ECO4 Grants: Home Energy Improvements
Ever wonder how you hear about people getting free boilers installed in their homes? Or free loft insulation and heating controls? Most likely they got their hands on an ECO4 Grant to improve their home energy performance.
This page was created to give you all the information you need to work out if your household qualifies for ECO4, what you could get on it, and how to apply for the grant.
Should you qualify, an ECO4 grant could be a seriously valuable way to level-up your home energy performance, helping to pay for modern insulation and heating equipment that will help you keep your energy bills down, and allow your household to do more in the fight against climate change. It may even add serious value to your home!
So What Is ECO4?
ECO4 is the fourth generation of government-backed home energy grants.
It is designed to help either low-income or vulnerable households make the nessecary improvements to their home’s energy efficiency, making a huge dent in their energy bills, as well as reducing that household’s carbon footprint – brilliant!
The name ‘ECO’ (whilst sounding very green) stands for Energy Company Obligation – that’s because the Big Energy Companies are actually obligated to dish this dough out to households deemed worthy of it.
While ECO3 (which ended April 2022) was mainly aimed at replacing the UK’s aging gas boilers, ECO4 takes a more ‘whole-house’ approach to improving energy efficiency.
This means that funding under ECO4 may pay for loft insulation, full heating systems, underfloor insulation, cavity and solid wall insulation and new heating controls to name just a few, and usually in combination.
It means that these ECO4 grants are perhaps some of the most valuable home energy grants ever released, and they are scheduled to keep paying out until 2026.
Which all sounds bloody fantastic. But how do you actually get one if you can?
How can you get an ECO4 Grant?
There are a number of different routes that you may be able to go down to get your hands on an ECO4 home energy grant.
It almost goes without saying, but the Government scheme doesn’t want to give everyone free insulation and central heating – it only wants to pay out to households that are either unlikley to fork out for the work themselves, or that have vulnerable people living inside who desperately need to stay warm in the Winter and who can’t afford a whopping energy bill every month.
This has left those looking for an ECO4 Home Energy Grant with 3 primary ways to qualify, but the rules are always shifting*
Receiving a Qualifying Benefit
If you or somebody in your permanent household receives a qualfying benefit, this could be a big tick in the box on the route to getting an ECO4 Grant.
- Universal Credit
- Child Tax Credits
- Working Tax Credits
- Pension Credit
- Income Related ESA
- Housing Benefit
The list is subject to change, and in certain situations, child benefit may also qualify. PIP and DLA don’t currently qualify, however depending on the relevant medical condition, you may want to look at “households Vulnerable to cold”
Low Income Households
If your household receives less than £31,000 (gross) per year then you may be able to qualify through the Low Income route via Local Authority Flex (we’ll get to that later).
To qualify under this route, your local authority must be accepting LA Flex applications, and accept proof of income such as:
- wage slips
- P60s
- Bank Statements
- Letters from Accountants
Households vulnerable to cold
If somebody in your household has a medical condition that is made worst by cold, then you may be able to apply on medical grounds through Local Authority Flex. Umbrella conditions that may qualify include:
- Cardiovascular Conditions
- Respiratory Conditions
- Mobility Conditions
- Immosuppression
Somebody from the NHS would have to fill out the right form to verify the conditon, but it’s potentially a valid route to ECO4 Grant funding.
If you think you may qualify for an ECO4 Grant because of the personal circumstances of you or the people in your household, the next thing to look at is what measures might be available to you.
But there’s one big thing to consider: You can’t always pick and choose what insulation and heating measures are available to you… Here’s why:
ECO4 takes a more holistic approach to domestic energy than previous versions of the ECO schemes (like ECO3, which was mainly focussed on new boiler installations).
It looks at how the whole house generates and uses energy, and creates package deals that are designed to significantly increase the EPR (Energy Performance Rating) of the property.
If not enough improvements can be made, then there may be no funding in some situations because the EPC rating wont change enough for funding to be secured.
To use an example: if a property has a rating of E, then moving it to a D might be deemed a waste of ECO4 money, but moving it to a C, now you’re talking!
But what energy saving measures might be available to you?
ECO4 Loft Insulation
Modern building regulations say that lofts should have around 270-300mm of insulation inbetween and over the joists. Millions of homes still fall short of this or are completely bare, and ECO4 loft insulation funding may be able to help tackle this in your home.
ECO4 Free Boilers
Free boilers may still be available under ECO4 if the old boiler is an old non-condensing model, usually installed before 2005. In this case, they are deemed particularly inefficient and therefore may be upgraded under ECO4’s free boiler upgrade rules.
ECO4 Heating Controls
Smart heating controls like Hive, Tado and Radbot have been shown to allow households to have better, more efficient control over their central heating systems. In turn, this can help reduce wasted energy, and save money on your utility bills.
Full Heating Systems
If your home has a gas connection and meter, but has never actually had a gas central heating system installed, you may be able to claim a First Time Central Heating Grant, and get a brand new central heating system installed for free, or extremely cheaply.
