New research from Pay4Later, a UK provider of point of sale credit, reveals that just 21% of those people planning to make energy efficient changes to their homes over the next 12 months are considering taking advantage of government subsidies in this area. Some 37% are aware of these but won’t use them, and 18% do not know they exist.
John Wark, marketing manager at Pay4Later said: “We believe that the low take-up of these government subsidies is down to a lack of awareness, the application process sometimes being too complicated and taking too long, and that many don’t want to pay for a survey to see if they qualify (the cost of this can be over £100). We also believe that people are increasingly waking up to the fact that they may find a more competitive financial deal elsewhere.
“We offer energy efficiency suppliers and installers instant-decision finance for their customers starting at 0% APR, which can be better than the rates offered through the government’s Green Deal, for example. This consists of a financial loan where people pay this back through the savings made via their reduced energy bills, and its typical APR varies between 7.9% and 9.2%.
“The amount of finance we have provided for energy efficiency home improvements increased by 83% between April 2014 and April 2015.”
Pay4Later’s research reveals that 58% of people are planning to make changes to their homes over the next 12 months to improve energy efficiency levels. Of these people, around 46% intend to spend over £1,000. Just over one in five (22%) will spend more than £5,000, and 6% will spend over £10,000.
Given the expenditure here, 39% intend to finance some or all of this through loans. Of these people, just over one in three will borrow up to £2,500, and 17% will borrow between £2,500 and £5,000. 8.6% – or 1.1 million people will borrow over £10,000.
In terms of the energy efficiency home improvements people plan to make, 35% intend to improve their property’s draft proofing, and 31% are looking to enhance insulation levels in their homes. Some 30% are looking to replace windows and doors.
