What Will You Accept? An Analysis of Occupants’ Preferences for Direct Load Control in Residential Buildings

The rapid electrification of private heating and mobility increases residential electricity demand and requires new mechanisms to stabilize power grids. Direct load control (DLC) offers a technically effective way to manage demand-side flexibility, yet its acceptance by private households remains uncertain. This study investigates willingness-to-accept (WTA) and preference structures for DLC programs in the German-speaking D-A-CH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), using a large-scale survey (N = 10,346) and a choice-based conjoint experiment. Five core tariff attributes (financial compensation, intervention frequency, intervention duration, controllable technology, and Control Options) were evaluated across socio-economic groups using a hierarchical Bayes model. Financial compensation is found to be the most influential factor, followed by duration and frequency of interventions. Control Options are strongly preferred and associated with negative WTA values, indicating that autonomy substantially increases acceptance. Technology-related differences are found to be small: wallboxes require the highest compensation, while heat pumps and battery storage are generally well accepted. Cross-country differences in WTA are found to be statistically significant but modest, with Germany showing the highest compensation requirements. Socio-economic effects are minor. Overall, households accept DLC when interventions are short, predictable, and transparent, and when users retain basic control. These results suggest that effective DLC programs must combine fair compensation with autonomy safeguards and clear communication to ensure social acceptability.