Biasi spearheads VAT scrappage campaign

Biasi UK has launched an online e-petition campaign to lobby the coalition Government to scrap VAT on all renewable products and high efficiency boilers.

Targeting those in the heating industry as well as professionals across all business sectors, the 'Scrap the VAT' campaign has evolved from the company's belief that one of the main barriers to the selection and installation of renewables and high efficiency boilers is down to the cost. By scrapping the VAT, these products will become more affordable and their use will become more widespread. In turn, this will result in reduced energy consumption and emissions as well as saving money on fuel bills for cash-strapped homeowners.

Biasi md Gren Ward said: "It is well known in the heating industry that boiler replacement is, for most people, a distress purchase and is not normally driven by a straightforward desire to upgrade and improve their heating provision. 

"If the Government is truly serious about encouraging uptake on these products to achieve our emissions targets and helping people to heat their homes in the most efficient and cost effective way possible, the best method of achieving this is to instantly remove the VAT on renewables and high efficiency boilers. The success of last year's boiler scrappage scheme demonstrated how such initiatives can make a big difference to people's thinking and purchase decision making.

"In addition, this would also have the knock-on effect of boosting the heating industry at a time when many of the public sector cuts are having such an impact on the trade.

"As well as installers and heating engineers, contractors, specifiers, merchants and the general public, we'd also encourage all our heating manufacturer colleagues and equipment suppliers to get involved in the Scrap the VAT campaign by signing up and spreading the word to encourage others to register their support."

According to the Energy Saving Trust, boilers account for around 60 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions from an average home heated by gas. It says that, by replacing an old G-rated with a new high efficiency boiler and using the latest heating controls, it is possible to reduce emissions and save the householder as much as £225 per year. In addition, use of a solar water heating system can reduce water heating bills by as much as £85 in a year; and solar PV can generate around 40 per cent of a household's annual electricity needs.

For more information on the scrap the VAT campaign and to sign the e-petition, go to www.scrapthevat.co.uk

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Smart Advice to Avoiding boiler breakdowns

More than 30% of boiler breakdowns that took place over the winter could have been avoided through regular maintenance work, according to a local fuel company.

Tincknell Fuels services over 10,000 boilers a year and in the cold weather last December received more than 1,000 calls in two hours from people who had broken boilers or needed fuel.

The main problems were caused by frozen fuel lines, sludge in the systems and lack of servicing in the coldest winter since 1979.

Robert Tincknell, managing director at Tincknell Fuels, which has depots in Avonmouth, Gillingham, Wells, Exeter, Plymouth, Newquay, Southampton and Bridgwater, said:“Now we are moving into spring and we have had time to analyse the activity from November 2010 to January 2011, where some days saw 30cm of snow falling overnight.

“Importantly, one of the issues our report has shown is that at least 30% of the breakdowns we were called to could have been avoided if people had kept on top of servicing and boiler maintenance throughout the year.

“A high proportion of the boilers that broke down had not been serviced for some years and in these cases the weather was the final straw.”

Tincknell Fuels advises homeowners to keep on top of their boiler maintenance with the following tips:

• Have regular servicing from a reputable company, where oil lines are changed every two years and the boiler is set up using an electronic gas analyser
• Make sure that any water that has got into the tank is monitored
• Clean out sludge from heating systems
• Regularly check the level of oil in your tank to ensure you don’t run out which can then require the lines to be bled through
• Ensure that tanks are filled at the end of the summer to avoid running out at peak times.

Information Sourced from hpmmag.com

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New boiler installation VAT campaign gathers pace

Support is growing for the industry campaign seeking to persuade the government to cut the rate of VAT charged on high-efficiency boiler installations.

Boilers are subject to the full 20 per cent rate but other energy-saving equipment, such as controls, insulation, combined heat and power systems, biomass boilers, heat pumps and solar panels attract a 5 per cent rate.

The reduced rate applies to energy-saving installations in all residential properties and commercial buildings used by charities. Installations of these systems in new properties are zero VAT rated.

Leading figures are calling for this to be extended to boilers and passive flue heat recovery systems.

Last year’s boiler scrappage scheme saw sales of domestic boilers rise by 5.3 per cent in the final quarter of last year, according to the Heating and Hotwater Industry Council. However, the market has fallen back again since the start of 2011.

“The government could surpass the impressive results achieved by the scrappage scheme quickly, cheaply and with minimal administration costs if it just cut the rate of VAT on high-efficiency boilers,” said Baxi marketing director Sarah Brook (pictured).

Ms Brook said a temporary cut until the Green Deal scheme comes into effect in October 2012 would help the industry bridge a potentially difficult funding gap.

Peter Thom, chair of the Heating Strategy Group of the Energy Efficiency Partnership for Homes, has petitioned Chancellor George Osborne but was still awaiting a reply as this issue went to press.

For energy efficient boilers contact Energy Smart today

Smart meters slammed!

The government's plans to install 53 million new smart meters in 30 million homes and businesses in the next seven years has been likened to "building a space shuttle to pop to the shops", according to one company involved in the process.

Hans Kristiansen is chief executive officer of Orsis, a Harrogate-based company that has already installed over 5,000 smart meter solution installations in the UK and counts several schools, local authorites and government departments among its clients.

He said: "Following the government's 'Reponse to Prospectus Consultation', which was published last Wednesday (March 30), it's clear that the planned technical specifications for the smart meter system, if approved, are too complex and complicated.

"This will result in unnecessary costs and, given the government's poor track record in implementing large scale technology projects, will cause unnecessary delays too.”

Hans continued: "Every householder uses tools and appliances in their homes that have an unnecessarily high level of technical or functional complexity built into them, whether its their washing machine or PC. This results in extra cost; and increases the probability of failure. Worse still, given the speed at which technology innovates, much of this is redundant after a short time.

"The government is in danger of repeating this mistake with smart meters and we are in danger of building a space shuttle to pop to the shops.

"We believe that it would be preferable to use a ‘back-office’ approach such as that used in the mobile phone industry because the technology is already available, is less costly to install and has a reduced risk of failure. Crucially, this will give the industry a better chance of meeting the government's declared installation target of 2019.” 

 

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