We have received the following request for help:-

On-bill Finance for Energy Efficiency in The Private Rented Sector

University of Edinburgh Research Study

Study

My name is Alex Brown, and I am a masters degree student at University of Edinburgh. I am completing this research as my dissertation project for the Carbon Management MSc course in the School of Geosciences.

This study is investigating the perspectives of landlords towards on-bill financing.

What is On-bill Financing?

On-bill financing is where an external company pays the upfront cost of installing energy efficiency measures in a property, this upfront cost is then repaid via a surcharge on the property’s energy bills. To explain further, a private company will cover the full upfront cost of the energy efficiency upgrade for the property. To repay this cost there will be a tariff placed on the tenant’s energy bill, through which the full cost will be repaid over years (repayment can span from 5-15 years), the private company will also place a set interest rate on the repayment (normally around 3-4%). As a general rule, the monetary value from energy saving should be larger than the repayment. Therefore, tenant’s energy bills should overall become lower.

What does Taking Part in This Study Involve?

Below is a brief overview of your role in the research:

• You will participate in a 1-on-1 interview with me, that will last no more than 1 hour.
• · Interviews will be conducted online, ideally over video call e.g., Zoom, but telephone calls would also be acceptable if preferred.
• · Prior to the interview you will be given a short outline of a service provided by a made up on-bill financing company. Questions will be asked about this outline and therefore it should be read prior to the interview. Beyond this, no extra knowledge/reading is required about on-bill financing to take part in the interview.

Why Are You Vital to the Research?

It is vital that landlord’s views about policy/financing models are front and centre when investigating energy efficiency in the private rented sector, but investigation into landlord’s views has been lacking in the research around energy efficiency. As such, the landlord’s voices are rarely heard on the issue. Therefore, it is very important to have you as a participant in this research project.

How to Participate? To participate, go to the study’s website www.on-billfinancestudy.xyz and follow the simple instructions provided or email me at A.K.H.Brown@sms.ed.ac.uk and I will provide you will all the information that you need.

Thank You

I greatly appreciate all participants who are willing to be interviewed. I thank you for your kindness in giving your time to me and I hope that this research helps to benefit you and the wider landlord community.