Helping Innovate Property (HIP) – Blog, Housing Market News and Articles

Two excellent articles which any aspiring DEA should read. My advice to anyone wishing to take up this line of work is don’t unless you already have the contacts and the work streams in place.

Do not believe the hype of the training providers; once they have your money they lose all interest in you unless you are willing to work for peanuts

Graham, you make some interesting comparisons about where you feel this has happened in other industries and in times gone by. If this is the case; is this a wider issue that should be addressed or should we accept this within our specific field as it has and does occur elsewhere?

The rising domestic energy assessor numbers is certainly a concern for many DEAS within the industry?

If this is a problem, what is the solution?

I can’t see how any new entry into this industry can even hope to cover their costs, let alone make a profit. The industry has 3-4 times the people it really needs, many of which have now been established since HIPs were first rolled out. Added to this is the fact that the housing market is in sharp decline and it’s all looking rather bleak.

There will be more work when rentals come on board but all letting agents and larger landlords have now been approached by existing DEAs and actually, there won’t be a sustained increase in work as rental EPCs will be valid for 10 years!

Any one contemplating a move toward a property based career at the moment should have to have their head examined.

With estate agents loosing their jobs throughout the country and agencies closing down daily it would simply be isane to attempt to have anything to do with that market.

Dont get me wrong, I enjoy the work and the people and properties I meet but I wouldn’t advise anyone to enter this proefession until things have properly settled down which is going to take a long long time.

The current situation is dire for DEAs even those who have been involved from the start. No one should consider this as a change of career now. Training companies are still promising the earth. It has been a big disappointment from day one and it will be a struggle for most to carry on. Even the Government have lost track of how many DEAs there are!!

I found this site today after having attended an ‘interview’ with a Training Provider in (city name removed, sorry!!) this morning.

I found them to be very sales driven, telling me I was ideal for the role and their ‘Recruitment Director’ kept saying “I think you should do it”… well of course he would, it pays his wages!

In the end I turned round and said I wanted to think long and hard about the financial commitment and I’d get back to him.

They want £3,965 for a four module training course which would take place over 8 days. He told me that I could earn that money back in less than a month! (Now I knew he was full of ****!) That would mean being able to do about 40 in one month (working on the assumption I’d earn £100 per report). He also told me to charge £50 per bedroom of the property… therefore charging most properties in my area £150-£200!! I know for a fact that nobody would pay that so it is unrealistic to expect this level of income. I also know how quiet the property market is at the moment so assuming I even got to do 1-2 a week, it would still take me over a year to pay it back…. ‘Nonsense’ he said… you can earn your course fees back in a month.

They were full of promises of fast-tracking me so that I was qualified ahead of 1st October – something I am sure they tell everyone.

Whilst I was in the interview, he took a call from someone who he told me was a single mother who had struggled to raise the money for the course and she had finally managed to scrape it together and would be taking the course over the coming months because she wanted to generate a new life and a new career path. I wish I’d grabbed the phone and told her to save her money and spend it on something useful!

I often think that if something sounds too good to be true then it usually is. It seems that this is the case with becoming a DEA and the training providers are only out to line their own pockets.

Surely the Government need to regulate this more effectively?!

The only people to have made any real money out of this industry are the Training Providers and the Accreditation Companies.

Why do 12,000 DEAs (for domestic EPCs) have 8 of these august bodies when the countless numbers of heating engineers have only one body (CORGI)!

First of all i would like to thank the person who created this site. This will at least prevent others from getting hustled into this scam.

Secondly,question to Hannah (July 16th), just out of curiosity, which training centre did you happen to go to?
Was it the one opposite the (description of location of training centre/provider ommitted due to possible legal implications, sorry!!!)

I was called in for a interview 3 weeks ago, and ‘surprise surprise’ i passed the interview and the aptitude test. After that i said to them i need to have a think about this commitment. As £6800 is a lot of money. At first i was naive enough to believe what they were saying…

But recently i have been bombarded with phone calls everyday, i said to them i have not got the cash right now to enrol on the course at which point they wanted me to come into the office, so that they could fix me with a loan.
One of the interviewers even had the cheek to say that i should bring my father in, so he can act as a gurantour!!
I just wanted to know if anyone esle has had similar experiences.

It was only by searching the net did i come across many forums slating the course. And with further reading and advice i am happy to say that i have saved myself a lot of time, and most importantly £6800!

Advice to others, please be wary!!

I am glad to have found and read this as i have recently gone to (college name removed due to possible legal implications, sorry!!) in (college name removed due to possible legal implications, sorry!!), passed the aptitude test and interview and been told i am worthy of a place. I was so excited about this opportunity as i thought i would have alot of work i could generate through contacts but i am thinking not to go ahead with it now as i know that even after maybe doing work for people i know, there will not be anything after that!!

It seems that are a few colleges out there practicing in the manner you have described which is very concerning. If they have a great opportunity why the need for such a hard sales pitch?

