Dr Nicholas Roberts explains why long-term flat leaseholders can face an insulation brick wall
Governments of all political persuasions are keen to encourage home energy conservation as part of the campaign to drive down CO2 emissions, but little attention has been paid to how difficult this may be for those who live in long leasehold flats. In many cases, however much as they may wish to insulate their homes, the legal matrix which they inhabit makes it difficult to improve the physical structure in which they live.
The typical scenario
The case considered here is that of the owner of the long leasehold flat which is of conventional construction, whether purpose-built or a “conversion”. It is assumed that the legal structure will be the usual “internal box” set-up, ie with the foundations, main structure, exterior and roof the responsibility of the ground landlord, and the leaseholder responsible only for internal repairs and decorations). The priorities for most house owners who wished to insulate their homes would probably be:
l additional loft insulation;
l double glazing (probably uPVC sealed units); and
l cavity wall insulation.
