Energy feedback in buildings: improving the infrastructure for demand reduction

The concept of market transformation is being widened to include a range of processes, including information flows. The paper argues that feedback to energy users on their consumption (via improved metering, billing and displays) complements other tools such as energy labelling and minimum standards, increasing the likelihood that decisions on built fabric and equipment will be grounded in the realities of daily usage. Different types of feedback to energy users, mostly in the residential sector, are considered for their impact in the short- and long-term. Implications are examined for energy policy in relation to feedback, including the relative importance to different actors of load control and demand reduction, as well as the question about how priorities should be set in debates over the future of metering.