Britain’s most exclusive homes, including those in Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster, have been identified as the worst for heat loss. Whileat the other end of the country, Scots toughing it out in the windy Outer Hebrides and chilly Aberdeenshire are the most savvy when it comes to keeping warmth in.
A new ‘heatmap’* from npower shows more than half of Britain’s 26 million homes are wasting money by allowing expensive heat to escape through walls and roofs.
The biggest heat loss by far is from uninsulated walls, both cavity and solid. The London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is the worst offender with 83% of the housing stock, which includes rows of millionaire’s homes, failing to install either cavity or solid wall treatments. Westminster comes a close second with 79% of homes ignoring the big savings that keeping the heat in can offer.
An average three bed home in the UK could save the following each year on their energy bills:
- Cavity wall insulation – £140
- External Solid Wall insulation – around £490
- Loft insulation – up to £180
- New Boiler – up to £310**
By contrast, the far northern Scots are among Britain’s most energy efficient with 66% of Hebridean homes and 65% of those in Aberdeenshire putting their southern cousins to shame by filling in walls.
25% of heat loss is through the roof and Gateshead in Northern England is the worst in the UK for loft insulation with only 27% of homes meeting guidelines.
Homes expert Phil Spencer, of Location, Location, Location, is helping npower raise awarenessof the savings which can be made as part of a government initiative to reduce carbon emissions and energy bills.Phil said: ‘Alarmingly, more than half of home owners still don’t know how to establish how energy efficient their home is and are missing out on cost savings which could run into 100s of pounds each year.’
A national survey*** by npower this week to tie in with the ‘heatmap’ revealed many homes simply aren’t taking advantage of simple energy saving opportunities, with only 20% of households saying they have lagged their hot water tank.
The main reasons given by those surveyed for not putting energy saving improvements in place are: 42% not being able to afford it, 36% blaming lack of government support and a third who claim the problem isn’t big enough.
However, a third of Brits said they have started to improve the energy efficiency of their homes, with specific measures such as installing loft insulation (39%), a new boiler (33%) and cavity wall insulation (30%).
Simon Stacey, Managing Director of Energy Services at RWE npower said: ‘This initiative helps us start a conversation with consumers to help them understand how much energy they use and the massive amount still wasted in the UK each day. There is a huge opportunity to keep the UK’s homes warmer by cutting energy waste through the installation of a new boiler or more effective loft, cavity and wall insulation.’
* Heatmap created based on data licensed from the Energy Saving Trust
** Energy Saving Trust, 2013. Savings estimates are based on figures for a gas-heated, semi-detached home with three bedrooms
****npower commissioned One Poll to conduct research on wc 6th January. The research was conducted amongst 1000 participants in the UK
