Halifax mortgage customers are now able to earn thousands in cashback for making improvements to the energy efficiency of their home, thanks to a boost in the bank’s Green Living Reward (GLR) scheme.
Customers can now claim £2,000 cashback for installing a home heat pump, £1,000 for installing solar panels or a battery for solar-plus-storage installations, and £500 for a range of other improvements such as cavity wall insulation, a biomass pellet boiler, or double/triple window glazing.
Although those wishing to receive this benefit are free to use any company to complete the work, Halifax has partnered with several firms to make installation processes more efficient. Octopus Energy has been named as a preferred partner for heat pump installation, while those who choose to install solar panels with Effective Home can receive an extra £500 discount on quotes for solar panel packages.
Andrew Asaam, mortgages director, Halifax, said:“We are committed to helping our customers live in warmer, more energy efficient homes, on the journey to net zero. Improving the way older homes are heated, powered, and insulated is critical.
“Green Living Reward offers an incentive to anyone that wants to make their home more energy efficient but is concerned about the cost. With cashback of up to £2,000 on heat pumps and other grants available, it’s actually feasible that replacing an outdated gas boiler could cost you nothing.”
Incentivising green tech switching
Halifax is far from the only company working to incentivise homeowners to switch to green home technologies.
As reported by our sister publication Solar Power Portal, utility OVO Energy recently launched a new offer allowing customers to bank up to five solar panels over the course of two years as part of its “Beyond” reward programme. These can then be redeemed against an OVO solar and battery package.
Meanwhile, the UK government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), which provides up to £7,500 of funding for those switching from a gas boiler to a heat pump, remains wildly popular. Statistics from June this year showed that applications for the BUS rose 81% year on year.
Utilities are also incentivising the installation of green tech through cut-price tariffs. Last month, Swedish cleantech firm Aira and Octopus Energy joined forces to launch new tariffs for those with heat pumps or solar panels, with ScottishPower launching its first heat pump tariff just weeks prior.
