Grants for cavity wall insulation and loft insulation are provided to United kingdom property owners because of the government’s commitment to help reduce CO2 emissions.
Among the biggest contributors of CO2 is energy wasted in domestic dwellings. We can create a cleaner environment by insulating the home which also wastes significantly less energy. It also helps the consumer who benefits by having decreased energy bills. Energy bills can be lowered by anywhere up to 25% in a properly insulated property.
The program that provides these grants is known as CERT (Carbon Emission Reduction Target). The grant is paid straight to the local designated company who does the work. This avoids the need for the home owner to have to find the funds up-front. Grants of up to 100% are offered. Nearly everybody on a means tested benefit or those aged over 70 would normally be eligible to have the work done totally free. You can obtain a grant for cavity wall insulation in Royston and other towns in the county. Grants for loft insulation in Royston and other towns are also available.
The process to apply for a grant is straightforward. The customer must contact a local contractor or surveying agency who is taking part in this program. The installer or agency will arrange for a Home Assessor to visit the house to determine if it is suitable. The Home Assessor will then advise of the insulation improvements are needed and also confirm with you the amount of grant aid you are entitled to.
The recommended standard of loft insulation is 270mm (11 inches). Think about increasing the depth of insulation if you have not had your loft topped up within the last 15 years.
The work will be carried out by your registered installer, should you decide to accept the offer. It’ll only take about half a day to finish most jobs. If you have cavity wall insulation installed, you will also be given a 25-year guarantee .
As this is a government backed program, there is a high volume of quality inspections once the work is actually completed. This makes sure that customers get quality workmanship. Any service provider that fails to meet these quality standards are removed from the scheme.
Different companies have different procedures to install the insulation. The homeowner could chose to have a surveying company undertake the initial inspection. The surveying agency can recommend the best company in that area to undertake the work. Because a surveying company is invariably independent, the homeowner will receive the best recommended product and a local authorised company best suited to their home. You can search on the internet for grants for home insulation in your city.
A new scheme called Green Deal will soon replace the current CERT program. The Green Deal scheme will cover more energy saving measures, such as boilers, external wall insulation and renewable technologies including solar pv, solar thermal, bio mass, ground source heat pumps. Any grants given under Green Deal will be repayable by way of the customer’s electricity bills. Grants issued under CERT are not repayable.
Based on a report by the UK’s Energy Savings Trust’s home energy efficiency database (HEED), at March 2012, over 3 million properties had benefited by having cavity wall insulation or loft insulation being installed.