More than 5 million Germans can no longer afford to heat their homes: Survey

By Timo Kirez

GENEVA (AA) - Last year, 5.5 million people in Germany said that they were unable to adequately keep their house or apartment warm because of financial reasons, according to a survey Tuesday by the German Federal Statistical Office.

Converted into percentages, the situation affects 6.6% of the population. According to the Federal Statistical Office, that figure has doubled compared to 2021.

In 2021, 3.3% of Germans said that they were no longer able to heat their homes due to the cost.

The study cites higher energy prices in connection to the war in Ukraine as the main reason for the increase.

Those in single-parent households were particularly frequently affected with 14.1% saying they were unable to heat their homes adequately due to lack of money.

People in households with two adults and at least three children, 9.7%, and those living alone, 7.3%, were also affected more frequently than the average.

With a population share of 6.6%, Germany is below the EU average, according to the study.

In the EU last year, around 9.3% of the population estimated that they were financially unable to keep their homes adequately warm.

The proportion also increased across the EU compared to 2021, when it stood at 6.9%.

In 2022, people in Bulgaria were the most likely to state that they were unable to heat their homes adequately with 22.5% affected.

It was followed by Greek Cyprus, 19.2%, and Greece, 18.7%. The lowest proportion was in Finland, 1.4%, Luxembourg, 2.1% and Slovenia, 2.6%.