Tools- of Changes

Large, Persistent Effects from Green Energy Defaults in Homes and Businesses

Presenting renewable energy to existing customers as the standard option led to around 80% of the household and business sector customers staying with the green default, and the effects were largely stable over a time span of at least four years.

In two large-scale field studies in Switzerland of over 200,000 households and 8,000 enterprises, the authors found that presenting renewable energy to existing customers as the standard option led to around 80% of the household and business sector customers staying with the green default, and the effects were largely stable over a time span of at least four years. Electricity consumption had only a weak effect on default acceptance. The data did not indicate moral licensing: accepting the green default did not lead to a disproportionate increase in electricity consumption.