Save Money with Free Loft Insulation

The scheme offers households free loft insulation when certain criteria are met:

• Properties without any thermal insulation in the loft can receive a grant towards new loft insulation above and between the floor joists.
• For homes with less than 100 millimetres of loft insulation, homeowners can benefit from additional loft insulation around the joists.
• In cases where insulation is present which creates a health and safety risk (such as where asbestos was used for insulation), homeowners can receive replacement loft insulation.

Ofgem says that your eligibility for free loft insulation depends on your living situation and whether you receive government benefits. This table outlines which benefits could make you eligible for free loft insulation.

BENEFIT	ELIGIBLE	ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Pension Credit (in addition to state pension)	Yes	None
Child Tax Credit	Yes, but only if you earn £16,010 a year or less	None
Child Benefit	Yes, but only if you meet the income requirement based on the size of your family	If you’re a single parent, the income requirements are as follows: 1. For 1 child, you must earn £18,500 or less a year 2. For 2 children, you must earn £23,000 a year or less 3. For 3 children, you must earn £27,500 or less a year 4. For 4 children, you must earn £32,000 or less a year If you’re part of a two-parent family, the income requirements are as follows: 1. For 1 child, combined income must be £25,500 or less a year 2. For 2 children, combined income must be £30,000 or less a year 3. For 3 children, combined income must be £34,500 or less a year 4. For 4 children, combined income must be £39,000 or less a year
Working Tax Credit	Yes, but only if earn £16,010 a year or less and you meet at least one additional requirement	In addition to receiving Working Tax Credit and earning £16,010 a year or less, you must also meet at least one of the following criteria: 1. You are over 60 2. You have a child under 16 3. You have a child under 20 in full-time education (but not at university) 4. You have a Severe Disability Element 5. You have a Disabled Worker Element
Income Support or Universal Credit	Yes, but only if you meet at least one additional requirement	In addition to receiving Income Support, you must also meet at least one of the following criteria: 1. You have a child under 16 2. You have a child under 20 in full-time education (but not at university) 3. You get Child Tax Credit including a disability element 4. You get a Disabled Child Premium 5. You get a Pensioner Premium
Income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance	Yes, but only if you meet at least one additional requirement	In addition to receiving Income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance, you must also meet at least one of the following criteria: 1. You have a child under 16 2. You have a child under 20 in full-time education (but not at university) 3. You get Child Tax Credit including a disability element 4. You get a Disabled Child Premium 5. You get a Pensioner Premium
Income-related Employment Support Allowance	Yes, but only if you meet at least one additional requirement	In addition to receiving Income-related Employment Support Allowance, you must also meet one of the following criteria: 1. You have a Work Related Activity or Work Related Support component 2. You have a child under 16 3. You have a child under 20 in full-time education (but not at university) 4. You get Child Tax Credit including a disability element 5. You get a Disabled Child Premium 6. You get a Pensioner Premium

In addition to the benefits listed in this table, people who receive the following benefits may also be eligible:

• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• Disability Living Allowance/Personal Independence Payment
• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
• War Pensions Mobility Supplement

Further to the eligibility criteria above, you may also be entitled to new, additional, or replacement loft insulation if you are in a privately rented home with an EPC rating of A, B, C, D, or E, or in a council home with an EPC rating of E, F, or G.

MEASURE	ELIGIBLE IF OWNER OCCUPIED HOME?	ELIGIBLE IF PRIVATELY RENTED HOME?	ELIGIBLE IF COUNCIL HOME?
New, Additional, or Replacement Loft Insulation	Yes	Yes, but only if EPC rating is A, B, C, D, or E	Yes, but only if EPC rating is E, F, or G

Only low-income pensioners who receive a pension credit on top of their regular state pension are eligible for free loft insulation.

Unfortunately, not everyone who meets the eligibility criteria will receive a grant for free loft insulation. This can be for many reasons, but at large, each energy company is allowed to decide how they want to meet their obligations under the ECO, meaning their benefits can vary.

Each provider decides how much funding they want to put towards insulation and other grants, and only certain energy companies participate in the scheme. Some companies are offering new or additional or replacement loft insulation, while others are offering replacement boilers – and others are offering a combination of all these measures.

Even if the energy provider thinks you meet the benefits criteria, they still have to send a professional to conduct a survey. The surveyor must then decide if your property can accommodate new (or additional or replacement) insulation, and how much work is required to install it.

If the energy company can’t offer you free loft insulation, they may have grants for other measures, like a boiler upgrade or cavity wall insulation.

The full list of companies that currently participate in the ECO scheme is available from Ofgem.

You do not need to apply through your own energy provider – you’re able to apply from any obligated supplier, and they’ll be able to grant you support if the eligibility criteria are met.

