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Households urged to use insulation grants
30/11/10
Edited by Andy Jowett.Millions of residential property owners are missing out on grants to improve their insulation because they do not think the assistance is for "people like me", according to a new poll.
The New Policy Institute survey for the Home Heat Helpline shows there are 5.2 million households that could claim the financial support from their gas or electricity supplier under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT).
This initiative obliges utility companies to promote energy efficiency and increase the amount of power they generate from renewable sources, such as wind and solar.
According to the poll, only 12 per cent of households eligible to receive home insulation grants under the CERT scheme have taken them up.
Another 47 per cent thought the funding is not meant "for people like me".
Home Heat Helpline noted that 45 per cent of respondents thought having new insulation would not save them much money, but it said that adding the free lagging could cut household bills by around £260 a year.
The CERT initiative will run until 2011 and, by the end of the programme, it should have delivered an annual net cut in CO2 emissions of 4.2 million tonnes.
