CASH in on free help to make your home greener and cut bills.
The Government’s Net Zero strategy will see homeowners having to pay thousands to make their property more efficient.
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But there are ways to save money.
Louise Shooter, of trade association Energy UK, says: “Look at what’s on offer and don’t forget to see what small changes you can also make yourself around the house.”
Lucy Alderson rounds up how to seek support and be more energy efficient.
Council cash
GET free cash from your council under the Home Upgrade Grants scheme.
Between now and 2025, £700million will be given to councils to dish out to residents.
It’s only available to those not on the gas grid – approximately four million homes.
You also must have a household income of no more than £31,000, and your home must have an energy performance certificate rating of D, E, F or G.
EPC ratings of A to C are given to more energy efficient homes.
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Find your household’s rating by entering your postcode at gov.uk/find-energy-certificate.
How much you can get varies, but grants start at £8,000, and you can get up to £37,000.
You can receive funds for solar panels, green central heating systems and double glazing from councils so ask yours what’s on offer.
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The new government eco+ scheme
THE £1billion ECO+ scheme starts in April and you can get grants worth £1,500 for low-cost energy updates.
It’s separate to the ECO scheme.
Cash can be used to fit smart heating controls, loft and cavity wall insulation and more.
The majority of funding will go to those living in the least energy-efficient homes, who are in council tax bands A to D.
But a fifth of available cash will go to households on low incomes, including those on means-tested benefits, or who are in fuel poverty.
Over 400,000 homes will benefit from the scheme and you could save around £310 a year on average, the Government said.
Grants will be delivered through energy companies – you can register your interest with some suppliers now.
Upgrade your boiler
UNDER the Government’s £450million Boiler Upgrade Scheme, you could be eligible for a grant of up to £6,000 to fund the cost of a heat pump.
But these can cost £13,000 or more, so you’d still need around £6,000 of your own money.
The grant can also be used to for the installation a more efficient boiler.
You must own your home and have a heating system that is run by oil, gas or electricity to be eligible.
Heat pumps take in energy from the ground or the air.
They can be cheaper to run than older gas boilers, but it could take years to make back your initial costs.
Check how much it’s likely to save you in the long run before taking the plunge,” Uswitch energy expert Ben Gallizzi said.
You could also get £5,000 to switch to a biomass boiler, which burns wood, plants or waste.
But they can also cost £10,000 to £13,000.
To claim these grants, you’ll need to apply through a certified installer, which you can find on mcscertified.com.
They can tell you if you’re eligible for the help and provide a quote.
The value of the grant will be taken off the total amount you pay for installation.
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Supplier grants
THE Energy Company Obligation (ECO) helps hard-up households make their homes more energy efficient.
It’s a government scheme that’s run by energy suppliers, which dish out the money to customers.
You can get new insulation, boilers and heating upgrades, such as underfloor heating or energy-efficient radiators in some cases.
You will qualify if you claim certain means-tested benefits including Universal Credit or the £150 Warm Home Discount.
You would also need to live in a privately-owned home.
But tenants would require their landlord’s permission to make major changes.
Most suppliers are signed up, contact yours directly to apply.
The amount you can get varies on a case-by-case basis, but could be worth thousands – for example, a new boiler costs between £1,000 to £3,500, according to British Gas.
How much could you save?
LOFT insulation could save you up to £315 a year on energy bills, Which? estimates.
And solar panels could help slash costs by £1,200, according to the Federation of Master Builders.
This is because, as you are generating your own energy, you don’t have to buy it from a supplier – so you can save hundreds of pounds on bills.
While replacing your old boiler with an energy-efficient one could slash your bills by up to £840 a year, said British Gas.
Switching an old gas boiler to a heat pump could save up to £395 a year once you’ve paid the upfront costs.
But replacing newer boilers with pumps might not save anything.
Smart heating controls, like thermostatic radiator valves, could help you cut costs by nearly £70 a year.
Crooks keep it in family for top money scam
SCAMMERS who pretend to be a family member in need are most successful at conning victims, research has found.
Bank TSB said 72 per cent of impersonation fraud in 2022 involved crooks pretending to be a victim’s relative or friend.
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That is equivalent to around £65million of losses in the first half of last year alone, based on UK Finance fraud figures.
Typically they send a message via text or WhatsApp to their victim saying something along the lines of “Hi mum/dad/bro/sis, I’ve lost my phone, this is my new number”.
Having won their victim’s trust, they then ask to borrow money urgently with a plausible sob story, such as needing to pay rent, energy bills or replace a stolen laptop or phone.
In one case reported by North Wales Police last month, an elderly woman from Flintshire, received a WhatsApp message that was claiming to be from her daughter.
It said she had dropped her phone down the toilet, meaning she couldn’t use her normal number or access her online bank account
The scammer then asked for £1,979 to buy a car, which the victim duly transferred to a bank account which apparently belonged to her daughter’s friend.
The victim only realised she had been scammed when she spoke to her daughter.
Her bank later refunded her.
TSB has also seen some cases where crooks have learnt from social media that someone is getting married, then contacted their parents pretending to need help paying for the wedding.
As well as being the most common scam, “family and friend” fraud also accounts for the highest losses, at 40 per cent.
The other most common scams are fraudsters impersonating their victim’s bank, typically telling them that they need to transfer some money out of an “unsafe account”, or pretending to be from HMRC, Amazon, the police or broadband firms such as Sky or BT.
Paul Davis, TSB director of fraud prevention, said: “The rise of friends and family fraud shows that scammers are preying on the relationships we have with those around us, often with a cost-of-living angle – with elaborate stories to explain them texting from a new phone number.”
Be sure to warn your relatives about this type of fraud.
If you suspect you’ve been scammed, call your bank immediately using the phone number on the back of your card.
Fraudsters can make phone calls and text messages appear to come from any phone number they like, so never assume it’s your bank calling just because its number pops up on your screen.
