What's up with all this electricity? Surprising results of a study on energy use in homes.

Experts from the Polish Economic Institute assessed that households have low knowledge about their own electricity use, energy saving options, and the functioning of the energy market. This may increase their expectations of the government, they concluded.

Experts from the Polish Economic Institute (PIE) stated that knowledge among Polish households about their own electricity use remains "low and requires educational efforts." They pointed out that this conclusion stems from a survey commissioned by the Energy Regulatory Office (URE) and conducted at the turn of April and May 2025. They added that the survey aimed to understand the opinions and attitudes of these energy consumers towards the electricity market in Poland.

More than half of the respondents (54%) agreed with the statement that the so-called energy price freeze is beneficial for the Polish economy, although its cost for 2025 alone was estimated at nearly PLN 5.5 billion. "The relatively low public awareness of the functioning of the energy market and the possibilities of optimizing their consumption may increase households' expectations of the state and, to a lesser extent, encourage them to seek savings on their own," PIE experts said.

According to PIE experts, a significant problem for Polish households is understanding the individual components of an electricity bill and how they are calculated. They reported that only 29% of respondents declared they knew how the energy market works and how prices are determined.

The study cited by PIE shows that only 47% of respondents correctly identified energy companies as the entities responsible for calculating household energy tariffs. However, 41% of respondents found invoices legible, and 40% found them understandable.

PIE experts indicated that half of the respondents stated they did not know, or knew but did not understand, why fees for energy consumption and distribution appear as separate components on the bill. "The URE study shows that households also incorrectly estimated the share of these fees in the final bill," they added.

A URE survey showed that 66% of Polish households fear uncontrolled electricity price increases in the future. Nearly 75% of households reported a heavier energy bill burden than two or three years ago. "At the same time, only 23% of respondents felt they could estimate their annual electricity consumption," noted PIE experts.

According to the Energy Regulatory Office (URE), respondents also have little knowledge of possible measures to minimize bills. "Although 73% knew about the possibility of switching electricity supplier, only 13% had ever switched. As many as 44% of households had never heard of dynamic tariffs," the Energy Regulatory Office (PIE) noted. The experts added that more respondents believed that bills were more influenced by EU (61%) and national (60%) policies than by their own energy-saving efforts (40%).

As the Institute emphasized, half of the surveyed households said they expect the government to exercise greater control and counteract energy price increases. Meanwhile, 39% of households want more transparent energy bills.

Last week, the Sejm (lower house of parliament) passed a bill on energy deregulation that, among other things, simplifies energy bills. Only the most important cost components will be visible, allowing household customers to understand the cost of energy itself, its trade, distribution costs, and the total amount due. The bill introduces electronic correspondence between the supplier and the customer, with the eventual goal of switching to electronic means. (PAP)

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