British winters can be very unpleasant especially if you are elderly and your boiler is old and unefficient. Over the past couple of years Britain has seen some very snowy winters, resulting in a lot of people being stuck in their homes trying to keep as warm as possible, this usually results in higher heating costs and energy bills. for these households.
If you are elderly and find yourself staying at home, keeping your heating set to “high”, The Green Deal scheme can help you stay warm through the cold winter and cut the costs of your energy bills.
The scheme works to reduce the demand for energy by eliminating energy waste. Of the total energy we use in our home, around three quarters is used for heating both rooms and water. The Climate Change Act 2008 legislated for a reduction in carbon emissions of 34% by 2020 and 80% by 2050, compared to 1990. In 2011 UK homes wasted £7bn worth of energy and the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) are hoping that the scheme, goes some way to reduce our wasted omissions.
The Green Deal scheme offers homeowners and businesses (within the next couple of years) the chance to make energy efficient improvements without having any upfront costs. Instead, the Green Deal takes payments through installments on the energy bill. In addition, it is only the current bill-payer who the payment applies to; if they move out of the property, then it falls to the next owner to take over the bills whilst they live there. Once the improvements have been paid for, the charge is removed from the energy bill. The loan can also be transferred to different energy providers should the customer want to swap their energy supplier.
There are several home improvements available under the scheme. To help you keep your house more efficient and warmer you may need insulation, new windows or, if your boiler is on its last legs and you don’t want to take the risk of it breaking down during the winter you could save up to £2300 on the purchase price of a new boiler. The Green Deal allows you to have all this improvement put in place without any upfront cost.
Double Glazing is also a great way to help keep the heat in and the cold out. Double glazing qualifies as an energy saving measure under the scheme. Large amounts of heat can be lost through glass but double glazing panes trap air between them and act as an insulator. This measurement is well worth considering as double glazing a property can cost a considerable amount on the average property size.
If you are interested in The Green Deal Scheme don’t hesitate to contact us on 0800 080 7997 or fill in our online homeowners form.
