Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 10
62nd Report - Faulty energy efficiency installations
Published 23 Jan 2026
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Faulty energy efficiency installations All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The audits found: • 98% of homes with external wall insulation have major issues: 92% have defects that will negatively affect the insulation’s performance, often creating the risk of water ingress and mould; 6% have immediate health and safety risks, such as inadequate ventilation, and may also have other major issues requiring remediation. Between 22,000 and 23,000 homes are likely to be affected.15 • 29% of homes with internal wall insulation have major issues: 27% have defects that will negatively affect the insulation’s performance, often creating the risk of condensation and mould; 2% have 14 C&AG’s Report, paras 2.2 to 2.4 and Figure 10 15 C&AG’s Report, para 2.2 and Figure 10 11 immediate health and safety risks, such as inadequate ventilation and poor electrical safety, and may also have other major issues. Between 9,000 and 13,000 homes are likely to be affected.16 The Department does not have an estimate of how many additional homes retrofitted after mid-January 2025 are likely to have major issues, so the total number of homes affected will be higher than we set out in this report.17
From: Public Accounts Committee, 62nd Report - Faulty energy efficiency installations (HC 1229), 23 January 2026
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 7 April 2026 (deadline 23 March 2026).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with most of the Committee's recommendations, but disagrees with the recommendation to halt wall insulation installation without independent supervision and with the recommendation to refer fraud to the Serious Fraud Office.
- On wall insulation, it disagrees with the recommendation, noting that every household with external wall insulation under ECO4 and GBIS "is being and will be offered an on-site audit", subject to the householder accepting; internal wall insulation concerns are triaged and referred for audit where they meet "the threshold of risk factors".
- It agrees on the find-and-fix programme: TrustMark "currently intend" it to complete by May 2027, though the department states it is "unlikely" to deliver on a "significantly shorter timescale". It will update the Committee in writing every six months, first in June 2026.
- It disagrees with referring fraud across ECO to the Serious Fraud Office, stating that this "relates to an existing ongoing responsibility of the regulator", Ofgem, which can and does make referrals where appropriate.
- It agrees to publish an annual report to Parliament on retrofit schemes, with the first publication "before Autumn 2027", and "intends to consult" on the design of a reformed consumer protection system during summer 2026.