Wednesday 02 January 2019
The Household Expenditure Survey, which has been running since May 2018, covers a full 12 months to ensure seasonal changes in expenditure are captured.
The survey team are appealing for people to take part in the winter months to help capture the full range of spending patterns.
Helen Walton, Head of Data & Analysis, said:
"In Guernsey, December is usually the month with the most rainfall and it also has the least daylight hours. January and February are the coldest months. As a result, those that pay their electricity and gas bills as they get them or via direct debit, rather than by standing order, or buy wood or coal for fires, will usually have higher expenditure on fuel at this time of year. The patterns can be a bit different for those with oil tanks, which they might fill up at the start of winter or for those that go on holiday and aren't here for a while. The Survey seeks to capture all of that information from all different types of household, to give an overall average that represents the whole island.
The 2012-13 Survey found that spending on fuel for lighting and heating averaged £40 per week. It will be fascinating to see how that average has changed, since the survey will reflect differences in spending habits, such as volumes and types of fuel purchased, as well as prices."
Over 500 more participants are needed to take part in the Survey between now and the end of April. To say thank you to participants for their time, they can choose between a £25 restaurant voucher or a ticket to the quarterly cash prize draw with a top prize of £500 and five other prizes. The next draw takes place on February 1st 2019.
A fieldworker will guide householders through the main questionnaire and will input their information on regular payments and large purchases. Householders are then asked to record their expenditure on groceries and other purchases over a fortnight. The responses are anonymised.
The results of the survey are used to update Retail Prices Index (RPI) basket. Changes in the RPI are used to inform tax allowances, social security benefit rates, pension payments, wage negotiations, rental price reviews and maintenance payments, so are relevant to many Islanders.
The survey team is always on hand to respond to enquiries by email hes@gov.gg or by phone on 01481 717188. To find out more or to volunteer to take part (at any time until the end of April 2019) visit www.gov.gg/hes.
The results of the last survey are published here www.gov.gg/household. See www.gov.gg/rpi for the latest RPI figures.
