An examination of energy efficiency retrofit scheme applications by low-income households in Ireland

Abstract

This paper studies the determinants of why low-income households in Ireland abandon energy efficiency retrofit applications using administrative data from a targeted energy efficiency grant. By applying for the scheme, the applicants overcome any financial barriers for undertaking retrofits and demonstrate their willingness to improve the energy efficiency of their dwellings. Hence this study contributes to the scarce literature on nonfinancial barriers preventing low-income households from undertaking energy efficiency retrofits. Contrary to previous findings, we find that the higher the number of retrofits to be implemented, the lower the probability of households abandoning their applications. We also find that planning to undertake retrofits such as ventilation, which can significantly improve the health and safety standards of the dwelling, is associated with a higher probability of abandonment. Both findings indicate the presence of key behavioural and informational barriers which prevent low-income households from fully comprehending the purpose or benefits of proposed energy efficient retrofits. Our findings also suggest that higher grant expenditure on dwellings with poor pre-works energy efficiency rating and on retrofits such as attic insulation and heating system upgrades may have the highest energy efficiency improvements per unit of expenditure. Within the constraints of limited budgets for retrofit grant supports, this research can inform the redesign of grant schemes to achieve the greatest aggregate improvements in residential building energy efficiency.

A Sequential Multi-Staged Approach for Developing Digital One-Stop Shops to Support Energy Renovations of Residential Buildings

“…Since the challenges to deep building renovation are multifaceted, an effective OSS business model needs to be framed by favorable overarching policy instruments and financial conditions, from the European to the local scale [7,33,95]. For instance, [17] describe an Irish building renovation scheme tailored to low-income households that combines 100% grant funding with the OSSs approach to achieve significant energy efficiency improvements. In the context of the Portuguese case-study, viable OSSs can play a pivotal role in meeting the country's energy and climate targets and implementing the long-term building renovation and energy poverty mitigation strategies [62,63].…”

“…The main drivers for building energy renovation are cost-saving and improved comfort, though environmental concerns and aesthetics are also factors in homeowners' decisions [13][14][15]. The main barriers to energy efficiency have been well-researched and include shortages of finance, split incentives between owners and tenants, insufficient knowledge on current consumption, and a lack of information about renovation measures [5,16,17]. In housing, specific barriers include fragmentation of the demand-side mass market, heterogeneity of the building stock, high transaction costs, and mistrust of renovation providers [18,19].…”

“…Historically, building renovation schemes have often been oversimplified into only technical and economic concerns, leading to low levels of engagement [25,26]. The lack of easily accessible incentives and financing products is often mentioned as a barrier [15,17,27]. For deep renovations, the absence of long-term energy performance goals may act as a barrier, since homeowners prefer to implement small interventions over time [21].…”

Assessment of Retrofitting Old Residential Buildings in Urban Districts: Expected Performance of Selected Energy Efficiency Measures

“…To overcome such difficulty, some European countries, developed and implemented subsidy programs, e.g. special grants and soft loans, for the adoption of energy saving measures in vulnerable households [22][23][24].…”

Achieving deep-energy retrofits for households in energy poverty

“…(Seebauer 2021: 1) It is effective to emphasize outcomes such as increased comfort (Ossokina et al 2021) or qualityof-life improvements and gradually introduce environmental outcomes (Reames 2016). In addition, poor understanding of the purpose of retrofits can cause homeowners to abandon the process after application to a program (Pillai et al 2021).…”