Government « Home Insurance News

Archive for the ‘Government’ Category

Shelter has concerns over housing plan

Friday, June 3rd, 2011

Wandsworth Council’s new leader, Councillor Ravi Govindia, has promised a reform of its housing strategy which would see council homes go to intelligent people with good jobs instead of the homeless and people on benefits.

The plan has already been criticised by politicians and Shelter (charity for the homeless) who both predict this plan will create a cycle of homelessness and have devastating consequences for both families and children who are already going to be forced out of their home because of the housing benefit cuts announced last year by the Coalition.

Wandsworth has quite often had one of the lowest council tax bills in the country and in the 1980s was in the vanguard of the highly controversial “Right to Buy” scheme, during which time they sold off half of their housing stock. Councillor Govindia was only celebrating his appointment as leader last Wednesday and is very keen to investigate new ways of helping the current generation of younger people with an interest in household insurance to find appropriate accommodation. London Mayor Boris Johnson is delighted at the appointment of Councillor Govindia and is watching with great anticipation what ideas will be put forward.

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said “It is completely counterproductive to take away the security people so desperately need to get back on their feet by placing those who have suffered the trauma of homelessness into the insecure private rented sector. Our 40 years’ experience of supporting homeless people shows this simply leads to a revolving cycle of homelessness, with devastating consequences for children and families.”

Councillors opposed to the plan feel it will penalise anyone who is out of work through no fault of their own. Wandsworth like many other parts of the country is facing a housing crisis and opponents of the plan say cutting away the safety net from residents who will face the nightmare of losing a home is not the way to deal with the problem.

Tags: council houses, homelessness, household insurance, Housing strategy, Shelter
Posted in Council house tenants, Government, home insurance | No Comments »

Brits with a second home in France may be hit with a huge tax bill

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

A brand new tax is on the agenda in France, and it could well negatively affect over 200,000 residents of the UK who have bought a holiday home in the country.

President Nicholas Sarkozy wants to bring in the new levy in a desperate attempt to raise some revenue and improve his popularity. The move has been criticised by almost everyone with a holiday home and even housing experts feel this new tax will hinder the economy. Thousands of United Kingdom residents are already facing increasing utility bills, expensive fuel and other bills such as household insurance in this country, the new tax in France could force many to sell up.

Already a number of organisations are making plans to challenge the new tax as they believe it breaks European laws by discriminating against foreign properties owners. To date there are around 375,000 second home owners in France and 215,000 of these are thought to come from the UK. Second home property owner’s already pay tax in France and contribute to the local economy. The French Government would estimate the average rental income and add a 20% charge on top of that figure.

Mr and Mrs Leatham, who own a detached cottage in Central France, said “To be honest, we are not very happy about this new tax, especially as we don’t make any money from renting it, but I don’t suppose there’s anything we can do about it. We are angry because we already make quite an adequate contribution. To keep what is a fairly substantial property in France, we have to find other sources of income. Now we might have to sell up.”

The law will be debated in French Parliament this summer. With the current, taxation regime in France there is an ever increasing number of United Kingdom and Europeans looking to retire there and it is hoped there will be a more efficient way for the French Government to balance its books.

Tags: France, Holiday homes, Nicholas Sarkozy, Second homes, Tax, The French Government
Posted in Government, home insurance | No Comments »

British Gas seeking to build their social housing energy services business

Wednesday, May 18th, 2011

British Gas has increased their interest in the housing energy market by signing a multi-million pound deal to buy a central heating services company. Their parent company Centrica have officially announced that British Gas has bought the PH Jones Group Ltd for what is thought to be a £30 million deal.

The Coalition Government’s Green Deal is all set to start next year. The deal will see property owners eligible to receive a loan to carry out energy upgrades, with the loan paid back through their energy bills. PH Jones’ social housing business has over forty different contracts which sees them provide central heating services and repairs for around a quarter of a million homes. They also carry out over 9000 central heating installations per year through another twenty-eight contracts they have within the social housing sector. The deal means homeowners who have heating cover included in their home insurance policy are more than likely to receive service from British Gas when things go wrong.

