The number of households using gas for heating and cooking in some eastern states has declined for two consecutive quarters as high prices, milder winters and increasing connection costs encourage more Australians to rely solely on electricity.

With fuel prices surging across the country, electric vehicle advocates are calling on the federal government to keep a tax incentive that makes it cheaper for people to buy new EV's.

Motorists are abandoning petrol and diesel vehicles as the effects of the fuel crisis continue to bite in the lead-up to Easter, with public electric vehicle chargers recording a 20 per cent spike in use. Rewiring Australia chief executive Francis Vierboom said the fuel crisis presented a moment of opportunity to government.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen has seized on the fuel crisis to underline the need for electrification and renewable energy. But a lot of Australians have already done it. Households are spending their own money, taking the risk, and figuring out how to cut fossil fuels out of their lives.

“Even in a record-setting month, during a national fuel crisis, when filling up an EV costs a small fraction of the petrol equivalent, six in seven new car buyers still chose a petrol car,” Vierboom said.

Rewiring Australia welcomed the federal government's move to retain the electric vehicle fringe benefits tax (FBT) exemption, while warning the country remains far from mass EV adoption.

Experts say expanding oil infrastructure, instead of embracing electric vehicles, would ignore basic economics

Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom said the policy was working exactly as intended. “The PC is looking at spreadsheet emissions. They’re not looking at the actual transformation that has to happen in the economy,” he said.

Francis Vierboom, the chief executive of advocacy group Rewiring Australia, says solar and batteries act as a gateway for more comprehensive electrification measures, including disconnecting gas appliances and adding an electric vehicle.

Rewiring Australia chief executive Francis Vierboom said even without solar panels, electric appliances were more efficient, and NSW should follow Victoria’s lead in phasing out gas.

Talking to Saul Griffith is like turning on a light bulb. He argues that electrifying our households is just common sense, not a political stance. He talks about his latest book, 'Plug In!' gives Australians a five-point plan for going solar, answering questions about how to do it and, importantly, how to pay for it.

We all know that renewable energy is the future, but how can we ditch coal and gas in our own lives and homes? Plug In! is full of pro tips and essential information for your electrification journey.

Over 4 million homes and businesses in Australia have installed solar power systems. This represents about 37% of all households. Tim Webster explores how to electrify your home with solar energy and reduce your reliance on fossil fuels with Australian-American inventor, engineer, and renewable energy advocate Saul Griffith.

“This is a great example of a government making household electrification easier for households. Navigating a major energy upgrade can be tricky, even when there are major personal finance gains from doing so. This will slash peoples’ power bills, and provide peace of mind during the process,” Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom said.

“There are practical steps households can take with the support of governments to protect against this sort of bill shock. Empowering communities to switch to electric appliances, run by rooftop solar and stored by battery, is the first step,” Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom.

Rewiring Australia says communities will play an important role in protecting households from price hikes, after the Australian Energy Market Operator warned of a surge in electricity infrastructure costs.

“There are plenty of reasons to get off gas, and this latest decision by the AER to make it cheaper to disconnect, and more expensive to stick with it just adds to the growing list of incentives to go electric,” Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom said.

“We are looking forward to working with Labor to achieve its renewable goals, and we also want to encourage the government to continue to accelerate electrification and bill savings for Australian households - including finance that works for low income homes, a strategy for rental energy bills, and further incentives to drive down the upfront cost of electrification," said Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom.

“We strongly support this proposal from the Greens. We don’t want renters to miss out on cheaper and cleaner energy, so this is a great initiative,” Rewiring Australia’s CEO Francis Vierboom said.

Rewiring Australia chief executive Saul Griffith said adding the battery to the household helped add about $900 of savings each year.

Rewiring Australia is an organisation that advocates for policies to help households get off fossil fuels and become more efficient, and its CEO Francis Vierboom says Australia is a perfect fit for household batteries. "We've been so successful with solar, it does put Australia out in front on this challenge. We've got a really strong renewable grid already that's already over 40 per cent powered by renewables."

Tabled on Monday, the Residential Electrification report outlines a “pretty strong consensus position” that households will save money by shifting from gas to electric appliances and systems, says Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom.

“We know households are struggling. But we also know there is a solution that makes sense and Australia is well on the way to making the most out of our sun. We are world-leaders in rooftop solar. It makes complete sense to store it at our homes.”

Advocates for renewable energy suggest that switching to an induction stovetop, an electric hot water system, and an electric vehicle can significantly reduce carbon emissions—while saving you thousands over time.

“This tipping point shows Australians can save money on energy bills and cut emissions as soon as they electrify. This is a far better deal than what an energy bill rebate or fuel excise can offer,” Co-Founder and Chief Scientist of Rewiring Australia Dr Saul Griffith said.

“Our research shows that if we invested in helping people switch from fossil fuel appliances, and ran their home using solar and batteries, we would make a much higher return on the energy bill relief spend,” Francis Vierboom said.

“Our waning coal-fired power plants are letting us down, while our energy bills go up. We need more reliable, and cheaper energy,” Rewiring Australia’s founder and Chief Scientist Dr Saul Griffith said.

"We are already seeing it in Electrify 2515, but having these projects across the nation will really accelerate building the electrical grids of the future," Dr Saul Griffith said.

Electrification is the quickest and cheapest way to quit expensive fossil fuels and slash energy bills. These pilots deliver rich insights into how consumers and tradies use and install technologies.

"Australia is the leading rooftop-solar nation. Pilots like these will allow us to invent the clean consumer energy model for the whole world."

Rooftop solar and distributed energy resources will deliver the cheapest form of energy whereas nuclear energy will likely be too expensive and slow to solve any problems for Australia, said Rewiring Australia founder and chief scientist Dr Saul Griffith.

“Thanks to this policy, more Victorians will have lower energy bills and healthier homes,” said Chief Executive Officer Dan Cass. "We back the Victorian Government’s plans to help households make smarter energy choices by only replacing gas heating and hot water with cheaper, electric alternatives.”

“If Australia electrified the whole domestic economy, we’d save $1.7 trillion by 2050; any Australian household that electrifies their car, their cooking, their heating (will save),” Griffith says.