THE Government has announced details of who will be eligible for support under the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

Robin Earle, a surveyor at Strutt & Parker’s Morpeth office, in Northumberland, has urged those who fall into the categories to apply for the support before the deadline of April 8, 2015.

In addition to private owner-occupiers, others eligible for the domestic RHI include second homes, private landlords and legacy applications, where renewable heating technologies have been installed since July 15, 2009.

Eligible technologies include biomass, heat pumps and solar thermal, with a maximum system size of 45kw. Before making an application for RHI support, all applicants – including legacy applicants – need to ensure that a Green Deal Assessment (GDA) has been carried out and that the applicant can provide proof of installation.

The scheme is open to applications from owners of new installations and legacy owners whose installations were not part-funded by the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) scheme.

After three months, the scheme will also open to applications of part-funded installations by RHPP and from November 2014, all other applicants can apply.

The scheme will be based on a seven-year tariff for all technologies, and are paid on pence per KwH of renewable heat, allowing for systems to be paid off more quickly.

Alex Hagan, Strutt & Parker’s energy consultant, believes the introduction of the domestic RHI is particularly good news for owners of older/traditional buildings who are unable to undertake any structural changes to improve their EPC rating, as in some cases, changing their heating systems from oil to biomass will be the only option available to improve the energy efficiency of their home and make significant savings on their energy bills.

He said: “The nature of the RHI payments for the domestic scheme will allow for the cost of installation to be paid off in seven years (the average length of time spent in one home) which reduces the complexities with regards to moving house.”

Home-owners who have previously installed renewable heat technologies eligible for the scheme since July 15, 2009, will be able to apply for the tariff to be applied retrospectively as long as they make their claim within the next 12 months.

Mr Earle said: “While these tariffs are not designed to provide large investment returns, the domestic RHI will, however, be important when it comes to the replacement of oil heating on properties which require improvement to meet minimum energy performance standards.”