Managing director of British Gas Community Energy, Betsy Bassis, said “Social housing is a strategically important market for British Gas. It not only represents 20% of Britain’s housing stock, but it is also an early adopter of energy efficiency and renewable technologies.

“We are committed to creating a leading energy services business for the public sector and our focus is on growing successfully through a combination of strong organic growth and our partnership with Mears, one of the leading providers of repairs and maintenance in social housing. PH Jones is a successful, profitable company in this sector and combining its strengths with those of British Gas will deliver important benefits for our customers.”

Eight months ago British Gas announced a strategic partnership with Mears which will see them take on energy efficiency work in the social housing sector. That partnership will offer a full range of both micro generation installation and maintenance services to around 500,000 properties. Together, the two of them will bid for social housing sector contracts.

Tags: British Gas, Central Heating, Green Deal, home insurance, Social Housing
Posted in Council house tenants, Government, home insurance | No Comments »

Islington Council becomes first to refuse housing money

Monday, May 9th, 2011

Islington housing chiefs plan to turn down their share of the £2.2 billion Coalition Government pot which was to be used to build new affordable properties. According to Islington councillors the housing would not actually be affordable at all and by rejecting the money, Islington Council are on a collision course with the coalition.

Under the scheme, all of the twenty-nine housing associations operating within the borough would be able to charge up to 80% of the amounts private landlords are achieving. The council claim this will still be out of reach of most people. Affordable housing is still a huge issue in Islington with 12000 people having their names on the waiting list, and a further 6000 families living in a home officially classed as overcrowded.

Many families are being forced to move out of the borough due to high rents. There is widespread concern that even more people will be forced to move out because of the cap introduced on housing benefit. The council believe that the 80% rent level would effectively place the housing beyond the financial reach of the people most in need of the properties, people who are struggling to find the money to buy household insurance let alone compete in the inflated London housing market. Islington is the first council in the country to reject the money under the new Affordable Housing Programme.

Cllr Murray said: “If we want to sign up to the governments affordable rent programme and receive grants we would have to allow housing associations to charge up to 80% of private rents. That is not an affordable rent. We are offering to put up land and £1m subsidy instead. Once the housing benefit cap comes in it will squeeze even more people out. As a local authority we will look at the most appropriate option that can address the needs of local people and we will utilise existing alternative means of finance.”

Tags: household insurance, housing, Islington council, rent
Posted in Council house tenants, Government, home insurance, property market | No Comments »

Homes to be fitted with green energy meters

Wednesday, March 9th, 2011

Ministers are this week going to announce plans for homes across the UK to be fitted with meters which will measure how much heat they are producing from sustainable fuels. The meters can be used to support a green heating subsidy scheme which will attract £4 billion of investment by the Coalition Government before 2020.

It will not just be households who will be offered a cash incentive to have environmentally friendly technology installed, businesses and public buildings will also be able to join the scheme which will be known as the Renewable Heat Incentive. It is anticipated that many homeowners will spend the money saved on energy bills to pay for other home expenses such as household insurance.

Heat accounts for nearly 48% of Great Britain’s CO2 emissions and it has been estimated that the scheme will halve the bills paid by both households and businesses. The scheme will start with the meters being fitted on larger buildings, while it is planned to calculate individual home owners grants according to the amount of heat that they will have been deemed to have generated from alternative sources.

Greg Barker, the minister responsible for the project, said “Measuring how much heat you have saved is rather harder to measure on a domestic scale. People are becoming much more focused on the need to be more energy independent. Britain had been falling behind its targets and swift action has been needed to address this. It’s a novel approach being pioneered in the UK and hopefully we will be setting an example to other countries.”

A number of sources have already been designated as potential sources of “sustainable’’ heat. These include solar thermal panels fitted to the roof and used to heat water. Installing heat pumps which would be capable of drawing warmth from the ground or air outside the home is another popular idea. The pumps would also be reversed during the summer, to disperse the heat and cool the home. With oil prices soaring on the world markets, pressure is mounting on Britain to find alternative sources of energy and ultimately the Government hopes the bulk of homes will be generating their heat from sustainable sources.

