Approximately 2 million households in the UK have resorted to turning off their fridges or freezers to save money amid what poverty campaigners describe as a "frightening" level of hardship.
Nearly half of these households reported disconnecting their refrigeration appliances for the first time since May, signalling the ongoing impact of the cost of living crisis on low-income families, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) charity.
The latest survey from the JRF's cost-of-living crisis tracker, conducted in October, revealed that a quarter (2.8 million) of low-income households in the UK had incurred debt to purchase food, a third had sold belongings for cash, and one in six had utilised community "warm rooms." The survey highlighted that millions of families are resorting to "desperate measures" to cope with escalating bills and prices, with four out of five households on universal credit foregoing food, heating, and replacing worn-out clothing.
Despite the government allocating over £12 billion in targeted cost-of-living support and a recent decrease in inflation, the JRF noted that 7.3 million households had gone without food and essential items in the past six months, indicating that the crisis persists.
There is speculation that ministers might freeze the value of working-age benefits from April, potentially raising billions for the Treasury but causing about 9 million households to lose an estimated average of £460 and pushing lower-income families further into poverty. Charities emphasise that while headline falls in inflation are positive, the improvement in living standards for the poorest depends on increasing benefits to reflect rising food and energy prices and private sector rents.