Homeowners brand Green Homes Grant as ‘a joke’ as they struggle to find installers accepting £5,000 voucher
HOMEOWNERS have been branded the Green Homes Grant as “a joke” after claiming installers aren’t taking on work through the scheme.
The Green Homes Grant sees families given a voucher worth £5,000 – or £10,000 for low-income households – to spend on energy-saving improvements in their home.
The energy-saving scheme went live for applications this morning – but some households say they’ve struggled to find installers who are taking part.
All work covered by the voucher must be completed by a TrustMark-registered installer who is also registered for the Green Homes Grant.
Your installer must also meet PAS and MCS standards, which are measures used by manufacturing bodies to ensure work is of a high quality.
You have to find a tradesperson who can carry out the work before applying for a vouchers.
Complaining on Twitter and Facebook today, homeowners slammed the scheme and said installers are having “nothing to do with it”.
What is the Green Homes Grant and what work is covered?
THE Green Homes Grant sees the government cover at least two-thirds of the cost of certain green upgrades, up to a maximum £5,000.
For example, a homeowner would pay £1,320 of a £4,000 bill for cavity wall and floor insulation, while the government would pick up the remaining £2,680.
Households on low incomes can receive vouchers covering 100% of the cost of the improvements, up to a maximum of £10,000
The work that can be covered through the Green Homes Grant is split into “primary” and “secondary” jobs.
To qualify for the scheme, you must be installing at least one of the following “primary” insulation or low carbon measures.
Insulation:
- Solid wall
- Under-floor
- Cavity wall
- Flat roof
- Room in roof
- Insulating a park home
Low carbon heat:
- Air or ground source heat pump
- Solar thermal (solar panels which can be used for heating water)
- Biomass boilers
If you use the voucher for any of the above, you can also use it to cover the following “secondary” tasks:
- Draught proofing
- Double or triple glazing when replacing single glazing
- Secondary glazing when in addition to single glazing
- External energy efficient doors when replacing single glazed or solid doors installed before 2002
- Heating controls
- Hot water tank thermostats and insulation
The voucher does not cover the cost of:
- A new extension or conversion
- Insulating a conservatory which has no fixed heating
- installing a new fossil fuel boiler such as gas, oil or LPG
One person said: “What a load of c**p like always only for people on benefits and when you ring the installers they’re having nothing to do with it. What a joke.”
Another added: “I called a few installers and they are not having anything to do with it as there were payment problems with the last grant.”
A third said: “We fit the criteria as we want a heat source air pump but we don’t have a credited supplier/fitter in a 60-mile radius. Have contacted tradesmen further afield but they don’t want to travel that far.”
A fourth commented: “We’ve been looking into this for elderly parents, only found six suppliers in whole of Cornwall.
“No traders = no access to the grants. How can this funding be fairly available to everyone if no local providers? Most said it’s too much work to sign up.”
For homeowners looking to take advantage, they must first use the Simple Energy Advice (SEA) website to see what energy-saving improvements can be made to your home.
The SEA will then bring up accredited tradespeople in your area that can undertake the work – so if a tradesman isn’t on this website, they won’t be taking part in the scheme.
Once homeowners have found a price, based on the cheapest of three quotes, they can then apply for the voucher.
Households must make sure the work is scheduled to be completed, and the voucher redeemed subject to its terms and conditions, by 31 March 2021.
Unless you’re on a low-income family, the government won’t cover 100% of cost of the energy-saving work through the Green Homes Grant.
The government will cover at least two-thirds of the cost of certain green upgrades, up to a maximum £5,000.
For example, a homeowner would pay £1,320 of a £4,000 bill for cavity wall and floor insulation, while the government would pick up the remaining £2,680.
Households on low incomes can receive vouchers covering 100% of the cost of the improvements, up to a maximum of £10,000.
Any homeowner or social or private landlord in England can apply for the voucher, as long as you’ve not previously received a grant through the Local Authority Delivery Scheme or if you’ve got a new-build property.
The Sun has contacted the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy for comment.
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