Energy company British Gas had announced that is has become the ‘first’ Green Deal supporter to provide its English and Welsh customers with Green Deal Finance Plans.
Funded by the Green Deal Finance Company run by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the finance plans form part of a total of £244 million of funding available to householders through assessors for the ‘set-up, financing and administration of Green Deal Plans’ and come with an initial interest rate of 6.96 per cent per annum.
British Gas has said that its finance plans have already been ‘trialled extensively’, and its first plan was granted to a customer in Newcastle to part fund the purchase of a new boiler.
The scheme will initially only be available for new boilers and insulation, but the company says that ‘further products’ will be covered through the finance plan ‘shortly’.
Speaking of the new finance plans, Chris Jansen, Managing Director of British Gas Services, said: “As a supporter of the Green Deal, British Gas is proud to be the first to provide Green Deal Finance Plans to help improve the energy efficiency of homes.
“Having trained the largest number of Green Deal Assessors in the country, we’re now offering assessments, cashback and finance plans across England and Wales, with Scotland coming soon.
“As the summer approaches, it’s a great time to make home improvements that will also help control energy bills, saving people money.”
Green Deal details
Officially launched by government in January 2013, the Green Deal allows householders and businesses to take out loans to make 45 different types of adjustments to their property, such as installing double-glazing, insulation and new heating systems, with repayment taken through the property’s electricity bill rather than through individuals.
The deal was launched with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the UK’s ‘leaky buildings’, cutting electricity bills and making financial savings equal to or greater than the costs attached to the energy bill.
Householders can also receive packages worth over £1,000 from the £125 million Green Deal Cashback Scheme; the more work a property owner has done, the more cashback they will be awarded.
Green Deal process
Householders and businesses applying to the Green Deal will first have their property’s energy efficiency assessed by a Green Deal Assessor, who will recommend which appropriate improvements can be made, if any, via a Green Deal Advice Report. Green Deal Providers will then quote for the improvements, which will be carried out by a Green Deal Installer.
According toBritish Gas, the company’s 500 assessors have to date completed more than 8,000 Green Deal assessments, which cost householders £99 and have allegedly resulted in 5,000 households taking up home improvement deals.
This marks a dramatic improvement in uptake, after official Green Deal statistics released in March showed that just 1,803 assessments were made between December 2012 and February 2013.
Read more about the Green Deal.
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