Government claims Green Deal is inspiring energy saving action

New research has found that 47 per cent of households who had received a Green Deal advice report, following a Green Deal assessment, said they either had or were getting energy saving measures installed.

A further 31 per cent said they would ‘definitely or probably’ install at least one measure. The research focused on those households having an assessment before the end of March 2013.

The assessment experience was also positive for the majority of households, with 75 per cent rating their usefulness as high, and 77 per cent having confidence in assessors’ recommendations.

Of those polled, 68 per cent said their motivation for having an assessment was to save money and 38 per cent said they were motivated to reduce their energy use for environmental reasons.

Research also shows that Green Deal awareness has doubled over the early months of the scheme, increasing from 10 per cent of households being aware in November 2012 (pre-launch) to 22 per cent in May 2013.

This follows a separate study of over 300,000 property sales in England published last week showing that making energy saving improvements to your property could increase its value by 14 per cent on average - and up to 38 per cent in some parts of England.

Speaking at the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Green Deal, Energy Secretary Edward Davey said: “All the signs are that British householders are motivated by energy efficiency. In an era of rising energy prices, the benefits are obvious.

“Last week we saw evidence that energy efficiency adds a premium to property values. Now we have evidence that Green Deal assessments are leading to householders investing in energy saving measures.

“The Green Deal has only just got underway, but it’s already inspiring consumers to take action to keep their homes warm and bills down.

“This is great news for the energy efficiency industry as well, because this shows a genuine appetite among householders for more energy efficient homes.”

Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker added: “It’s fantastic to see that Green Deal assessments are leading to people taking action to make their homes more efficient. This new research clearly shows that the majority of people are finding assessments a valuable experience that can usefully help them both understand where they are wasting energy and importantly what they can do to deal with it.

“It’s also encouraging to see awareness of the Green Deal growing. This is a long term programme that will last for years and decades, but we’re already seeing evidence that people are aspiring to improve their properties, make them more efficient and take control of their energy bills.”