you! The batteries charge when electricity is cheapest, usually during off-peak hours, then supply power when prices rise. This means households buy less electricity at the most expensive times, cutting their bills. Clean energy experts at Regen estimate that some models could pay for themselves in as little as two-and-a-half years. That is far quicker than traditional home batteries, which can cost £1,000 just to install. Its analysis suggests households could cut their total energy costs by 30% to 34% over ten years if they move most of their electricity use to off-peak hours and buy a larger battery – or several smaller ones. Windfall Energy is among the firms already selling the technology. Most read in Money It says its Windfall Battery, designed for renters and people living in flats, could save users up to £250 a year. However, actual savings will depend on your electricity tariff, the battery’s capacity and how much energy use you can move to cheaper hours. The proposal to offer households free batteries is understood to have emerged from a Whitehall “sprint” over the summer. The joint initiative between DESNZ and innovation charity Nesta aimed to identify quick wins for the Warm Homes Plan. The i Paper says the drive was triggered by an energy price surge linked to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, with ministers eager to cash in on the public’s growing appetite for solar panels and home batteries. A Government source told the paper the batteries were appealing because “they’re so easy to deploy,” though bosses have not yet nailed down exactly who would qualify for a freebie. Previous Warm Homes Plan grants have generally targeted households earning £35,000 or less, so a similar income threshold could apply. However, one major stumbling block remains. Current UK wiring rules do not allow devices to feed power back into the home, so ministers will need to carry out a safety review and change the law before any of this can happen. A DESNZ spokesperson said: “We’ve cut VAT on electricity to give families breathing space. “The Energy Secretary’s focus is working to bring bills down for good. “And we are rolling out plug-in solar, which will be quickest to reach the market – helping to bring bills down for good.” Comment now