CIGA: The Cavity Insulation Guarantee and Making a Claim

The Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency, trading as CIGA, is the body behind the 25 year guarantee that sits on qualifying cavity wall insulation in the UK. It is an independent guarantee scheme rather than an insurer or a regulator: it covers defects in materials and workmanship, investigates concerns, and arranges rectification at no cost to the householder where a defect is found¹. CIGA has issued over 6.2 million guarantees to date².

The practical value of the guarantee is that it survives the installer. Where the firm that fitted the insulation has stopped trading or left the scheme, CIGA investigates the concern itself as a first step³. That matters because cavity wall insulation failures, damp bridging and cold spots typically appear years after the work, long after a small installer has gone.

For a household, the guarantee is a form of protection that does not depend on a supplier, a fuel or an app. It is a contractual promise attached to the fabric of the home. What it does not do is make the insulation perform better, and it does not cover the wider building. The sections below set out what it covers, what it costs, how a claim runs and where the limits sit.

What CIGA offers in the UK

CIGA operates the Cavity Wall Insulation Self Certification scheme in association with the British Board of Agrément, and qualifying installations under that scheme receive a CIGA independent 25 year guarantee against defects in materials and workmanship². The guarantee is the scheme's central product: it is what turns a one-off installation into something with a long tail of accountability.

The scheme is UK-wide in practice, though the quality framework around it differs by nation. In Scotland, energy efficiency measures delivered as part of Area Based Schemes must conform to the quality standards required to obtain a guarantee, such as those from the Solid Wall Insulation Guarantee Agency, typically delivered to the PAS 2030 and PAS 2035 standards⁵. That is a Scottish Government requirement on funded work, and it sits alongside rather than inside the CIGA guarantee.

The guarantee itself is not a statutory protection. Consumer law is clear that there is no obligation on a trader or a manufacturer to offer a guarantee, but that if they do so it is legally binding⁷. CIGA's guarantee is therefore a voluntary scheme promise with legal force once issued, not a right that arises automatically from having cavity wall insulation.

CIGA's own governance has been shaped by consumer scrutiny. A Consumer Champion was appointed in 2015 to sit on its Council and take up individual complaints, and a review of complaint and claims handling followed, with the report published in December 2015 and all recommendations adopted. From March 2018 a Consumer Focus role replaced the Consumer Champion arrangement for individual complaints. The Certification Committee is regularly provided with details of performance in resolving complaints and timelines⁸.

What the guarantee covers, and what it does not

The core cover is narrow and specific. CIGA states that the guarantee covers defects in materials or workmanship, and that any concerns will be investigated and defects rectified free of charge¹. Put another way, CIGA exists to protect the guarantee holder against poor workmanship and defective materials, with issues investigated and rectified at no expense to the consumer⁹.

That means the guarantee responds to how the insulation was installed and whether the material was sound. It does not respond to the general condition of the building, to unrelated damp with another cause, or to a householder's decision to change how the wall is used.

The condition is worth reading carefully, because it puts an obligation on the householder rather than the installer. CIGA strongly recommends that the householder checks that any company carrying out work on the property is reputable and is aware that the property has cavity wall insulation installed¹⁰. A builder who drills through a filled cavity, or who leaves the wall exposed, can end the cover.

Claims can also be rejected on conduct grounds. CIGA states that claims may be rejected where it can evidence that the homeowner has been aware of a problem and CIGA has been prevented from engaging and investigating with a view to offering a remedy¹¹. In other words, sitting on a known defect for years weakens the position.

Making a CIGA guarantee claim

The starting point is simpler than most householders expect. CIGA states that you do not need to send a copy of the guarantee or the guarantee reference number to register a concern, and that the property address and postcode are enough³. That removes the single biggest obstacle, since many guarantees were issued to a previous owner and the paperwork has long since gone.

The process then runs to published timescales. CIGA acknowledges a concern within 2 working days of contact, gets in touch to arrange an inspection within 5 working days, and carries out the inspection and provides a written report of its findings, decisions and recommendations within 27 working days, or about four weeks³. Where CIGA decides there is a defect with the cavity wall insulation, or with the way it was installed, any remedial work is free of charge⁹.

1. Contact CIGA with the property address and postcode, plus a daytime telephone number and an email address if available, so an inspection can be arranged³.
2. CIGA logs the concern immediately on receipt and sends an acknowledgement⁸.
3. CIGA directs the concern to the member company involved, or to the supplying System Designer where the member is no longer trading⁸.
4. The installer or system designer investigates and reports findings to CIGA within one month⁸.
5. Where the installer cannot resolve the complaint to the customer's satisfaction, a CIGA Technical Inspector may investigate, report findings and offer a conclusion with advice⁸.

