Turned down for Insulation Grant

femalediyer

I had British Gas out yesterday to see whether I was eligible for the free loft insulation under the government grant scheme.
I was told that whilst I was eligible for the grant my loft was not suitable to be insulated.
I was told that due to the pitch of my roof they would not be able to put down the insulation (as it was so thick) as it might cause dampness. Does this sound right or an excuse not to provide something that is free!?

HappyMJ

They want to install it even though to you it is free. They will get discounts on taxes they pay and they get credits to use which to them makes the installation free as well. They can't install if they have a potential future liability for damage caused as that will cost them more than nothing.

PaulF81

Do you have skeilings? (Google it) if yes, only way to insulate is by ripping out plasterboard, backfilling with foam insulation then replasterboarding and replastering. It's not cheap and it is a horrible job.

macman

It's very easy (and still cost effective) to install it yourself.
The free insulation grants programme has now ended.
BG don't provide it 'free'-it's paid for out of taxation and levies on your energy bills.

grahamc2003

At one stage BG were my supplier, and offered free Loft and CWI. It seemed the right price to me, so I told them I'd have it.

In comes a youngish BG assessor, who's main aim seemed to be to point out as many reasons as possibly why I or my house didn't qualify, and if I wanted a free installation, it would cost me a packet.

CWI - cavity too wide, house too tall, wall area too much. It's free up to X sq m of normal sized cavity, and mine is Y (= about 4X), so I pay for the difference adding up to several hundred quid. Inside, just about every room would need a vent, at £50 a pop. Then he found a room without an outside wall but had a fireplace, so, because there was nowhere for a vent, the house couldn't be done at all!

Loft - too big, couldn't use their usual material for some reason, and would 'blow' CWI materail to the required depth, with me paying a few hundred quid for the extra area.

So he successfully put me off having anything done by BG, which seemed to be his aim from the start.