The government has taken immediate action after checks found
widespread cases of poor-quality solid wall insulation installed
under inherited ECO4 and GBIS.
- Routine checks have identified widespread cases of
poor-quality solid wall insulation installed under inherited
Energy Company Obligation 4 and Great British Insulation Scheme
- Government takes immediate action to protect consumers, with
39 businesses immediately suspended from installing new solid
wall insulation. Installers responsible for this substandard work
will be forced to fix and households should not be asked to
pay
- Poor-quality installations are the result of years of a
failed system, with ministers committed to introducing new
reforms to drive-up quality and protect consumers through the
Warm Homes Plan
Thirty-nine businesses have been suspended from installing new
insulation in people's homes, after ministers were alerted to
reports of poor-quality work.
Routine checks carried out by TrustMark, the independent body
which oversees tradespeople working in homes, have uncovered
examples of substandard solid wall insulation fitted since 2022
under the Energy Company Obligation 4 and Great British
Insulation Scheme – both inherited by the government.
Check what to do if you're
concerned about the insulation you've had fitted through a
government scheme.
As soon as these issues were identified, the government took
immediate action to ensure installers are swiftly suspended,
expand checks of solid wall insulation measures installed under
both schemes, and implement a comprehensive plan to begin an
immediate repair process. The government has instructed the
energy regulator, Ofgem, to take oversight of
this work to ensure it is swiftly delivered.
The government has demanded that installers fund any repair work
themselves, under protections in the schemes. No household
should be asked to pay any money by an installer.
Ofgem has now begun
writing to all the households affected, explaining that qualified
professionals have started a system of checking every
installation under these schemes.
In some cases, an on-site visit will then follow to determine
whether any insulation work carried out requires a repair. If it
does, the certification body that oversees the installer, or
TrustMark, will arrange to fix the problem as soon as
possible.
Examples of substandard installation range from missing or
incomplete paperwork, insufficient ventilation, or missing or
exposed insulation, which if left unchecked could lead to damp
and mould. While this is a serious issue, this is not considered
a widespread threat to safety.
Installers responsible for this substandard work will be forced
to fix this at no cost to households and will remain banned from
installing new solid wall insulation on any government scheme if
they do not fulfil their obligation to put any issues
right.
The government is confident that these systemic issues are
particular to solid wall insulation installed under the Energy
Company Obligation 4 and Great British Insulation Scheme. This is
because there is a stronger system of checks and balances in
place for other energy efficiency schemes delivered through local
authorities and social housing providers.
Minister for Energy Consumers said:
I know this news will be concerning for people who have had
external or internal wall insulation fitted through either scheme
we have inherited.
That is why we are taking action to put this right, forcing
installers to fix any poor-quality installations as soon as
possible and at their own expense.
Affected households should look out for a letter from
Ofgem, which will
set out steps to resolve any issues.
It is clear the existing system of protections for consumers we
inherited is in dire need of reform. This will be front and
centre of our Warm Homes Plan, as we work to make sure no
households are let down in this way again.
The government has inherited a situation where there are several
organisations with different roles and responsibilities,
producing a fragmented and confusing system of protections for
people wanting to make their homes more energy efficient.
While installers are responsible for poor-quality installations,
they have been permitted to operate in a broken-up system of
regulation which has left some households exposed to bad
practices, along with little idea of where to turn to if things
go wrong.
This system can no longer command confidence and ministers will
now press ahead with a sweeping overhaul through the Warm Homes
Plan, so that people can be confident of the quality of upgrading
and insulating homes, which could help save money on their
bills.
This will involve rapidly changing the landscape of regulation,
spanning from how installers working in people's homes are
certified and monitored, to where homeowners turn to for rapid
action and enforcement if things go wrong.
Notes to editors
Official statistics show that to the end of November 2024, just
over 65,000 external wall insulation and internal wall insulation
measures have been fitted in around 65,000 households under the
Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4) scheme and Great
British Insulation Scheme.
Other government schemes include the Home Upgrade Grant
(HUG), Local Authority
Delivery (LAD) and
Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF).
