Green Deal Home Improvement Fund closed for applications with immediate effect

• by Private Land Buyer on 18th May 2015
•  Energy Efficiency, Property Savings, UK Legislation
•  1 comment

The green deal home improvement fund (GDHIF) was intended to give a boost the government’s flagship energy efficiency programme, which has failed to succeed, attracted few takers and caused loft and cavity wall insulations to crash.

The GDHIF was set up to help households in England and Wales improve the energy efficiency of their homes. But because of overwhelming popular demand, the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund is closed for applications with immediate effect.

A surge in applications over the last two days means the allocated budget has now been reached. All applications received prior to the fund closing that satisfy the terms and conditions and meet the eligibility criteria will be honoured at the original rates.

The final £70m was grabbed in just three days by about 9,500 applicants, showing they were all applying for close to the maximum amount, which is given to those installing insulation to solid walls. The popularity of the scheme was boosted by including a refund of the green deal assessment fee, usually around £100. This lead The Department of Energy and Climate DECC) to halt the scheme with immediate effect at 6.30pm on Thursday evening.

Newly appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Energy & Climate Change Amber Rudd, revealed:
“The Green Deal Home Improvement Fund is a world first and in a short space of time it has proved extremely popular. We were always clear there was a budget which is why we encouraged people to act quickly. As a result, thousands more families will now benefit from Government help to have warmer homes which use less energy.”

Earlier this week DECC announced changes to the scheme, caused by the hugely positive response since its launch at the beginning of June.

Richard Twinn, at the UK Green Building Council, said: “The sudden and immediate closure of this fund is another setback for the energy efficiency industry because companies have specifically geared up to market and deliver through this scheme. These constant changes are not helpful to industry. This does demonstrate that we need long-term drivers, not short term pots of cash to avoid this continual cycle of boom and bust.”
According to Neil Schofield, from boiler manufacturer Worcester, Bosch Group: “The tragedy is that, for once, DECC has come up with a scheme that works. It’s a body blow and a triumph for short-termism.”

Jonathan Reynolds, shadow energy minister said: “This is a shocking act of incompetence. It will leave many customers who have paid £100 for a green deal assessment out of pocket, with little prospect of them having the work they were promised done, and an insulation industry in despair at the stop-start nature of this government’s policy.”

Tasha Kosviner, editor of renewable energy consumer website YouGen.co.uk stated: “The GDHIF was welcome news to the thousands of households who were unable to claim solid wall insulation following the cuts to ECO. For the fund to run out just six weeks after launch is a big blow to both households and the renewable energy industry. Households who have paid for a green deal assessment in anticipation of claiming £100 back through GDHIF are now out of pocket and installers who registered with GDHIF in the hopes of increasing business from the scheme have also been left out in the cold.”

He continued: “Questions must also be asked about how more than £60m worth of vouchers came to be claimed in just two days. Decc need to look urgently and carefully at all the GDHIF vouchers that have been issued to ensure that all the claims made are genuine and will genuinely be benefiting those for whom the scheme was intended.”

The green deal was supposed to help millions of homes which need upgrade to their energy efficiency. But due to failure, only 3,800 people managed to embrace the offer.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change will monitor voucher redemption rates and will consider whether to launch a further offer should funds become available.