Underfloor Insulation
Many older properties have void spaces under their suspended floors leaving them draughty in Winter. Underfloor insulation is the mirror opposite of loft insulation, helping to eliminate alot of heat loss through the floors. way more effective than you might think!
Internal Wall Insulation
Solid brick properties can often be insulated from the inside by applying Internal Wall Insulation (IWI). This is applied only to external facing walls and involves building a stud wall, and then fixing insulation board and plasterboard to that wall. Highly effective.
External Wall Insulation
The other way to insulate solid wall properties is with External Wall Insulation (EWI). This is where insulation is applied to the outside of the property and then covered with a render to protect it. This has a big impact on how the property looks, but it can be effective.
Cavity Wall Insulation
Cavity Wall Insulation (CWI) involves insulation material being piped into the gap between the outside and inside layers of bricks in the property in more modern homes. It can’t be applied to every home but is highly effective when done well.
ECO4 Free Solar PV
Solar Panels or Solar PV may be available for some eligible properties under ECO4 as part of other measures that help improve the EPR. Of course, not every property is suitable do to construction, position and building laws, but it can sometimes play a big part of reducing energy bills.
Flat Roof Insulation
Flat Roof Insulation is also installed under ECO4 from time to time, but may or may not be available to you depends on the condition and construction of your flat roof. Done privately, this can cost a small fortune but under ECO4 it may be free.
External Wall Insulation
The other way to insulate solid wall properties is with External Wall Insulation (EWI). This is where insulation is applied to the outside of the property and then covered with a render to protect it. This has a big impact on how the property looks, but it can be effective.
Solid Floor Insulation
More modern homes are likely to feature solid floors, and may benefit from solid floor insulation. At EnergySnap we believe we shouldn’t BS people, and while it technically makes the list, as far as we know, little to no solid floor projects are undertaken via ECO4.
Room In Roof Insulation
If you have rooms in your roof (loft rooms) that are accessed by the stairs and have pitched ceilings, then you may be able to get Room In Roof insulation (RIRI or RIR). This usually involves rigid insulation board being applied either directly to the existing walls, or a to a new stud wall.
Air Source Heatpumps
Some will say Air Source Heatpumps are the future, while others argue they only really work in certain, highly insulated homes. Either way, they may be available on an ECO4 energy grant if your home has never had a central heating system before.
Better Electric Heating
It may surprise you, but electric heaters are often considered to be inefficient due to the increased cost of running them. In some cases, upgrades to electric heating system may be available where gas or air source isn’t an option.
Park Home Insulation
This is another one of the insulation project types that’s less common under ECO4 than it was under ECO3, but there may be funding for insulation and heating in Park Homes in some circumstances.
Althought not quite the “free boiler replacement scheme” that ECO3 was, free replacement boilers are often available under ECO4, usually in combination with other energy saving measures like the ones above.
But unlike in ECO3 where the boiler had to be around 6 years old or more, ECO4 is mainly concerned with replacing the REALLY OLD boilers in the UK, namely “non-condensing boilers”.
Before around 2005, many boilers installed in the UK didn’t take advantage of newly created “high efficiency” gas boiler technology. In more modern ‘condensing’ boilers, residual heat from the flue is fed back into the heating system, leading to greater efficiency.
We can’t say the same for these old non-condensing boilers, which may still work years later but are likley to burn at a noticely inefficient rate in comparison to new ‘A-rated’ gas boilers.
It’s around 2005-2006 that non-condensing boilers were phased out, and so if your boiler was installed AFTER this time, it’s unlikely that you can get a free boiler from the scheme. There is a short list of around 200 boilers labelled as High Efficiency that still counts though, so worth checking with a specialist.
HOWEVER, as of Summer 2023, Ofgem released information that may mean even modern efficient boilers may be suitable for replacement with hybrid-renewable systems, such as boiler-solar-heatpump combinations, so don’t let a HE boiler stand in the way of you applying for an ECO4 grant.
Don’t forget, ECO4 isn’t a straight-up free boiler replacement scheme. Even if you have an old non-condensing boiler, you may be required to have other insulation or energy saving measures installed in your home as part of the package.
Let's talk ECO4...
ECO4 could be your household’s ticket to freedom when it comes to lower energy bills, a higher house price and a smaller carbon footprint.
If you want to find out more about how your home may qualify then get in touch using the contact form on this page!
There are a few different routes to qualify and it will take a qualified retrofit assessor to confirm your eligibility, however there are three main ways for households to potentially qualify for ECO4.
Firstly, your home needs to be a D, E, F or G on the EPC (or perform like one if you have never had an EPC).
Then, one of the following must be true:
– Somebody in your household receives an eligible benefit from the list
– Your gross household income is below £31,000 per year
– Somebody in your house has a qualifying medical condition (usually cardiovascular, respiratory, immunosuppression related or with limited mobility).
At some point, you’ll need to provide proof for the route you are taking, such as benefits letters, proof of income, or an NHS referal letter, but your retrofit assessor or installer will walk you through that if it looks like you qualify.
You can speak with EnergySnap about how you might qualify in detail, just visit our ECO4 grant eligibility checker for more details.
