Energy Companies Obligation scheme
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is a government energy efficiency scheme. Its aim is to help reduce carbon emissions and tackle fuel poverty by improving the energy efficiency of homes occupied by low income, fuel poor and vulnerable households over the next four years.
Under the new ECO4 scheme, the funding will cover the whole house retrofit approach, so multiple measures can be installed within the property. The number of measures a property may qualify for is dependent on a number of factors which include:
- the amount of funding available per property
- the current EPC rating of the property
The ECO4 scheme is managed by Ofgem and not by Luton Council.
Applying for ECO4
To be apply for the ECO4 scheme you will need to be receiving one of the following qualifying benefits:
- Child benefit
- Child Tax Credit
- Housing Benefit
- Income based Jobseekers Allowance (JSA)
- Income related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Income Support
- Pension Credit Guarantee Credit
- Pensions Credit Savings Credit
- Universal Credit (UC)
- Warm Home Discount Scheme Rebate
- Working Tax Credit (WTC)
Furthermore, properties must be an EPC rating of D or below in order to qualify for the ECO4 grant funding. If a property does not have an EPC, the ECO4 installer company will carry out a survey of the property to determine the EPC rating of the property.
ECO4 Improvement measures
Your chosen ECO4 installer will carry out a survey and identify a package of improvements suitable for your property. They'll then make the necessary arrangements for the installation of the energy efficiency measures.
Below is a list of some of the energy efficiency measures funded through ECO4:
- loft insulation
- cavity wall insulation
- underfloor insulation
- external wall insulation (dependant on EPC rating and amount of funding available)
- replacement boilers (only non-condensing boilers will qualify)
- heating controls
- draught proofing
- ventilation
Finding an installer
In order to help safe guard residents, we've carried out an extensive on-boarding process to ensure companies working under the current ECO4 grant scheme have been verified.
The installer companies are not contracted by us, and neither do they work on our behalf. To view the list of the installer companies approved to work in Luton please click the button below.
Any complaints or issues regarding the ECO4 scheme in the first instance should be referred back to the ECO4 installer company which has carried out the works at the property. The ECO4 installer company has a standard complaints procedure which they must follow to address the complaint.
If you feel that your complaint has not been dealt with sufficiently by your chosen ECO4 installer, you can then contact us through our complaints process. However, we'll only be able provide further advice on how to escalate the complaint further.