NLA Urges Landlords to use Green Deal

The National Landlords Association has urged landlords to use the green deal scheme to cut energy bills.

This comes after the announcement of the latest price rises from energy companies. British Gas have raised their prices by an average of 6%, and Npower have announced average rises of 8.8% for gas and 9.1% for electricity with effect from 26 November.

David Salusbury, chairman of the NLA, said: “The energy company price rise is now a twice-yearly affair and naturally a cause of concern for many. Landlords looking to help their tenants reduce their energy bills should take advantage of the green deal.”

The green deal enables householders to install energy efficiency measures in their home without paying upfront.  Instead, the upfront costs of the work will be met by a ‘green deal provider’, which will recover its investment, with interest, from repayments linked to the fuel bill savings.

The green deal ‘golden rule’ states repayments must not exceed fuel bill savings.

A £1.3 billion a year pot funded by energy companies, the energy company obligation, will subsidise some measures that would not otherwise meet the golden rule.

The green deal was due to launch this month, but is not yet open for business. Assessments of work to be carried out under the green deal can take place, but no equipment will be installed until early next year when a financial framework is put in place.