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Saving money vs investing money: Do energy ratings influence consumer demand for energy efficient goods?

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  • Panzone, Luca A.

Abstract

The article analyses economic barriers leading to the energy efficiency gap in the market for energy-using products by observing several million transactions in the UK over two years. The empirical exercise estimates AIDS models for refrigerators, washing machines, TVs, and light bulbs. Results indicate that market barriers are crucial in the demand for energy efficient options, and consumer response to changes in appliance prices, total expenditures, and energy prices depends on the possibility of behavioural adjustments in consumption. In contrast with the induced innovation hypothesis, current electricity prices can fail to induce innovation because of their short-term impact on disposable income, while consumers invest in energy efficiency when expecting electricity prices to rise in the future.

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  • Panzone, Luca A., 2013. "Saving money vs investing money: Do energy ratings influence consumer demand for energy efficient goods?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 51-63.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:38:y:2013:i:c:p:51-63
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2013.03.002
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    Cited by:

    1. Cohen, François & Glachant, Matthieu & Söderberg, Magnus, 2017. "The impact of energy prices on product innovation: Evidence from the UK refrigerator market," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(S1), pages 81-88.
    2. Galarraga, Ibon & Abadie, Luis M. & Ansuategi, Alberto, 2013. "Efficiency, effectiveness and implementation feasibility of energy efficiency rebates: The “Renove” plan in Spain," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(S1), pages 98-107.
    3. Hartwell, Christopher A., 2016. "The institutional basis of efficiency in resource-rich countries," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 40(4), pages 519-538.
    4. Nie, Hongguang & Zhou, Ting & Lu, Haiyan & Huang, Shupeng, 2021. "Evaluation of the efficiency of Chinese energy-saving household appliance subsidy policy: An economic benefit perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    5. Goeschl, Timo, 2019. "Cold Case: The forensic economics of energy efficiency labels for domestic refrigeration appliances," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(S1).
    6. Hlavinka, Alexander N. & Mjelde, James W. & Dharmasena, Senarath & Holland, Christine, 2016. "Forecasting the adoption of residential ductless heat pumps," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 60-67.
    7. Dong, Xiao & Klaiber, H. Allen, 2019. "Consumer stockpiling in response to the U.S. EISA “light bulb ban”," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 566-576.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Energy-efficiency gap; Energy-using products; Electricity; Consumer behaviour; AIDS model;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C10 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - General
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • Q41 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Demand and Supply; Prices
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy
    • Q55 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Technological Innovation

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