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Cold callers warning

There have been reports of Council representatives knocking on doors and offering home energy improvements. The Council will not cold call for home improvements.

East Devon District Council asks that the above companies do not cold-call householders. No company should be claiming to be working for the Council offering home improvements. There are a number of installing companies who are contacting residents regarding the grants. The Council does not recommend or endorse any specific companies and these companies are not Council representatives.

If you are cold-called about energy efficiency improvements we would advise that you do not sign up to anything. If you are interested in grant funded energy efficiency works you should start by contacting Exeter Community Energy who offer a range of energy saving measures, offering financial support and advice on the most cost-effective options for your home.

Under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) Help to Heat local flexible eligibility, energy suppliers/installers are able to offer grants using the Council's eligibility criteria in the Statement of Intent (SOI). This allows installers to install fully funded or subsidised energy saving measures for households, which have been declared eligible under the SOI. The Council do not provide the funding or instruct companies to cold-call on their behalf; certain energy suppliers have legal obligations under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) to fund this area of work.

Energy Company Obligation

The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is a government energy efficiency scheme aimed at tackling fuel poverty and reducing carbon emissions.

To target ECO funding to the most vulnerable households local authorities have flexibility to prioritise certain households in their area.

The priority groups are outlined in our current Statement of Intent. Those residents that are eligible can access fully funded or subsidised energy saving measures in their homes.

There are a number of installers delivering energy saving measures across East Devon.

All data provided is collected for the purposes of processing the declaration and is stored according to the Council's data protection policy. 

Energy Company Obligations Grants

The Energy Company Obligation is an requirement of energy suppliers to help households cut their energy bills and reduce carbon emissions by installing energy saving measures. Flexible Eligibility focuses on households in fuel poverty or with occupants on low incomes or who are vulnerable to the effects of cold homes.
East Devon District Council welcomes the introduction of Flexible Eligibility and intends to utilise it for the purposes of reducing fuel poverty in the district. For more details please see the Local Authority Flexible Eligibility Statement (below). 

The ECO Flex Process

A householder can make contact with an agent or installer or may have been contacted directly. A householder cannot apply for the ECO Flex scheme directly.

The agent is instructed by the householder to undertake a survey of their property. This survey assess factors such as heating, insulation, room sizes etc. and will result in a financial offer for what works the energy company can fund to raise the energy efficiency of the dwelling. It is likely that you will receive multiple measures, including insulation measures, where it is both possible and cost-effective to do so due. If the cost of works is below the financial offer from the energy company, the grant will proceed free of charge to the household. If the cost of works is greater than the offer from the energy company then there may be a financial contribution for the client to make. Ensure that you are aware of the full cost of works and if there is any requirement for a customer contribution to complete works.

With the agent or supplier, the householder completes and signs the online Householder Declaration Form to confirm eligibility against our Statement of Intent.

The agent or installer will receive authority from us to proceed with the work based on the information contained in the Householder Declaration. You are under no obligation to proceed with the works.

The agent or installer will produce a quote with a detailed summary of work and if you are happy to proceed a date for install is agreed by the householder and installer direct.

Please note that:

The council’s role in the process is just to confirm household eligibility based on the Statement of Intent and the information in the Householder Declaration

East Devon District Council does not provide the ECO funding. Funding is provided directly to the installers by the national energy providers. The contractual relationship is between the householder and the installer. Our involvement is directly limited to the publication of the Statement of Intent and to produce a declaration for eligible households.

Inclusion in the Statement of Intent does not guarantee a measure will be installed in your home by an energy supplier. Decisions by energy suppliers on whether to install a measure may depend on:

  • survey carried out by suppliers, or their agents / contractors and installation costs calculated,
  • the energy savings that can be achieved for a property,
  • whether suppliers have achieved, or are close to achieving, their targets, and
  • other commercial considerations.

ECO registered installers

A list of companies who have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with East Devon District Council, will be listed below. These companies can identify which qualifying works may be appropriate for your home and if they can be funded under the ECO scheme.

East Devon District Council does not endorse the work undertaken by these companies. We will not have seen the quality of their work, as we are not the overseeing authority. The contract is between the householder and the installer

This list is to help local residents identify companies available to undertake this type of work in the area. The list is not in any priority order:

Contractor/installer information

Online forms for ECO4 applications.

There will £100 charge per application - payable by the contractor. This will be invoiced on a monthly basis.

Contractors will be required to sign up to Code of Practise.  ECO4 Flex Installer Referral for Declarations Code of Practice.

Statement of Intent for ECO4

East Devon District Council ECO4 Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent

Local Authority name: East Devon District Council

Publication Date:01/01/2023

Version number: V.4.1

Publication on web site: www.eastdevon.gov.uk

This statement sets out East Devon District Council’s flexible eligibility criteria for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme from April 2022 – March 2026.

The ECO4 scheme will focus on supporting low income and vulnerable households. The scheme will improve the least energy efficient homes helping to meet the Government’s fuel poverty and net zero commitments.

