The document summarizes research on consumer behavior and attitudes towards home energy improvements. Key findings include: - Consumers prioritize self-reward, convenience and control in spending decisions. While interest in home improvements is high, willingness to undertake actual projects is more muted when action is involved. - The energy landscape is confusing for consumers with low understanding of costs and offers. This makes meeting demands for transparency in investment decisions difficult. - Awareness of energy efficiency measures is increasing but rates of undertaking improvements have remained static. Top interests are attic insulation, solar panels, and window glazing. - Expense is the main barrier, though more consumers are open to loans compared to previous research. Average monthly re

1. Insights to Consumer Behaviour
IEA DSM Workshop –Task 24
08.04.16
Josephine Maguire

2. Research Methodology
• Quantitative research carried out in 2013 & 2014
• Nationally representative face-to-face survey
• 659 households with household decision maker
• Weighted to the CSO population in terms of spread
• Supplemented by qualitative research-focus groups
• Additional references to CER research of a different
nationally representative sample

3. General Attitudes to
Spend & the Household
3

4. Consumer Mindset
• My Wallet – My Way
– Self reward, convenience and control remain primary considerations in the
consumer mind, in general and when considering energy investment
• The energy improvement journey
– Investment is expected to offer enhancement to the home experience and to
be part of an on-going journey towards incremental improvement
• Demand and Command
– Post recession consumers are armed with a demand-command confidence.
They demand transparency, value and accountability in investment
decisions
• Home central
– Increased willingness to invest in the home, as more time is spent at home
means comfort and value drive investment decisions
Prevailing consumer trends reflected in the research:

5. Preferences for a €5,000 windfall
Renovate
joint 4th
of 10
options
Reward-Recovery dichotomy evident in expenditure decisions
• Pay off debts (recovery) and going on holidays (reward) are
the two most popular activities in the event of a windfall (47%)
The relevance of Home Central is evident in the number of
consumers willing to invest:
• Home renovation interest level is at 14% in 2014 with an
additional 14% indicating they would engage in home
redecoration
• 3 in 5 respondents have carried out some home improvement
in last 3 years, main one was home/room redecoration (43%)

6. 6
Home/Energy Improvement
Interest & Awareness

7. Energy: A confusing landscape
• The energy landscape is fraught with confusion and complexity
– Energy costs from suppliers are little understood (just 6% can cite a unit cost of
gas and 13% a unit cost of electricity, regardless of accuracy)
– Increase in number of offers/products available but low levels of product
understanding ( only 17% of electricity customers and 19% of gas customers claim
to fully understand electricity and gas offers)
– Decreasing levels of switching (12% electricity, 16% gas), indicating a
reluctance to engage with the energy market (29% in 2011)
• Thus, the outcome of energy investment decisions made in this context
cannot meet the Demand-Command consumer mindset
– Whilst input costs can be clearly specified, measures of success are less
transparent due to knowledge deficits
– Implicit measures and expectations may be assumed, but the explicit
outcome is not likely to be clear

8. Awareness and Attitude to Energy Improvement
• That may explain why awareness of energy efficiency measures is
high and increasing, but the level undertaking improvements in the
last 2-3 years is static
– 82% of respondents believe their home would benefit from some form of
energy efficiency improvement (increase of 8% on 2013)
– Highest interest in rural communities and those aged 40-50’s
– Most favoured measures include attic insulation, solar panels and
window glazing
• Future interest is somewhat muted when action involved(14%)
– 36-55 year olds and those living in Urban areas are most likely to undertake
energy improvements in next 5 years
– Most likely measures are lighting improvement, draught proofing, boiler
and controls upgrade and attic insulation

9. Summary of Retrofitting Challenges –The Consumer Journey
Financing
 Accessible, flexible
and cost effective
finance
 Ability to repay
 Hidden costs
 Availability of
grants or some
incentive
 Unaware of savings
or inability to
calculate savings
Emotional engagement required to break inertia.
Knowledge
 What specifically do I
need to do to my
house?
 Where to source
trusted suppliers for
larger and complex
jobs?
 How will I know it’s
done to the proper
standards?
Information Upheaval
 Disruption of
home
 Disturbance to
life
 Fear Factor…new
 Organising and
project managing
 Where do I go
to source
info…to learn?
 What are the
grants,
incentives etc.
 What are the
benefits?
 …Message that
the home, like a
car, needs to be
kept serviced
(boiler upgrade)

10. 10
Energy Efficiency
Improvement Payment
Methods & Loan
Repayments

11. Energy Improvements: Funding profile
• 61% cited expense as the main reason for not carrying out measures
(down from 71% in 2013)
• the investment level:
– 57% would fund the initiatives from savings (65% in 2013)
– 44% would be willing to take out some form of loan to cover part of costs (up
from 34% in 2013)
• The level at which consumers are willing to borrow is somewhat modest
– the average amount for those willing to borrow is €4,852 (€2,899 :2013)
– with an average monthly repayment of €164, (€96 in 2013)
• Evidence of the consumer mind-set of initiatives as an on-going journey
of incremental energy improvement steps

12. Energy Improvements: Loans and Incentives
• When seeking a loan, the interest rate is most important (37%)
• Other considerations are also central such as:
– The flexibility of the loan in terms of timing 24%
– The payback period 21%
– The ease of securing approval 18%
• Top three incentives to increase home energy upgrades were assessed
by consumers, and the My Wallet – My Way traits of self reward,
convenience and control are evident in the ranking of the options
– Cash Back once work is complete 87%
– Discount on Cost of Work upfront 82%
– Reduced Property Tax Based on a better BER 65%

13. Sources of Advice/
Recommendation on
Energy Efficiency
Improvements

14. Friends & family are the main sources of advice
• Consumer mind-set of maintaining control and valuing convenience means
– friends/neighbours and family rate as the highest source of advice on energy
initiatives
– there is a noticeable increase in getting advice from local accredited
contractors
– advice sourced from the energy supplier has declined

16. In Summary
• Home energy improvement on agenda
• Information and knowledge gap
• Theory to action
• Financing when decision made

17. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland is partly
financed by Ireland’s EU Structural Funds Programme co-
funded by the Irish Government and the European Union.
Thank you.