-
14/7/25 8:13 pm
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
A staggering 98% of homes with external wall insulation installed under the government’s ECO scheme need work to correct major issues that will cause problems such as damp and mould.
A damning National Audit Office (NAO) report blames poor-quality installations, weak government oversight and inadequate audit and monitoring, which the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) believes have led to tens of thousands of households needing repair work, along with suspected fraud.
The report relates to ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme which require energy companies to fund energy efficiency measures.
Poor installation work has resulted in 22,000 to 23,000 homes with external wall insulation fitted under the scheme (98% of the total) and 9,000 to 13,000 homes with internal insulation (29% of the total) having major issues that need fixing. The report suggests that work was subcontracted to some firms who were not competent, certified or who cut corners.
It also blames “weak government oversight” resulting in widespread issues with the ECO scheme not being identified sooner, and an overly complex consumer protection system that failed due to “unclear and fragmented roles, responsibilities and accountabilities”.
Ofgem estimates that some businesses had also falsified claims for ECO installations in up to 16,500 homes, potentially claiming between £56 million and £165 million from energy suppliers.
The NAO wants DESNZ to take clear responsibility for schemes such as ECO, even when they are funded through consumers’ electricity bills. NAO head Gareth Davies says: “DESNZ must now ensure that businesses meet their obligations to repair all affected homes as quickly as possible. It must also reform the system so that this cannot happen again.”
However, Anna Moore, co-founder and CEO of retrofit specialist Domna, believes there are easy fixes. “We should enforce existing PAS2035 standards, that call on the assessment and compliance roles to be separate from delivery,” she suggests. “ECO funding should go through managing agents, who have a vested interest in compliance, rather than directly to contractors. That would raise quality and cut waste and avoid the disastrous results that we have seen in this latest debacle.”
Tags:
Comments