Recently, it was announced that the Government are introducing the Green Deal scheme, in which landlords can apply for free energy improvements to their rental properties.
This system was developed to encourage energy efficiency in the UK, and also reduce tenants’ bills. However, as a consequence, some rogue tradespeople have been providing the work under the Green Deal, but requiring administration fees.
Landlords to be Careful of Rogue Tradespeople
Accordingly, the Energy Saving Trust has released a statement to landlords to only accept work from tradespeople from one of the 16 companies certified to conduct the work.
The Energy Saving Trust have also surveyed homeowners around the UK, and found that about half are more concerned with certification marks of a trusted organisation than cheap prices when looking for tradespeople.1
Landlords should follow these concerns, as saving money in the short-term can lead to long-term problems.
Certification Manager from the Energy Saving Trust, Tom Lock, says: “These findings make it clear that while money is tight for many, being able to trust the tradesperson doing the work on their home is still more important to people that the pounds in their pocket.
“Trust is earned, and householders often find it difficult and time-consuming to find tradespeople they know can be 100% trusted and relied upon to perform good quality work at the right price.
“Tradespeople could see this as a problem, but we would advise them that it is actually a great opportunity. Certification, such as that provided by the Energy Saving Trust to installers working under the Green Deal, is a great way to build trust.
“Homeowners can then be sure that the right energy efficiency measure providing greater comfort and energy savings will be installed in their home.
“We are the only trusted consumer-facing organisation providing Green Deal Installer Certification, with tradespeople signing up to the scheme being give a free listing on our website, and able to use our trusted certification brand mark across all their marketing and materials.”1
More information on registered tradespeople can be found at: http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Organisations/Business-services/Green-Deal-certification
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