The application process for free loft insulation is fairly straightforward, although there are a few steps to go through.

• First, you need to contact an energy supplier (either your own or another participating company)
• The energy provider then informs you whether they’re accepting applications
• Your eligibility will then be assessed by the energy provider, based on criteria set by the government
• You may then be asked to provide proof of your eligibility (such as benefits letters or the EPC rating for your home)
• If you live in rented accommodation, you’ll need to ask your landlord’s permission and ask them to fill out a form
• If the energy company is still accepting applications and you meet the criteria, the energy provider will then arrange a free in-home survey. It’s important to note that energy companies offering free loft insulation under the ECO will never ask you to pay for a home survey, and you should be wary of any company that does.
• A heating engineer will then visit your home to evaluate your heating system and determine if a new boiler can be installed and how much work will be required
• If the heating engineer determines a new boiler can be installed, the energy company will then send you a quote for the works
• The quote should state whether you’ll be required to pay for the installation costs or any additional work that may be required (such as running new gas pipes) to accommodate the new boiler
• At this point, you can then decide whether to accept the quote and if you accept the quote, you can then schedule an appointment for installation through the provider.

The final round of grants opened on 1 April 2021 and closes on 31 March 2022.

Your local council can help, as they can choose to nominate specific households under the ECO, based on their own criteria. To gain assistance from your local council, you’ll first need to contact your local authority to ask first if they do, and if so, what criteria you must meet.

If you don’t qualify for free loft insulation, there are still several thermal heat initiatives in place to help you out. These include:

Warm Home Discount Scheme

The Warm Home Discount Scheme can provide you with £140 off your electricity bill for the winter period of 2021 to 2022. The money is provided as a one-off electricity bill discount, issued between October and March.

You’re eligible for this if you get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit, or if you’re low-income, and meet your energy supplier’s criteria. This scheme opened for applications on 18 October 2021.

Full details can be found here.

Cold Weather Payment

If the average temperature is recorded or forecast as zero degrees celsius or lower over seven consecutive days between the 1st November and the 31st March, you can become eligible for a Cold Weather Payment of £25 per seven day period.

You become eligible for the Cold Weather Payment if you receive:

• Pension Credit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Universal Credit
• Support for Mortgage Interest.

Full details can be found here.

Winter Fuel Payment

The Winter Fuel Payment is given to those born on or before the 26th September 1955, and who have lived in the UK for at least one day from the 20th to the 26th September 2021.

Depending on whether you live by yourself or alone, you can receive between £100 to £300.

Full details can be found here.

Local Grants

If you’re ineligible for a grant under the ECO, you can try searching for local grants available through your council. For more details, take a look at this page.

Company-specific Schemes

Some energy suppliers have their own company-specific schemes available for those who need support in paying their energy bills.

British Gas

British Gas has the British Gas Energy Trust offering free advice on income, benefits and energy-efficient measures. They also run an energy debt programme, which awards grants to households with energy debt or needing emergency energy credit.

Full details can be found here.

ScottishPower

ScottishPower has the Hardship Fund plan in place to help customers who are struggling to pay their energy bills. This is available for low-income households, as well as customers on a range of benefits.

Full details can be found here.

OVO Energy

The OVO Energy Fund is in place to help those struggling to pay energy bills, offering flexible and fair payment plans, free energy-efficiency advice and further information on where to find independent advice.

Full details can be found here.

e.ON

e.ON have started the e.ON Energy Fund, which gives support to those who are struggling to pay energy bills in England, Scotland and Wales. This is available to existing or previous customers, and if eligible, you can receive assistance to help to pay your current or final energy bills, replace appliances or repair gas boilers.

Full details can be found here.

EDF

EDF’s Customer Support Fund is in place to award grants to vulnerable customer households, while also offering grants to buy energy-efficient white goods. EDF are also in partnership with the IncomeMAX team, which will help customers maximise their household income by checking you have applied for and are receiving the right benefits.

Full details can be found here.

SSE

SSE may also offer energy debt relief, more flexible payment plans, and free energy meters for eligible customers—just contact their customer care line on 0345 026 2658.

• Get a smart meter
• Turn down the temperature, and use a smart thermostat
• Bleed your radiators
• Invest in energy-saving light bulbs and a water-saving showerhead
• Hang heavy curtains to prevent heat loss through your windows
• Use rugs to prevent heat loss through your floors

Whether you can apply for free loft insulation in properties you rent out depends on the tenant’s eligibility and whether the property meets the criteria. For full details of eligibility, take a look at this Ofgem page.

Helping to reduce carbon emissions and fuel poverty in Great Britain, the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is a government energy efficiency scheme, started in 2013. Amongst other initiatives, the ECO promotes ways in which low income, fuel-poor and vulnerable households can heat their homes.