ECO4 is absolutely a real scheme designed to improve the energy efficiency in UK homes. It was ordered by the government, organised by Ofgem and financially backed by the big energy companies. You can read about it on the Ofgem Website if you like, and it is likely your local council has a webpage about it, too.
We get the “too good to be true” thing – if you qualify then you usually get quite a package of energy saving measures. But the authorities recognise that without action and schemes like ECO4, vulnerable people will suffer from cold and we won’t get any closer to net zero carbon emissions, so ECO4 is live and kicking to help fight both!
If you find yourself talking to an ECO4 installer and they have good reason to believe that you should qualify for a grant, they may offer to perform a Retrofit Assessment. This is usually a free check of your home by a qualified retrofit assessor who will collect photos, measurements and data to build an overall picture of how your home generates energy. It’s a bit like having an EPC done, but greater focus and extra work is put into working out how a grant might be able to improve the energy performance. Usually, a retrofit assessment will take between 1 and 2 hours, and afterwards they will create a report based on their findings. It is this report that will tell the installer what measures can be installed on ECO4 (assuming your household qualfies too).
Known in the ECO4 industry as “installers”, there are many private companies all over the UK that are qualifed to fit energy saving measures under ECO4. Not every company installs every types of measure, so they may only offer you some, or may team up with another company to deliver the changes to your home.
In any case, a good ECO4 installer should have the correct qualifications, insurances and accreditations to carry out the work they are proposing.
In any case, the company should have an up to date TrustMark accreditation and be able to evidence to a funder that they work to PAS2030/2035 standards.
There are hundreds of ECO4 installers up and down the country, and EnergySnap can help you find one that is suitable to carry out the energy saving work on your own home.
ECO4 grants officially began in April 2022 (although the roll out was delayed for a few months) and they are scheduled to keep paying for energy saving measures until 2026. Many in the retrofitting industry anticipate a further scheme or “ECO5” when it finishes, however this is not confirmed and there are no details about what may be available on it, or what the qualifying criteria may be.
Once you’ve found out if you qualify for an ECO4 grant because or your households benefit status, income status or health status, the next question to answer is what can be done to improve your home’s energy performance, including your boiler.
In most cases, an ECO4 grant will only replace your boiler if it is the old non-condensing type of boiler and you own or mortgage your home.
If the boiler is too new (usually newer than 2006) or you rent your home, a new boiler is unlikley.
Even then, in some cases your home may be suitable for upgrade to a hybrid-renewable system, including a boiler, solar panels and a heatpump, but this will be up to your Retrofit Assessor to decide.
Some application processes for ECO4 take just a few days, while others may take weeks or months dependng on the details of your application and your home, but most application journeys look a little like this:
- Initial eligibility check – A chat with a Grant Assessor or Retrofit Assessor that can check if the basic eligibility looks good.
- Retrofit Assessment – If stage one looks good, an installer might offer to perform a Retrofit Assessment in your home to explore what energy saving measures might be suitable, including boilers, insulation, solar panels and more
- Building the application – If the retrofit results are good, you’ll be asked to gather any paperwork that supports your application. This may be as simple as just collectng a recent utility or council tax bill, or may require you to provide bank statements or P60s to prove your income. In other cases relating to applications based around health status, you may need to speak to a doctor to get a referal document signed.
- Final proposal – If your application has got this far, things are looking really positive. Usually a retrofit coordinator will have formulated a plan to improve your homes energy performance. It is now time to decide if you want to go ahead with the work.
- Installation – Finally, installation day comes round. Some ECO4 projects take just a day to install, while others may take a few weeks depending on the type of measures going in.
It doesn’t happen very often because installers are paid by the scheme only when they install energy saving measures, but yes, an installer is a private company which can decline or refuse to conduct work for a large number of legitimate reasons.
We get this ALL THE TIME, and it’s a good question.
In most cases, there are no extra charges to homeowners, tenants or landlords for work conducted under ECO4. The whole point of the scheme is to help low income or vulnerable households, so the majority of the projects are free.
However, there are some circumstances where a household may be asked for a contribution to the works. It is always a fraction of the cost of the total project, and an installer should only ask for a contribution for legitimate reasons. An installer might ask for a contribution if:
- A free boiler is available on the scheme, but the exisiting pipework in the home is either too old or incompatible with a modern boiler (usually something like a backboiler that runs on a one pipe system)
- If a free boiler is available on the scheme, but the customer wants to opt for a more expensive brand, so may be asked to pay the difference in price
- If a customer has their loft insulated, but wants a loft platform installed above the insulation to use as storage
- If a home is treated with Internal Wall Insulation, but there is a lot of skimming and plastering to do, or ornate decorative work that doesnt relate to the energy performance.
There could be other reasons, but these are the most common and even they don’t happen often. In all of these cases, the customer should be told about the contribution before work takes place.
In very rare cases, work may stop because a dangerous electrical fault has been discovered, or a structural issue means that the property is unsafe or unsuitable for insulation. It is up to the owner of the house to ensure this is rectified before work can continue.