Rectification timescales depend on complexity. Simple cases, such as a refill of void areas only with no decorative works or drying out period, are expected to complete within 50 working days of the concern being submitted. Complex cases, such as total cavity clearance with a drying out period, a specialist assessment or blocks of flats, are expected to complete within 90 working days³.

CIGA states that it has recently reviewed its timelines to reflect real time constraints from the perspective of consumers and third parties³. Where a complaint has been referred to a still-trading installer, CIGA checks with the householder after 2 months whether a satisfactory outcome has been reached¹².

Householders can nominate someone else to act on their behalf, and CIGA has a policy on how it supports vulnerable consumers³. Complaints are treated in confidence, although details may be passed to the manufacturer or System Designer for further investigation⁸. CIGA can be reached on 01525 853300 or at concerns@ciga.co.uk, and general enquiries about whether a company is legitimate go to info@ciga.co.uk⁹.

What the guarantee costs

The householder does not pay for the guarantee at the point of installation in any direct sense. CIGA is funded through a one-off £15.00 charge levied on all CIGA-certified installations⁴. That charge sits inside the price the installer quotes, which is why cavity wall insulation quotes rarely itemise a guarantee fee.

The one published price a householder might meet is for a replacement document. Duplicate guarantees are £60.00 inclusive of VAT¹. That is the cost of a copy, not of cover, and it applies where a householder wants the paperwork rather than where a defect is being reported.

There is a separate charge in the dispute route. CIGA's arbitration submission fee increased to £100 plus VAT from 1 January 2018, refundable in full if the complainant wins partially or fully. That is the escalation cost if a proposed resolution is rejected and the matter goes to arbitration, not the cost of making a claim in the first place.

CIGA states that the costs of any inspections and visits carried out by the installer or by CIGA are met by CIGA³. So the investigation itself carries no charge to the householder, and remedial work is free where a defect is found⁹. The financial exposure for a householder pursuing a genuine defect claim is therefore close to nil, which is the main reason the claims company route is hard to justify on cost grounds.

CIGA's status and the claims company problem

CIGA, the Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency Ltd, is an active organisation. Its registered address is Unit 3, Ouzel Industrial Estate, Grovebury Road, Leighton Buzzard LU7 4ER, and it can be reached on 01525 853300 or at concerns@ciga.co.uk⁸. It is not in administration and its guarantee is not a claim on a failed entity.

That status matters because the cavity insulation sector has a long history of third parties inserting themselves between householders and the scheme. CIGA has warned repeatedly about claims firms. In April 2019 it stated that it had not and would not settle any case via JPO Legal Solutions, which was requesting a 5% initial payment of £910.25. In June 2021 it shared a homeowner's complaint to the Solicitors Regulation Authority about SSB Law Ltd and advised caution with mass market claims firms.

The current guidance is measured rather than absolute. CIGA states that homeowners approached by a claims company should contact CIGA directly to review their guarantee and establish whether future action is needed, and that Trading Standards and CIGA urge consumers to consider the claims route carefully and thoroughly research the company¹¹. CIGA also notes that it is not necessary to engage a claims handling company simply to start an investigation³.

The wider consumer protection landscape offers alternatives. TrustMark is a government endorsed quality scheme, and registration is one way to check a business before work begins¹³. For energy supply disputes rather than installation defects, the Energy Ombudsman provides free, independent support to consumers with an unresolved energy complaint¹⁴. Neither covers cavity insulation defects, which is precisely the gap CIGA fills.

What the guarantee means for energy independence

Cavity wall insulation reduces the heat a home loses through its walls, which lowers the demand a heating system has to meet. The CIGA guarantee does not add to that saving directly. What it does is protect the investment over 25 years, so that a defect found in year twelve is remedied rather than absorbed by the householder as a cost.

That is a modest but real form of independence. The guarantee is not tied to a supplier, a tariff, a fuel or an internet connection. It attaches to the property and transfers with it, which is why CIGA removed homeowner references from around six million guarantees under GDPR changes in April 2018, issuing duplicates to The Occupier instead. A buyer of a home with cavity wall insulation inherits the cover.

The dependence that remains is on the scheme itself and on the installer network. CIGA directs a concern first to the member company involved, and only investigates itself where that member is no longer trading or has left the scheme⁸. So the speed and quality of a resolution can depend on whether the original firm still exists. Where it does not, CIGA takes over as a first step³.

There is also a dependence on the householder's own conduct. The guarantee can be voided by later building work, and claims can be rejected where a known problem was allowed to worsen¹⁰. That places a duty on the owner to check contractors and to act on defects rather than wait.

For the wider picture on how installer schemes, guarantees and consumer codes fit together, the pillar guide at Home Energy Installers and Retailers sets out the landscape. Related protections are covered in insurance-backed guarantees and workmanship warranties and aftercare, and the escalation route for a dispute is set out in complaining about an installer. Where an installer has ceased trading, what to do if your installer has stopped trading covers the options.