The Installation Assurance Authority (IAA) will now cover the cost of repairs to Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4) and Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) solid wall insulation up to £25,000, up from £20,000, where the work falls within the terms of the original, still-valid guarantee1. The increase took effect on 17 June 2026 and applies retrospectively to guarantees issued under those schemes1. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) said the higher limit covers cases where the original installer has gone bust1.
The IAA said it is the only consumer protection provider to raise its maxima for ECO4 and GBIS solid wall insulation, and that it had already increased the maxima on all guarantees issued after 1 September 2025 to £30,0002. Its chief executive, Nigel Donohue, said the body was acting because the cost of damage in some cases exceeds the previous limit.
"As part of this commitment, we are retrospectively increasing our maxima for guarantees issued under the ECO4 and GBIS schemes for Solid Wall Insulation, providing even greater peace of mind for householders investing in their homes."
Separately, the National Energy Foundation, a domestic energy charity, will cover the cost of relevant repairs for some homes with defective ECO4 and GBIS solid wall insulation where the installer has gone out of business and the guarantee was cancelled, fraudulent or missing1. Eligible homes will be identified through audits, and the foundation will contact homeowners directly1. Energy minister Martin McCluskey told the Commons that the government is still working with delivery partners on cases where damage exceeds the £20,000 limit covered by a valid guarantee, and said he hoped other guarantee providers would follow the IAA's lead3.
The government also opened a consultation on a single consumer protection service for home upgrades, covering a public register of approved installers, one advice and support route, and powers to ban installers from government schemes1. On the "Find and Fix" programme for external wall insulation installed under ECO4 and GBIS, McCluskey said more than 10,000 properties had been contacted and over 5,000 audits arranged, and that more than 60% of issues identified through audits had been remediated1.
| Measure | Before | Now |
|---|---|---|
| IAA repair cover, ECO4 and GBIS solid wall insulation | £20,000 | £25,0001 |
| IAA maxima, guarantees issued after 1 September 2025 | £20,000 | £30,0002 |
Why it matters for households
For a household with a failed solid wall insulation installation, the guarantee limit is the ceiling on what a claim can recover. Raising it from £20,000 to £25,000 widens the range of repair bills that can be met in full, and the change applies to existing valid guarantees rather than only new ones1. Where the installer has ceased trading, the claim route runs through the guarantee provider rather than the firm that did the work3.
The gap that remains is for homes whose guarantee was cancelled, fraudulent or missing, or whose installer has gone out of business. Those cases fall to the National Energy Foundation, which is contacting eligible households rather than accepting applications1. Homes with a valid guarantee but damage above the new limit are still unresolved, with the government saying it is working on solutions3.
The wider consultation concerns the ECO4 and GBIS insulation failures and the insurance-backed guarantees that underpin them. A single register and one complaints route would change how a household establishes who is responsible when work goes wrong, which bears directly on whether a failed installation is put right at the household's expense or someone else's1.
What happens next
The consultation on reforming consumer protection for home upgrade schemes and the separate consultation on Energy Ombudsman reform are both open, with no closing date given in the announcement1. Under the Ombudsman proposals, complaint waiting times would fall by a month to a maximum of 10 weeks, and the Ombudsman would gain the power to fine companies that do not comply with a ruling1. McCluskey said he is planning a follow-up roundtable with mortgage lenders on spray foam later in the summer3. Homes eligible for free repairs will be contacted by the National Energy Foundation1.
Sources3 cited
- Greater protections to restore families' trust in home upgrades - GOV.UK, gov.uk
- The IAA strengthens consumer protection with an increase in guarantee maxima for Solid Wall Insulation | Latest News: The Installation Assurance Authority (The IAA), theiaa.co.uk
- Energy Market: Consumer Protection - Hansard - UK Parliament, hansard.parliament.uk