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Written Question
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Staff
Monday 7th September 2020

Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, in response to complaints made to date to his Department in relation to misselling of Green Deal loans by Home Energy and Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELMS), what the (a) highest, (b) lowest and (c) average loan reductions offered to those complainants were as a proportion of the overall loan amount.

Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng

The figures provided below are as of 7 September, except where otherwise specified.

A total of 218 appeals about the mis-selling of Green Deal Plans by the company Home Energy & Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELMS) have been referred to my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State. At the end of June 2020 (the latest date for which this data is available), the total value of loans, including interest and fees, that are the subject of the appeals was £1,700,338.

The Green Deal Framework Regulations require that, before imposing any sanction, the Secretary of State gives notice to affected parties of his intention to impose a sanction (an initial notice, referred to as an Intention Notice) and provides them with an opportunity to make representations before it is made final.

Complainants are not required to indicate acceptance or otherwise in response to Intention Notices or final Sanction Notices. Affected parties, including complainants, may make representations in response to Intention Notices and can appeal final decisions (set out in final Sanction Notices) to the General Regulatory Chamber of the First–tier Tribunal.

One hundred and twenty-one HELMS complainants have yet to receive an Intention Notice. One hundred and seventy-four HELMS complainants have yet to receive a final decision.

Ninety-one Intention Notices in respect of mis-selling by HELMS proposed a reduction in loan amount. Of these, complainants have made representations in 37 cases. As complainants are not required to indicate acceptance of a proposed reduction the Department does not hold such records.

The total value of proposed reductions set out in Intention Notices and final Sanction Notices relating to mis-selling of Green Deal Plans by HELMS to date is £376,628.

Where Intention Notices have proposed reductions in loan amounts, the highest reduction to date has been 68%, the lowest reduction, 30%, and the average reduction, 50%.

Six Intention Notices in respect of mis-selling by HELMS have proposed cancellation. To date, there have been 4 cases where Intention Notices proposed cancellation but the Secretary of State’s decision, set out in the subsequent final Sanction Notices, was to impose reduction following representations.

No complainants who have received Intention Notices proposing cancellation have made representations in response to those Notices.