By Marcus Leach

Nearly four million of the UK’s 4.8 million small businesses are potentially missing out on £7.7 billion every year by not implementing energy efficiency measures, according to new research from E.ON.

E.ON is on a mission to get British businesses energy fit and has revealed only one in five (21%) of UK small businesses have energy efficient equipment in the workplace.

The research exposes small businesses in the financial and professional services sectors as being the least savvy when it comes to energy efficiency awareness. Shockingly, almost all of the small businesses surveyed from the financial (97%) and professional services (91%) sectors were unaware they are missing out on savings of up to £2,000 per year each.

The results disclosed small businesses are failing to implement key measures to reduce energy usage and save money:

· Almost nine out of 10 (86%) don’t have lighting timers or motion sensors in their workplace;

· 13% admit to leaving the windows open when the air conditioning or heating is on;

· Eight out of 10 (81%) don’t have an energy monitor installed in the office;

· But surprisingly 15% have a smart meter.

The research also reveals the battle to be energy savvy is creating friction between colleagues, with 87% of respondents citing their colleagues approach to energy efficiency as being irresponsible.

Employees are often referred to as a businesses’ most important asset. With almost nine out of 10 respondents (84%) stating their company’s approach to being environmentally friendly affects their workplace happiness, firms are provided with another reason to make energy efficiency a top business priority.

"Worryingly, four out of five small businesses are not aware of the significant financial savings that can be made by becoming more energy efficient in the workplace," Iain Walker, Head of Business Sales at E.ON, said.

"Introducing small changes in your business behaviour, like installing energy saving equipment, light sensors and smart meters, can have a significant financial impact on your energy bills.

"'With energy saving playing a key role in employees’ happiness in the workplace, taking a more efficient approach makes sense. It’s a win, win, win situation — saving your business money, helping protect the environment and improving the happiness of employees.”

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