Households with solar panels can save hundreds of pounds on their energy bills as rocketing prices threaten to plunge people into fuel poverty this winter.

MakeMyHouseGreen customer, Solomon, 46, who lives near Salisbury with his family of five, has already saved a huge £630 in just two months of having solar panels.

MakeMyHouseGreen, which uses smart data to calculate how much you can save with solar, helped Solomon control his energy bills.

Solomon says: “I was quite surprised at how big the saving was. It’s brilliant, I’m really, really pleased.”

Now he is interested to see how his savings will offset sky-high energy bills this winter.

On 26 August the energy price cap announcement is expected to bring another crippling increase, with estimates it will rise to more than £3,600 from 1 October.

One forecast has predicted the energy price cap could rise to more than £6,000 a year next year for the average household.(2)

Solomon says: “This winter, as a family we are facing a bill in December, January, February of maybe £800 for our electricity, because our house is all electric, so it's going to be awful for this winter.”

He says he is relieved that the savings made during the summer will help lessen the impact of higher bills in the winter.

He says: “I appreciate that PV [solar] panels in the winter are not the solution. But the thinking was always that if we can reduce what we spend in the summer, it can help soften what we have to spend in the winter. It's going to be interesting to see that.”

Llewellyn Kinch, co-founder of MakeMyHouseGreen and UK energy switching service Switchd, says that aside from the environmental benefits to households using solar panels, reducing their reliance on the National Grid, reduces overall demand, lowering prices for everyone.

He adds: “This means households aren’t just helping themselves, they’re helping other families too.”