Green deal becomes a better deal for consumers..

..Home assessments will be impartial

An amendment tabled on the government's Energy Bill today will, if passed, mean that Green Deal home assessments must be done by independent assessors.

Which? has been calling for this since the Green Deal was first discussed. It is crucial that assessments are impartial if consumers are to be confident that they are being sold the right energy efficiency measures.

Josh Green, advocacy officer at Which?, said: 'It's great that there is now a stated requirement for energy assessors to be impartial.'


 Which? is working with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to make sure that the spirit of this amendment is carried through to the Green Deal codes of practice.
What is the Green Deal?

The Green Deal is a scheme being drawn up by DECC that will allow consumers to take out long-term finance to pay for home energy efficiency measures.

Consumers interested in these measures can have an energy expert visit and assess their home and make recommendations for improvements.

The amendment to the Energy Bill makes it clear that these assessors should be impartial, so that they are not prejudiced to recommend certain products over others.
The Green Deal in practice

There is still a way to go to make sure that the Green Deal offers a great deal for consumers. Anyone taking on the Green Deal will be signing up to a complex financial product, and Which? wants to make sure they're getting all the right information.

We'd also like reassurance that the government has considered how consumer problems can be solved if, and when, things go wrong.

Josh Green, said: 'We'd now like to see even more robust protections for consumers including an ombudsman with the power to take action against rogue companies and provisions to get redress for consumers if something goes wrong.'

Source: which.co.uk

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