Do you need an assessment to get Green Deal Finance & Cashback
Yes – in order to access any Green Deal finance or Cashback you will need a Green Deal Report produced by a certified Green Deal Assessor.
Can I take my Green Deal report to any provider?
Yes – the Green Deal Report is portable, so regardless of who carries out the assessment, you can get quotes from any Green Deal Provider.
Can I use my current builder to install the work?
Yes – provided the builder is a Green Deal Approved installer (PAS2030 certified). If they aren’t, you can still use them, but you won’t be able to access the Green Deal finance or Green Deal cashback.
Can a landlord benefit from the Green Deal?
Recent changes to the Green Deal Legislation means that landlords can now get Green Deal finance, so they can get measures installed in their properties and the bill payer will make the Green Deal finance payments on the measures (which is obviously advantageous in the case of tenants paying their utility bills).
Do I have to pay interest on Green Deal Finance?
Yes – The interest rate for Green Deal finance is set at 6.96%. On the face of it, this is quite a high interest rate, however the loan is fixed – taking into account solid wall insulation is paid back over 25 years, they have had to opt for a rate that is high enough to cover any future interest price rises by the bank of England.
What is ECO?
ECO or the Energy Company Obligation is the grant part of the Green Deal scheme. You can find out more about ECO here – but in some cases you can use this Grant in conjunction with Green Deal finance to ensure that there is no upfront payment.
What types of charges are associated with Green Deal finance?
Aside from the 6.96% interest rate, there is a Green Deal Finance Company charge and an Energy Company charge that go towards cover the compliance and administration costs to set up and administer the Green Deal Plan.
Aside from Green Deal finance and cash back – why would I get a Green Deal Assessment?
We find that many of our customers are simply getting the Green Deal Advice Report (GDAR) since they are not sure where to start on their own properties in terms of improving the energy efficiency of their homes.
When the assessor visits your home (provided they are good!), they will provide you with numerous tips and tricks on how to lower your bills, as well as letting you know what other schemes feed into the Green Deal, like the Renewable Heat incentive and the Feed-in Tariff
The Green Deal is now also a legal requirement to be able to get the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) – excluding self-build properties.
Is the Green Deal a Grant?
The Green Deal is not a grant – you borrow money against the energy savings that the measure installed creates. For example, replacing an old boiler with a new energy efficient model will allow you to heat the home using less gas – which will produce a saving on your gas bill.
How long is my Green Deal Report Valid For?
The Green Deal Report is valid for 10 years (*source Energy Saving Advice Service helpline 0300 123 1234) provided the property doesn’t undergo major changes during that time that would impact its energy efficiency.
Can I use my existing EPC to get a Green Deal Report?
If there has been an EPC carried out on your property after April 2012, then the assessor may choose to use the information provided. However, in our experience very few assessors will be happy to accept existing EPCs since the accuracy of them tends to be rather variable depending on the quality of the assessor!
If, since getting the EPC, major works have taken place to the property that will have significantly altered its energy efficiency, you will need to get a new EPC completed regardless.
What Will my Green Deal Report Look like?
The Green Deal Report is a 5-page document – you can click here to see an example of what the report looks like, and you can click here to learn exactly what each of the different sections on the report looks like.
How do I go about claiming Green Deal Cashback?
A full, step-by-step guide to applying for cashback can be found here
What if I don’t have 12 months of energy bills
If you do not have any information regarding energy bills, or have lived in the property fewer than 12 months then the Green Deal Report will not be able to provide you with accurate savings tailored to you. However, this does not affect the amount of funding you may receive as this is taken from a typical household living in your property.
Why is there a fee for the assessment?
The fee is based on the work required to produce the report, including the site survey, travel time and lodgement fees. In some cases councils may fully subsidise the cost of a Green Deal Assessment, or energy companies might try and offer free assessments in return for taking out other services they offer. On the whole though, all independent assessors will charge for the assessment as one might expect for a professional service.
The fees for the assessment vary between suppliers, we for example charge £110 + VAT for our Green Deal surveys.
Can I repay the Green Deal Early?
You can absolutely pay back the Green Deal early if you want to, although in some cases there might be an early repayment charge.
Typically if the original length of the Green Deal plan was under 15 years, then the repayment charge is likely to be very small (under £8,000 left and it will actually be zero)
If you originally took out a Green Deal plan over 15 years, the early repayment charge is a little more difficult to calculate – and involves comparing the fixed interest charge on your individual Green Deal plan (i.e. at December 2013 – 6.96%), with the current interest being charged on Green Deal plans – but even so the repayment charge is capped at a low level.
For more details on the Green Deal early repayment please click here.
Is the work done under Green Deal guaranteed?
Yes – all work carried out under the Green Deal scheme (including installations done under the Green Deal) is provided with a Green Deal Guarantee. This guarantees that if the measure goes wrong within 5 years (or 25 years in the case of cavity walls and solid walls), the Green Deal provider will rectify the problem free of charge. If the Green Deal Provider goes bust in that time frame, the liability should be covered by the insurer who has underwritten the policy.
In the case of damage to the property resulting from a Green Deal installation, you can get the Green Deal provider to come and sort the issue within 10 years of the original measure being installed.
Can I still switch my energy provider?
There are various different energy companies signed up to the Green Deal including the Big six – British Gas, EDF, E.On, nPower & SSE. In addition, there are some small suppliers also signed up including Flow, Green Energy and Opus.
Provided you are swapping between these energy suppliers then there is absolutely no problem since the Green Deal finance amount is set. If you have a Green Deal plan in place, you will be unable to move from the supplier offering Green Deal finance to another provider who doesn’t offer the finance.
What if you can’t afford the Green Deal finance charge anymore?
Much like when you default on energy bills, if you suddenly find yourself in a position where you can’t pay the Green Deal portion of the bill you would eventually be disconnected.
There are obviously a few steps they will take before they disconnect you for instance they may agree to defer payments or connect you up to a prepayment meter – in addition in some cases they will not disconnect the home during the winter.
What happens if I move house?
The Green Deal is tied to your electricity meter (i.e. your home), not to you, so if you sell your property, the debt will pass on to the next assessor.
If you do decide to sell or let out the property, you will need to disclose the details of the Green Deal payments to the incoming bill payer.
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