Green Deal Home Improvement Scheme
The scheme is available to any household in England, Scotland or Wales. That is providing your home has an electricity meter fitted (includes prepayment meters).
What if the building is a rented property? In this case, the tenant and the landlord must both agree to have the Green Deal improvements.
Eligible Improvement Measures
The Green Deal assessment must recommend eligibility for any improvement measures. But, there is a range of different measures such as heating, insulation, windows, and products that generate energy.
[PDF Download] Green Deal: Energy Saving Home Improvement Checklist
Getting a Green Deal Assessment
You must contact a Green Deal assessor or provider to get an assessment of your property to use the Green Deal. In some cases, you may have to pay a fee for the assessment. If so, the assessor must inform you of the amount for the charge – and in advance.
The Visit from a Green Deal Assessor
It is the role of the Green Deal assessor to visit your home and discuss your energy use. They will inspect your property and help decide whether you might benefit from the Green Deal improvement scheme.
When you book you may get asked:
- Whether you own or rent the property.
- Whether there are any access issues (to your loft for example).
- If you can provide bills showing your recent energy use.
- If your home is a listed building, in a conservation area, built before 1900, or constructed in a non-traditional way.
The assessor may enquire about:
- The number of people living in your home.
- How often you use your heating.
- The type of heating and appliances you use.
- What energy-saving measures are already installed.
After the Visit by the Assessor
Following the visit by the Green Deal assessor you should get a document called a Green Deal advice report. The document contains:
- An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) that rates your home for energy efficiency.
- An estimate of the money you could save on your annual energy bills.
- An occupancy assessment that measures how much energy you and other occupiers are using.
- Improvements your assessor recommends.
- A statement on whether the improvements will pay for themselves through reduced energy costs.
A Green Deal advice report is valid for 10 years or until you make any changes or improvements to the property. Typical examples include building an extension or changing the quality of the windows.
Note: The amount you save depends on how much energy you use and the future cost of energy for your property.
Moving into a Green Deal Property
Several important things change if you move into a property with a Green Deal. The landlord or the seller must show you a copy of the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). The certificate explains what improvements got made and how much you must repay.
The responsibility for paying back the money rests with the person who pays the electricity. But, you can change the electricity supplier providing the new supplier participates in the Green Deal scheme.
The Next Step
The next step is for you to decide whether you want to get the work done and how you will pay for Green Deal improvements.