Bank of Ireland’s Green Loan, coupled with the ESB Halo home efficiency programme, offers homeowners the chance to make affordable green upgrades to their home
AMONG THE most interesting and exciting initiatives undertaken in the domestic energy efficiency area in recent years has been the ESB Halo home energy efficiency programme. The scheme was partly inspired by the Government’s Energy Demand Reduction Target (EDRT). This commits Ireland to achieving a 20 per cent reduction in energy demand across the entire economy.
The Halo programme was launched in July, 2009, and has now moved onto to its second phase. Under the first phase of the programme some 20,000 customers were given a free energy efficiency survey of their home, a set of recommendations for remedial works along with advice on the cost and payback time for these works, and a list of contractors qualified to carry out the work.
The current phase of the programme builds on the success of the pilot phase and sees Halo transformed into a commercial service with customers offered an assessment and installation service on a fee basis. This involves a full energy efficiency design, installation and quality assurance service using qualified contractors.
The measures that are on offer are attic insulation, cavity and external wall insulation, boiler replacement and heating controls, dry lining and draught proofing as well as ventilation. Customers are charged for the survey but they may qualify for financial support for the survey and subsequent remedial works under the proposed Department of Communications, Energy Natural Resources National Energy Efficiency Retrofit Scheme. This scheme will see up to 1.2 million homes in Ireland retrofitted with energy efficient technologies over the next decade.
Following an open tender process, Bank of Ireland was selected by ESB as the preferred finance provider for the Halo scheme.
“In 2009 we launched our Green Loan product for householders who wished to make energy efficiency improvements to their homes,” says John Healy, product manager with Bank of Ireland personal lending. This is a standard loan with a 1 per cent discount on prevailing rates subject to normal conditions. The Halo loan is even more attractive, the discount here is between 1.7 per cent and 2.1 per cent, depending on the size of the loan which can vary from as low as €300 to as high as €65,000. Of course, there is no obligation to come to Bank of Ireland. The offer is there and it is entirely up to the consumer if they avail of it or not.”
According to Sean Sheehan, head of personal lending, the Halo scheme is very attractive to householders. “The ESB is fronting a suite of highly professional contractors who will assess your home, see what could be done to improve its energy efficiency, look at what grants might be available, and direct you to us, the finance partner. This is a very good offer. We see ourselves as very much part of the overall team and this is a reflection of our commitment to supporting green initiatives in the economy.”
To qualify for the Halo loan, applicants must supply satisfactory evidence of intent to purchase an appropriate energy efficient product or service such as an estimate or invoice from the ESB. Applicants must be home owners and can apply for amounts directly related to the cost of the home improvements.
One of the key benefits of the Bank of Ireland package is its flexibility. Bank of Ireland will lend up to the full cost of the improvements and the customer can use the grant to pay down part of the loan whenever they receive it. Also, because it is a standard variable loan, there are no penalties for early repayment. In effect, this means customers can choose to use the money freed up by their energy savings to pay off the loan early and save on interest as well as home heating bills.
If Halo isn’t for you, the Green Loan is still available. This may be attractive to people who qualify for the Home Energy Saving Scheme, a Government-funded scheme run by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.
The scheme is open to all owners of houses built before 2006. The grant is open to those who wish to increase the energy efficiency of their home and reduce home heating running costs and therefore carbon emissions. The grant covers a range of upgrade measures including cavity wall and attic insulation. The grants are also quite generous, with €400 on offer towards cavity wall insulation and €250 for attic insulation.
“Everyone wants to save money and conserve energy and we are delighted to be able to support people in doing this through our participation in Halo and through our Green Loan,” adds Sheehan. “We are also very pleased to be able to support Irish contractors carrying out this work.”
