Logo: BetterHome

An industry-driven one-stop-shop solution, this private initiative, which established a new business model, has proven to be highly effective in motivating private homeowners to take the decision to undertake energy renovation works to their homes

Recognising that many non-technical barriers were negatively affecting the motivation of homeowners in Denmark from taking the decision to renovate, several private companies pooled their resources and set up a unique offer in the Danish market.  In essence, the BetterHome Team acts as a facilitator for the establishment of a better working relationship between the actors directly involved in a renovation project.  The owner meets one certified installer who becomes the single point of contact for the whole process and who accompanies the homeowner throughout the renovation and who follows-up afterwards.

For the installers, BetterHome clusters suitable projects and offers training, guidance and support to them so that they improve their knowledge and skills over time.  BetterHome has also developed a digital platform for the installers that allows them and their clients to follow all of the steps in the process of the energy renovation in a highly interactive and visual manner.

A further crucial feature of the BetterHome model is the way in which it is financed.  The companies behind the initiative directly fund the BetterHome Initiative without any requirement that the products they manufacture are used in the works.  They recover the investment through a general increase in demand for their products as renovation activity increases.

All parties in the BetterHome Programme express satisfaction with the process and the conversion rate of enquiries handled by the programme into real contracts on real homes is much higher than one would expect, running at about 35%

 

Principle Characteristics of the Incentive Programme:

Type of Programme: Private Technical Assistance Programme
Year of initiation: 2014
Number of buildings: More than 200 in 2016 alone and increasing year-on-year
Measures implemented: Insulation of roofs and walls, replacement of windows and doors, installation of renewable energy sources, new heating, hot water and control systems, heat-recovery ventilation systems and energy management controls
Energy performance: Varies with building type and measures deployed, savings range from 30 to 70%
Cost of the works: Average investment per house is around €70,000 – Around €13m was invested in renovation works in 2016
Technical consultants: BetterHome network of over 3,500 installers

BetterHome Website: https://www.betterhome.today/

BPIE blog post: http://bpie.eu/publication/boosting-renovation-with-an-innovative-service-for-home-owners/

BetterHome business model fact sheet from renovation-hub.eu: https://renovation-hub.eu/wp-content/uploads/resources/Betterhome.pdf

Post from Velux about their involvement along with Rockwool, Danfoss and Grundfos: https://press.velux.com/four-beacons-of-business-will-make-energy-modernisation-easy-for-home-owners/

Ibroad Project Report: ‘The Concept of the Individual Building Renovation Roadmap An in-depth case study of four frontrunner projects’ which includes BetterHome: https://ibroad-project.eu/news/the-concept-of-the-individual-building-renovation-roadmap/