Housing: Insulation

(asked on 10th March 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2021 to Question 163654 on Housing: Insulation, if his Department will make an estimate of the potential number of leaseholders who may (a) lose their home and (b) declare bankruptcy as a result of the costs of resolving fire safety issues relating to (i) cladding removal, (ii) balcony remediation, (iii) replacing combustible insulation, (iv) replacing missing fire breaks, (v) increased insurance premiums and (vi) waking watches.


Answered by
Christopher Pincher Portrait
Christopher Pincher
This question was answered on 15th March 2021

It is not possible to make such assessments. This is because the degree to which any fire safety issues require remedial action that impose costs on leaseholders, will depend on a professional fire risk assessment of individual buildings and the extent to which costs may be met by or recovered from developers, contractors or building warranties. In addition, we are unable to assess the potentially wide range of individual factors (such as job security, levels of mortgage commitment and personal circumstances) which could lead to people either losing their home or declaring bankruptcy due to additional costs.

However, we do recognise the financial pressures being placed on leaseholders through no fault of their own as a result of historic remediation costs. We have been clear that building owners and industry should make buildings safe without passing on costs to leaseholders – and where they have not stepped up, we have stepped in.

The Government is taking the following steps to ease these pressures:

  • In relation to the removal and replacement of unsafe cladding, we are providing over £5 billion of Government grant funding for the removal of unsafe cladding from buildings of 18 metres and above, and a low interest finance scheme (under which no leaseholder will need to pay more than £50 per calendar month) for the removal of unsafe cladding from buildings of 11-18 metres in height.
  • As part of our funding for remediation of unsafe cladding, the Government is providing full funding for the replacement of combustible insulation and missing or defective cavity barriers where these form part of an unsafe cladding system.
  • In relation to insurance premia we recognise that some leaseholders in high rise buildings are facing rises in buildings insurance. Officials, leaseholders, the ABI and British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) have met to discuss buildings insurance. Government is working with industry and looking at a range of options.
  • In relation to waking watch costs, the Government has announced a £30 million Waking Watch Relief Fund, to promote replacement of costly Waking Watch interim safety measures with fire alarms, which the National Fire Chiefs Council have confirmed are both safer and cost effective.
Reticulating Splines