The flexible approach for Local Authorities (LAs) to identifying fuel poor and vulnerable households who may benefit from heating and energy saving measures is referred to as “ECO4 Flex”.

The Council welcomes the introduction of the ECO4 Flex eligibility routes as it helps the Council achieve its plans to improve the homes of those in fuel poverty or vulnerable to the cold.

The Council is publishing this Statement of Intent (SoI), on the 01/01/2023 to confirm that each of the households declared will adhere to at least one of the four available routes outlined below:

Route 1: SAP bands D-G households and private rented sector E-G households with a gross annual income less than £31,000. This cap applies irrespective of the property size, composition, or region and is from all sources of income, including both non means tested and means tested benefits

Route 2: SAP bands E-G for owner-occupied households and private rented sector households that meet a combination of two of the following proxies:

  • Proxy 1)* Homes in England in Lower-layer Super Output Area 1-3 (LSOA)1,
  • Proxy 2) Householders receiving a Council Tax rebate (rebates based on low income only, excludes single person rebates).
  • Proxy 3)* Householders vulnerable to living in a cold home as identified in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Guidance. Only one from the list can be used, excludes the proxy ‘low income’.
  • Proxy 4) A householder receiving free school meals due to low-income.
  • Proxy 5) A household referred to the LA for support by their energy supplier or Citizen's Advice or Citizen’s Advice Scotland, because they have been identified as struggling to pay their electricity and gas bills.

* Note proxies 1 and 3 cannot be used together.

Route 3: SAP bands D-G owner occupied and private rented sector E-G households that have been identified by their doctor or GP as low- income and vulnerable, with an occupant whose health conditions may be impacted further by living in a cold home. These health conditions may be cardiovascular, respiratory, immunosuppressed, or limited mobility related.

This is because the Council has identified a positive correlation between households who suffer from long-term health conditions and living off a low-income, with living in poorly insulated homes.

Route 4: SAP band D-G households and private rented sector E-G households that are referred under Route 4: Bespoke Targeting. Suppliers and LAs can submit an application to BEIS where they have identified a low income and vulnerable household, who are not already eligible under the exiting routes.

Declaration and evidence check confirmation

All potentially eligible households should apply through East Devon District Council or one of their approved ECO installers to ensure that they can either benefit from the scheme or be assessed for eligibility under any other relevant programme.

It should be noted that the final decision on whether any individual household will benefit from energy  saving  improvements  or  heating  rests  with  obligated  energy suppliers or their contractors. Inclusion in a Declaration of Eligibility issued by the Council to a supplier will not guarantee installation of measures. The final decision will depend on;

  1. identification of measures eligible under Help to Heat
  2. the supplier's assessment of the cost-effectiveness of installing measures in relation to achieving its obligation
  3. whether the supplier has achieved their targets or require further measures to meet their Energy Company Obligation targets.

East Devon District Council expects that energy suppliers or agents of energy suppliers involved in flexible eligibility surveys and works identified will comply with the Data Protection Act in accordance with Ofgem requirements, will act in accordance with industry best practice in relation to consumer care and quality standards and will comply fully with the requirements set out in The Electricity and Gas (Energy Company Obligation) Order 2018.

Companies and individuals must not falsely represent their association with the Council and must not use the East Devon District Council logo on paperwork unless formally agreed.

At initial engagement with prospective clients, representatives must confirm who they are, which company they are working for, and whether that company has been subcontracted by another company or will be selling on householder details.

The administration charge levied by East Devon District Council in providing the declaration necessary for clients to access the ECO Flexible Eligibility Scheme is £100 + VAT. This charge must be paid by the energy supplier or their agent and may not under any circumstances, be passed on to the client receiving assistance via the scheme. Billing will be monthly. Failure to pay a monthly bill may lead to declarations associated with the Energy Company being refused. The Council reserves the right to waiver administration costs where it is working in partnership with an Energy Company or its representatives.

The officer below will be responsible for checking and verifying declarations and associated evidence submitted on behalf of the local authority:

Name: Martin Prew

Job Title: Private Sector Housing Technical Officer

Telephone: 01395 571572

Email: pshousing@eastdevon.gov.uk

CEO or dedicated responsible person mandatory signature

East Devon District Council will administer the scheme according to BEIS’ ECO4 Order and will identify eligible households via Ofgem’s application process. The CEO of the Council will oversee the process of identifying eligible households under ECO4 Flex.

The eligibility information will be stored securely in line with the Council’s data protection policy, Information Commissioner’s Office Data Sharing Code, and BEIS guidance.

Signature:

Name: John Golding

Job Title: Service Lead – Housing, Health and Environment

Date of signature: 12/12/2022

For any general enquires relating to this SoI, please contact pshousing@eastdevon.gov.uk

1  The English Indices of Deprivation 2019 (publishing.service.gov.uk)