Tags: CO2 Emissions, Green Homes, Green Properties, home insurance
Posted in Government, home insurance | No Comments »

Campaigners in Crewe launch protest against new housing development

Monday, January 31st, 2011

A campaign to stop a major housing development in Crewe has this week been started. It is being led by local Councillor Derek Bebbington, who was the first name on a petition against the plans to build over 400 new homes on the site close to Leighton Hospital.

The development, if it goes ahead, would include some “affordable” housing and a range of properties with two to five bedrooms, which will be covered by household insurance. The developers have pledged to build a new health centre, pharmacy and community centre along with transport improvements to and from the town centre and hospital. But after a meeting held at the Mablins Lane Community School, both the local residents and councillors have expressed major concerns about whether the area can cope.

Councillor Bebbington said “I believe there is no need for another 400 homes to be built in Leighton. You only have to look at the local property market to see how long houses in the area have been up for sale, some for six months or more. The local roads are struggling to cope with the already huge volumes of traffic – over 11,000 cars a day already travel along Bradfield Road. 400 new homes are likely to add at least another 400 cars daily.”

Residents are adamant in their refusal to support any new housing development in Leighton which will put a strain on the few facilities they have and which will do nothing to improve the lives of local people. They intend to fight the development and expressed delight that the local councillor is involved in the fight with them. There will be a chance for residents to see a “vision” of the proposed project at a consultation event organized by the developers who say the housing project will integrate with surrounding areas, extending nearby residential neighbourhoods.

Tags: home insurance, household insurance, housing development, Housing Protest
Posted in Government, home insurance | No Comments »

Council plan crackdown to stop housing fraud

Thursday, December 30th, 2010

Council housing staff in Reading are considering introducing photo identification to help their staff check on tenants. The initiative is part of a move to help crackdown on council house tenancy fraud as well as stopping illegal subletting.

The scheme could also extend to workers carrying out repairs at council owned properties, checking that the person who answers the door is the tenant who is registered as living there.

Tenants will also be encouraged by the council to blow the whistle on neighbours and will be provided with opportunities to report fraudsters by phone or the internet. It has been estimated that 1% of council tenants could be illegally subletting in the town, this works out at about 70 properties. Other frauds include a person giving false information in order to get a tenancy, and staying on unofficially in a council house after the registered tenant moves out. Already as a result of the Councils crackdown, twenty one cases of illegal sub-letting and other irregularities have been uncovered and out of these, five properties so far have been returned to Reading Council ownership for reallocation to people on their waiting list. These people can move in and take out household insurance for protection.

Councillor for housing, Daisy Benson, said “I raised serious questions in 2009 about the robustness of the council’s procedures in relation to tracking and cracking down on potential housing tenancy fraud after nationally it was revealed that illegal tenancy fraud is rife in many towns and cities.

“I am pleased to see that as a result of the concerns I raised the council is now taking a more robust approach, including raising awareness with staff and council tenants to identify fraud and get action taken.

“People who fraudulently sublet council properties are putting additional unwanted pressure on council housing, which is already in high demand. The cost to the council of every fraud is estimated at £11,000, this is wholly unacceptable and the coalition administration of Reading Borough Council is committed to taking further steps to identify potential fraud and take action against offenders.”

Tags: Council, home insurance, home owners, Police, property market
Posted in Advice for tennants, Government, Homeowners, home insurance, property market | No Comments »

No one will be made homeless by limiting ‘extravagant’ benefits

Monday, November 1st, 2010

Prime Minister David Cameron has told his opponents of the housing benefit cuts to ‘think again’ as he refused to believe that anyone would be made homeless by the limiting of ‘extravagant’ benefits.

Dave Cameron refused to publicly criticise the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, for his claim that the impact of the policy was the same as the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans. He did however signal his determination to press on with the cuts and that he was 100% sure that he had the backing of the lower-paid taxpayers in implementing the measures. Downing Street issued a public rebuke to Boris Johnson this week indicating that the prime minister was not happy with the mayor’s stance and more importantly his choice of words.

