Elmhurst calls for fairer accountability in response to TrustMark scheme consultation

Elmhurst Energy has submitted its formal response to TrustMark's consultation on changes to its quality scheme, backing stronger consumer protection but calling for clearer accountability, simpler processes and a phased rollout that fixes retrofit first.

According to Elmhurst, TrustMark's proposals include direct relationships with registered businesses and individuals, a centralised consumer complaints process, stronger quality assurance and extending protection to more types of home improvement work.

TrustMark's own consultation page lists building a direct relationship with every TrustMark Registered Business and individual, becoming a single point of contact for consumers when things need resolving, strengthening the financial protection covering work under its scheme and changing registration and lodgement fees. TrustMark said it launched the consultation following an update event; it has now closed and TrustMark said it will publish its response in due course.

Stuart Fairlie, Managing Director of Elmhurst Energy, said: "Elmhurst supports TrustMark's ambition to strengthen consumer protection and restore confidence in home improvements." He added that the success of the changes would depend on how they work in practice.

Accountability for individuals and firms

A central concern in Elmhurst's response is the split of responsibility between individual professionals and the organisations they work for. Elmhurst said individual Retrofit Assessors and Retrofit Coordinators have faced sanctions following non-compliance in cases where wider organisational decisions or practices may have contributed.

Fairlie said: "Accountability must be fair and reflect the decisions and responsibilities of everyone involved. Equally, consumers need clear, independent advice and a straightforward route to resolution when things go wrong."

Elmhurst said it supports TrustMark's proposed single point of contact for complaints and has repeated its earlier call for an independent consumer champion to give advice, coordinate complaints and help homeowners reach fair and timely resolutions.

Assessments before installations

Elmhurst has asked TrustMark to allow Retrofit Assessments, and Retrofit Coordinators' medium-term improvement plans, to be lodged independently of installation projects. It also supports extending quality assurance and lodgement to privately funded retrofit work, so homeowners are protected regardless of how improvements are paid for.

On oversight, Elmhurst said it supports intelligence-led quality assurance but warned of a risk of prolonged technical disputes where different experts reach competing conclusions on non-compliance, delaying remediation or increasing costs. It said the industry should build on existing quality assurance processes rather than add complexity.

Phased expansion and costs

Elmhurst is calling for a phased approach that addresses accountability, quality assurance and remediation within the existing retrofit framework before TrustMark extends its scheme to the wider home improvement sector.

Elmhurst described TrustMark's proposals as including a new financial protection fund supported by a levy on scheme participants, and said more detail is needed on how such a fund would operate so responsible businesses are not burdened by the cost of poor performers. TrustMark's consultation page refers to strengthening financial protection and changing registration and lodgement fees, and does not mention a levy.

The government consultation

TrustMark's consultation follows a separate consultation by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), which ran from 17 June 2026 to 10 September 2026 and which Elmhurst also answered in September.

DESNZ said its consultation was prompted by evidence of failings in Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4) and the Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS). Its consultation document said 98% of homes with external wall insulation installed under ECO4 and GBIS had major issues requiring remediation.

DESNZ proposed a single end-to-end consumer protection service accountable to government, a publicly accessible register of installers and retrofit professionals, and an independent ombudsman as a final safeguard for unresolved disputes. The department said the earliest implementation of a new system is expected from 2028, and referred to the £15bn investment announced in the Warm Homes Plan.

In its September response Elmhurst called for a single consumer protection service for government-backed retrofit schemes. Fairlie said at the time that reform must get the fundamentals right, including competent professionals and accurate property assessments. In August, Elmhurst said any new system must avoid duplication between DESNZ, the Warm Homes Agency, TrustMark and MCS, and pointed to the Each Home Counts review chaired by Dr Peter Bonfield, former chief executive of the Building Research Establishment, as the starting point for an assessment-led retrofit process.

Elmhurst describes itself as the UK's largest independent provider of energy assessment, retrofit and property professional training, with more than 30 years in the industry and a head office in Lutterworth.

TrustMark has said it will post its response to the consultation in due course.