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Majority of people say cost is a barrier to retrofitting their home, survey finds

Significant numbers unaware of grants for such work, AIB says

The majority of people cannot afford to do more to retrofit their home because of the amount it costs, an AIB study has found
The majority of people cannot afford to do more to retrofit their home because of the amount it costs, an AIB study has found
Fiona Keeley
Wed Dec 11 2024 - 16:32

* The majority of people cannot afford to do more to retrofit their home because of the amount it costs, an AIB study has found.

The study also shows that a number of people are unaware of the government grants available to them when upgrading their home, with only three out of 10 people applying for a grant to install a heat pump and two-thirds applying for the solar panel grant.

Retrofitting a building by installing solar panels, heat pumps and double-glazed windows improves its energy efficiency.

Overall, 62 per cent of people say they are not able to do more to retrofit their home because they cannot afford it. The home retrofitting report indicates that only two-thirds of respondents applied to the Sustainability Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) for a grant when installing solar panels.

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AIB chief strategy and sustainability officer Mary Whitelaw said that “while the financial savings and enhanced home comforts are important benefits [to energy efficiency upgrades], retrofitting also supports the national and European drive to lower carbon emissions, helping protect our people, our planet and prosperity for generations to come”.

She said if people want to retrofit their homes, there are “government grants and lender incentives and other helpful information and services available” with information on the subject.

According to the survey, 45 per cent of people asked said they did want to improve energy efficiency in their home. However, many respondents are not financially able to do so, and are unaware of government grants available to them.

The report also said if a once-off energy upgrade to a home, such as the installation of solar panels, improves a home’s energy efficiency rating to B2 or above on the Building Energy Rating (Ber) system, it would make the house ineligible for a grant known as the SEAI one-stop-shop grant.

The one-stop-shop grant covers energy upgrades such as the installation of heat pumps and solar panels and insulation.

Almost 60 per cent of people asked said they retrofit their home to save money on energy costs. Many of those asked said they had double-glazed windows as well as some internal insulation.

However, only 30 per cent of people said they had external insulation. Some 16 per cent of those asked said they had a heat pump in their house, while 12 per cent said they had solar panels.

* According to the Electric Ireland website, an air source heat pump can cost between €8,500-€14,500 to install while a ground source heat pump ranges from between €12,500 to €23,500. The SEAI offers a grant of up to €6,500 towards the cost of installing a heat pump.

A spokeswoman from AIB said “energy-efficient home upgrades can save a lot of money on electrical and heating bills over time but do come at an upfront cost”.

A loan scheme called the home energy upgrade loan was launched in partnership between the government and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland to try to lower the cost of loans available for energy upgrades.

The scheme is worth €500 million and is available from AIB, Bank of Ireland and PTSB. If successful, applicants can borrow between €5,000 to €75,000 to retrofit their home. Installation of solar panels alone are not applicable in this scheme. However, solar panels can be part of more thorough retrofit works on a home in an application.

The AIB survey found 24 per cent of respondents are considering installing solar panels. One in 10 participants said they were considering heat pumps in the future.

The report also said that fully-funded home retrofits are available to homeowners receiving certain social welfare payments.

The data for the report was collected by Amárach on behalf of AIB in the third quarter of 2024 from 1,000 adults across the State.

* This article was edited on Tuesday, December 17th, 2024.

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