The staggering sum accounts for 4.9% of an average household's disposable income and is well above costs in Britain.

Scottish bill payers come the closest, paying out £900 annually, around 3.4% of the wages they have left after tax, while in London the figure drops to £751, just 2.2%, of salaries after deductions.

The figures were released in Parliament but could now be even higher as costs may have risen since the research was carried out.

And the squeeze is only set to get worse with industry leaders warning there will be significant increases over coming months.

Last week the Northern Ireland Coal Advisory Service confirmed coal prices were set to rise by 25% and the Assembly has now set up a task force on fuel poverty. The hike is being blamed on world energy markets and transport costs.

Executive Junior Minister Jeffrey Donaldson, DUP MP for Lagan Valley, said: " We are concerned about the rocketing fuel prices and, when you consider that Northern Ireland is still below the UK average for income, this is an extra burden.

"We are paying the highest costs in the UK and fuel poverty is a growing issue.

"The Assembly is looking at ways in which it can offset the costs but it is extremely difficult. The Treasury needs to take these circumstances into account."

One option under consideration is pushing the UK Government to increase the Winter Fuel Payment.

Last month Phoenix Natural Gas announced a 28% rise in its bills — around an extra £130 a year on bills — while food bills have also gone up by almost one-third.

Consumers are also set to face a substantial hike in their electricity bills — believed to be in the region of 10-15%. Talks are ongoing between NIE and the General Consumer Council over the scale of the hike. The company warned several weeks ago that rising wholesale costs of gas and oil meant that an interim increase was looking unavoidable.

On top of that motorists now face an annual bill of around £2,105.

Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson, who requested the figures in Parliament, said: "The Government must urgently investigate why people in Northern Ireland are paying such a high proportion of their income in domestic fuel costs.

"With household costs rising across the UK, the Government must help less well off families to improve energy efficiency to ensure they are not hit by the highest fuel bills."