Great 'Your Green Deal Tips - was it worth it?' Hunt

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  • Graham_Turner
    Graham_Turner Posts: 1 Newbie
    I spent £450 on Green Deal assessments for my three small (heavily mortgaged) BTL terraced houses. I was told that ‘shedloads’ of money was available, that a long list of things could be done free or at very little cost. Then it turned out that the rules had changed halfway through the process, and that what I had been told would be free under the ECO scheme (external insulation) would now be subject to a charge under the GD. But in any case, several months after the initial assessments, I have heard nothing about what might be done. One major problem is that there seems to be no central co-ordinator, just many separate organisations all doing their own thing. And some of these masquerade as independent advice services when in reality they are fronts for commercial companies. As things stand, I consider that I have been effectively scammed. The government, as usual, bleats uselessly and does nothing.
  • jimbo_the_jetset
    jimbo_the_jetset Posts: 673 Forumite
    rogerblack wrote: »
    You cannot use any firm - only the set who are either doing the whole green-deal in-house (large firms), or firms with some relationship in a collective that does.

    Your local RGI may not be a member, and may choose to charge more for any work under the scheme if they do.
    If you have the spare cash, or can get a loan at under 7%, and do not plan to move, then the green deal is really questionable.

    If you are likely to move within the timescale of the repayments, then it's clearly less cash outlay upfront, but the green deal debt on the property may mean the sale price is reduced.

    On a related matter.
    The green deal is based around the idea that you will never end up paying more for your energy + green deal loan - than you were paying now.
    How does this work in the case of a broken boiler - are you taken to be heating electrically?

    My point exactly, I would rather save up the cash and choose my preferred products / installers than be tied to a handful of companies who can choose their price accordingly knowing you are stuck in that position. I will avoid this scheme.
  • djembe_caz
    djembe_caz Posts: 16 Forumite
    I missed out on the £400 boiler scrappage scheme by a couple of days as they switched it to Green Deal without warning. I already had quotes for the boiler replacement work and the money saved to pay for it up front.

    Green Deal told me it would be around £100 for an assessment even though I already knew the old boiler was broken, I had to use one of their approved assessors (only a handful where I live) the work had to be carried out by someone who had taken their training course (only ONE where I live) and then I had to pay for a completion/ energy rating certificate at the end at around £60.

    So I would have paid £160 in order to get a £400 grant and that's assuming the only installers in the area wouldn't take advantage and up the cost of the work.

    From the looks of other people's comments it seems I made the wise choice in turning it down.
  • west_wales_idiot
    west_wales_idiot Posts: 10 Forumite
    I had my green deal assessment done on April 30th, the main recommendation was for solid wall insulation, however as yet I have not been able to get any green deal providers provide any quotes for the work let alone a green deal plan. Keep on getting told finance is not available, or the software needs to be re written have tried for ECO funding but have been told that is not available for EWI yet either, I agree with previous posters this scheme has been badly thought out and badly organised it has promised everything but delivered nothing.
    The scheme was lunched in January, the DECC supposed to release figures at the end of June as to how many of the 19,000 odd assessments done so far have been converted into green deal plans and have actually had installation work done, it will certainly make interesting reading !
  • frustin
    frustin Posts: 28 Forumite
    First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
    edited 29 May 2013 at 12:04PM
    Got the email this morning telling me that i can now apply for the assessment (£150).

    Not sure now.
  • moneysavingsearcher
    moneysavingsearcher Posts: 1 Newbie
    I also qualified for the green deal and was without heating or hot water due to broken boiler. Went through the process but was told by all the green deal suppliers that they won't do oil fired boilers. There is no gas in the rural area where we live so we have no option other than to use oil. No one seems to want to know or help us. Finally managed to repair the boiler at a wapping £600 but it won't hold another winter. Please please please is there anyone out there that could help us. Thanks in advance
  • Sofie_Pelsmakers
    Sofie_Pelsmakers Posts: 1 Newbie
    My experience is mixed: assessment went fine, but then have had trouble getting installers interested. I have documented my journey here:(cut and paste) sofiepelsmakers.com/my-green-deal-journey

    Since my latest blog post, I have now had two installer visits this week, and am waiting for costs. It is a frustrating process - and we are obviously the first ones to get going on this, which might explain the delays and difficulties.
  • brenin
    brenin Posts: 1 Newbie
    :D I received a confusing Green Deal assessment which said that I could improve energy efficiency by 10% - or maybe 20%. Also that I should consider a wind turbine - or maybe not. It also stated that I would have to make an upfront payment towards every recommended energy saving measure. When all the publicity had said the opposite. Finally, it said that my total payments would cost more than the money I would save.
  • tadu
    tadu Posts: 2 Newbie
    My mother had something similar in Scotland - an age-related scheme as she is over 80. They told her they would replace her boiler and radiators in 1 out of three bedrooms. When they left she found that they had removed the old radiators in bedrooms 2 and 3 - without her agreement - AND LEFT NO HEATING WHATSOEVER IN THOSE TWO ROOMS. They quoted £600 (!!!!) to fit TWO new radiators. Unless she used the same firm - who needed to be chased many, many times by my sister-in-law - her GUARANTEE ON THE NEW SYSTEM WAS VOID. Sounds like a scam preying on the elderly to me. She was reduced to tears by the process but is pleased with her new boiler.
  • west_wales_idiot
    west_wales_idiot Posts: 10 Forumite
    After weeks of emailing and phoning green deal providers to arrange for installers to provide quotes finally a provider arranged a technical survey for quotation purposes on Monday 3rd June, received phone call today from as administrator that Enact energy the green deal provider who was going to process my green deal has called in the recievers and ceased trading, if only the government had sorted things out quicker staff at this company may have had the much needed work in order to stay in business, so much for the governments claims the green deal will create jobs delays are actually costing the industry jobs.
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