British Gas partners with NatWest to launch ‘Home Energy Hub’

Media Relations

T: 01784 843000

E: media@centrica.com

British Gas partners with NatWest to launch ‘Home Energy Hub’ to help homeowners make energy efficient changes in their properties and reduce bills

The NatWest Home Energy Hub will allow homeowners to understand the carbon footprint of their homes, the steps they need to take in making sustainable changes and potential financing options from NatWest

15 November 2023 – British Gas is partnering with NatWest as it launches a new ‘Home Energy Hub’ that will allow all UK homeowners to understand the carbon footprint of their homes, understand the steps they need to take in making sustainable changes through trusted partners, as well as offering financing options from the bank.

For the UK’s 14.6 million homeowners, energy management is increasingly top-of-mind. To address this, NatWest has launched the hub to help homeowners understand the individual benefits of modernising their homes and address the biggest challenges they face when taking the first steps – this includes the complexity of finding the right suppliers to do the work and the up-front costs of doing it. It also includes affordability and the costs associated with making sustainable upgrades. Research from NatWest has found that 66% of UK homeowners are planning upgrades to the sustainability of their property in the next ten years, however the majority of respondents stated the cost of having the work done was a specific barrier.

The new platform helps identify and understand specific improvements that could be made to a homeowner’s house or flat, and then helps guide and support them in finding the right installers while navigating financing options.

The Home Energy Hub is a digital first service that connects customers to a wide ecosystem of preferred partners and enables them to;

• Understand the current energy efficiency of their property and steps they can take to improve their home
• Understand the likely costs associated with the range of home upgrade options and access expertise and providers that can initiate and complete the required works
• Understand the range of funding options (and likely long-term benefits) and potential energy savings
• Access a range of NatWest funding options and track progress of the works through their project

The Home Energy Hub also makes it easy to understand any eligible government grants, and for NatWest customers there is an instant indication of how much the bank could lend them for the works.

In order to develop the Hub, NatWest has worked with British Gas as a principal partner alongside new partners Snugg, Vibrant, TrustMark and Wickes. British Gas will be the installation partner to help NatWest customers reduce their carbon footprint and help them become more energy efficient.

The new Hub follows NatWest’s recent launch of a free retrofit learning platform for the UK’s construction industry in partnership with the Supply Chain Sustainability School. The retrofitting training programme will input skills into the supply chain and accelerate the growth of the retrofit market. NatWest is the school’s first banking partner and will promote learning with customers and the wider construction industry.

Lloyd Cochrane, Head of Mortgages at NatWest said: “From our own research, we know there are barriers to homeowners making energy efficiency improvements to their homes. Relevant solutions, suppliers and funding needs to be more accessible to customers and homeowners across the UK. In order for people to realise the potential benefits and confidently undertake work to their homes, it’s incredibly important that we’re able to provide viable solutions to these property owners. Partnerships are key in helping us to do that and helping customers to get started on their home energy efficiency journey.”

Gail Parker, Low Carbon Homes Director at British Gas said: “To help decarbonise homes in the UK, it’s important that people get accessible, clear advice and guidance on how to lower emissions and make savings on energy bills. Partnering with Natwest as the install partner for this Home Energy Hub, is an important step in accelerating the decarbonisation of UK homes, by making it easier for individuals to confidently understand, identify and act on the measures they can take. Each home is different, and so this will be done in a tailored way, to ensure that people are getting the right advice for them and their home.”