As energy efficiency programmes roll out, a huge responsibility will be placed on Home Energy Advisers (HEAs) to deliver energy efficiency. Though door knocking on a street by street basis, they will be required to persuade homeowners to retrofit their homes, adopt low carbon lifestyles and reduce waste. 

However, results from existing projects and trials to date are not promising.  The London Development Authority’s Home Energy Efficiency Programme (HEEP) trials for example, show that more than 70% of consumers did not take up easy measures offered even though they were free. Energy Savings Trust’s Penistone area project had only a 13% uptake. As a result, costs are currently around £2,000 per tonne of carbon saved.

Some of the reasons for the low uptake rate are: 

• most door knocking is on a cold call basis with few pre-booked appointments being arranged  
• most homeowners are out during the day and are not receptive to unsolicited visits during evenings and weekends.
• HEAs are expected to gain homeowners permission to carry out energy audits etc at the time they door knock. Audits can take up to two hours and not surprisingly most homeowners are not receptive to this without pre-agreement.
• Most HEAs do not have good,  “sales consultancy” and communication skills.
• The salaries offered (£16,000-£22,000 in London) have not attracted the best quality candidates
• there is no agreed national standard for HEA training 
• businesses and community groups have not been pre-engaged to publicise programmes.

Convincing homeowners in the private sector to improve energy efficiency is a huge challenge. Like any other product / service, energy efficiency needs to be “sold” to homeowners and therefore top quality “sales consultants” are required. However, some delivery agents are hiring unemployed people with inadequate skills on a self-employed basis with pay linked to the number of visits, not uptake of energy saving measures. Some vacancies are also being advertised without requirement for a City & Guilds Energy Awareness or DEA qualification or minimum standards of attire.

So what is the solution? Every commercial organisation knows that top quality sales are required to be successful. If delivery agents recruit HEAs with poor sales and communication skills, low uptake will follow. Complaints will also increase resulting in resident’s trust in Councils being undermined and energy efficiency programmes, failing. In my view, Domestic Energy Assessors with proven sales consultancy and communication skills are required to be retrained as HEAs, not young people on apprentice schemes. Salaries on offer also need to be increased to attract quality candidates and telesales staff are needed to pre-book appointments for HEAs as much as possible. 

Of course this will increase staffing costs but the risk is that if  delivery agents don't do this, we will end up with low uptake of energy savings measures, loss of  residents' trust, failure of energy efficiency programmes and carbon reduction targets not being met. 

What do you think?