There have been claims since the cuts were announced that over 200,000 people may be forced out of their homes regardless of them having household insurance. Labour say that this will create ghettos of deprivation as London is expected to be particularly badly hit by the housing benefit cuts.

David Cameron told reporters in Brussels; housing benefit payments were too high and had to be cut back as part of the package of severe public spending cuts. He stated “Paying over £20,000 a year for the housing benefit of some families is too high. I do not think taxpayers who pay their taxes will understand why we are being so extravagant. People pay their taxes knowing that we should be helping to house people, we must be protecting the vulnerable, and we must be helping the needy. But frankly they don’t pay their taxes to provide housing benefit of £30,000, £40,000, £50,000 to some families.”

He went on to state “The people who oppose this – and I am particularly thinking of the Labour party – they really do need to think again. There are many people who earn less than £20,000 – their whole income is less than £20,000 – who are paying taxes to house people who are getting rents of £25,000, £30,000, £35,000, and £40,000. They don’t see that as fair and neither do I.”

Posted in Government | No Comments »

Edinburgh to get first new council houses in two decades

Friday, October 22nd, 2010

Work has begun on the first new council houses to be built in Edinburgh for over twenty years. In total 215 new houses are going to be built in Gracemount under a joint project between the Scottish Government and the City Council.

The first phase which will see 99 new properties built and local residents will be actively involved in the design of the development. There will be 66 of these new properties built in the first phase available for rent from the city council with the remaining 33 houses put aside for shared equity sale or mid-market rent. These properties will be the first council houses to be built in Edinburgh since the 1980s.

Councillor, Paul Edie, said “This is an exciting time for residents in Edinburgh as they can now see our new council homes taking shape. I’m confident these modern homes will set the standard for other councils across Scotland to follow. Nothing is more important to people than decent housing. It impacts on health, well-being and educational attainment. The city faces an acute shortage of housing which is becoming a limit on our prosperity. This is something we are working closely with the Scottish Government on and their £7.5 million investment in this programme is vital to meet this goal.”

The first of the new homes will be ready to rent from around October next year and will include flats and colony houses. The building work is being done by the Edinburgh-based firm, Cruden Group, who along with Hart Builders are part of Edinburgh’s £150 million Homes programme, which is hoping to build 1300 new homes across Edinburgh by 2018.

Everyone on the waiting list for a home which they can protect with household insurance are delighted that Edinburgh are again starting to build council homes after such a long gap. Thanks to money secured from the Scottish Government, the next phase of building will take place in Pennywell and Muirhouse.

Tags: Council homes, Council house tenants, Government, home insurance
Posted in Council house tenants, Government, home insurance | No Comments »

Reduced number of new homes to be built

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

A plan has been put forward to build new homes on a controversial site in Hook, Hampshire, after three years of dereliction.

Longstreet Homes Limited want the green light to build five detached properties. A derelict bungalow used to be on the site, but this was knocked down by the developer after several complaints about teenagers causing vandalism and using it as it as a place to hang out.

Three years ago Longstreet Homes won planning permission to build eleven homes on the site; they got this despite the objections of nearby residents who had concerns about access and parking. Permission was given with the condition that the roads would be given significant improvements to allow for the increased amount of traffic.

The impact of the recession meant Longstreet Homes had to put the plans on hold and the homes were not built. They instead put in a different application this month with a revised, much smaller plan for the site. The new application states how the site has remained empty due to the downturn in the housing market and the huge cost of the highways works required. The builders believe the new proposal is better suited to the current market, and due to the smaller number of homes the highways works will not be as expensive. The new plan would see two five-bedroom, two six-bedroom and one three-bedroom properties built on the site, meaning five new properties needing household insurance. The homes would each have two parking bays plus an additional six visitor places.

Andrew Macleod, consultant for Longstreet Homes, said “The company had withdrawn a similar application earlier this year following concerns from the district council about the number of parking spaces. We bought the site in 2004 and it has taken six years and we are still looking for a viable concept and hopefully this will be it.”

The council will make a decision by October 14^th.

Tags: Government, home insurance, household insurance, property market
Posted in Government, home insurance, property market | No Comments »