Assessor 'may be salesman in disguise'

15/09/11

Kev Kiernan

Energy companies should not be allowed to "switch hats" and visit people's homes under the guise of being independent assessors, an MP has said.

The Tory-Lib Dem coalition wants to let representatives of energy companies visit people to "advise" them on how to make their homes more energy efficient.

Costs of any such measures, such as installing double-glazed windows, would be "offset" by savings made on energy bills.

But Labour MP Barry Gardiner disagrees with such a move, warning against allowing the so-called assessors to also act as door-to-door salespeople, trying to convince householders to switch gas or electricity suppliers.

Meanwhile, Tory MP Andrea Leadsom described the Government's proposed "green deal" as a financial product, adding that householders should be given safety nets into which they can fall if they are mis-sold certain energy-efficiency products.