The question still remains, how do we address these issues now that we know they are there?

We have been overwhelmed with the strength of feeling and the number and quality of comments to date, though it is most welcomed. Keep them coming.

Hi Elaine,

In response to your question. Home inspectors (HI’s)were due to carry out Home Condition Reports (here is a sample of one) though the government made a U-turn on this part of the implementation of HIPS and made them voluntary. Due to this there has been very little uptake in HCR work and many HI’s have never completed a paid HCR instruction.

There is talk of HI’s being able to carry out a similar type survey in the future. However, this is far from being conclusively decided. Most within the industry including currently qualified Home Inspectors feel that the HCR is dead and will never return. This obviously, understandably so leaves many feeling upset and let down due to their substantial time and monetary investment in their training.

There are multi skilled energy assessors though please remember that this means more than one training course and related fees.

Thank god I read this, I was about to put my youngest into childcare and sort out after school clubs for my other children to train as an assessor in (city name removed, sorry!!) (over 60 miles away). After reading this I’ve just rung ands canceled, thankyou one and all!!!

This article has not been designed to put people off though to provide a realistic picture of the market place for practicing DEAs. In turn i am very pleased it has provided food for thought for those of you considering the DEA career.

In addition to this, it now appears that some panels are experiencing cashflow problems which is resulting in DEAs not being paid on the dates agreed they would be. There is an interesting article which i have recently read regarding late payments to DEAs. Draw your own conclusions.

God, I am soo glad I found this site. I too have been invited to an “interview” in a nice glossy training centre in (college name removed, sorry!!). I had my suspicions about them when they called me back for the telephone interview which was supposed to be an informal chat until they started to ask me about my qualifications, and then it really turned into a sales/recruitment pitch. They left me with questions such as is the scheme governemnt funded, what costs will i pay. they weren’t willing to discuss this until the day of the interview which is supposed to be this afternoon. I have now cancelled!!!!! I have already been made redundant because of the credit crunch, there’sd no way I’m gonna get scammed and loose even more money

Hi there, I’m laughing at myself as I just phoned them to “BECOME A MULTISKILLED…..” Few minutes later I foud your website (thanks mother nature for such inventions like internet). Some of us give different prices on that course, does it mean that they are just vary or it depends on place? I am thinking if I could haggle about it? What do you think? Is it time worth? And question for those who done this course – what does this assessement really consist in? Thanks for any information.

I went for an interview at said college yesterday and all I had drummed in to me was how i was lucky enough to make it from 1500 people down to the 100 asked for interview! more like 100 people actually applied. I’m waiting for a call this morning and I already know regardless of how my interview went they are going to offer me the place and say am lucky enough to get the ”golden ticket” as they put it.

They tried to tell me if i worked 30 hours a week and had 6weeks holiday a year I could still earn £117,300! I feel sorry for anyone who actually falls for that load of rubbish. There is no guarantee of work and they just feed you figures rather than facts! The fact is there isn’t that much work out there especially considering the numbers of DEA’s already in the market.

If they think im going to hand over £3965 for a few letters after my name and not actually make anywhere near the money they claim they must have bumped their heads. I was also told the most fantastic story (sarcasm) about a single mother who didnt have the money for the course and decided on the interviewr’s advice to pray for the money! low and behold she won the lottery (cough cough B*** S***) just enough money to pay for her course as well… how convenient

I really hope anyone thinking about this farce looks here first

I agree that the only winners in this [ and i mean all short courses especially building trades],are the recruitment/training agencies that claim either the shortage of tradesmen or the 50,000 per year salary!!!
This is a perfect example of a advert i come across every day… TRAIN TO BE A PLUMMER IN 10 WEEKS, and yes my friend did just that, but can he get a job? Well he should be able to, after all there’s such a big shortage in plumbers so they said?? The answer is no. Seems there was no shortage after all. So while the government try to decide what this really is, “domestic energy assessor” or “domestic arse assessor”, i think anyone interested should stay well away. I to feel an absolute fool for even looking in to this! What a joke!!

Please do bondie, a sceptical nature should determine that it was a complete waste of time and money. For example, at any point during the interview did they actually tell your husband a FACT?? If they have to sell THEMSELVES to prospective employees, then that should say it all. Its possible that alarm bells should be ringing!!! “ring” “ring”

I was meant to call my female ‘recruitment director’ back on Friday to arrange my registration for training, but after reading this site on Wednesday, i obviously didn’t make the call. She called me on Friday afternooon and i told her that i was no longer interested. She asked me why and i told her that i had done my own research and that there actually isn’t any work at the moment for energy assessors, and she said ‘yes, but you will also be a home inspector’(that was admitting that i was right about the energy assessors not having work)I told her that HI’s also have no work. In the end i had to put the phone down on her as she got really snotty with me, and would not accept that there was no way i was going to gamble £6,800 for a very uncertain career. She was obviously upset because she thought i was a garuantee for her commission, but thanks to this site….

I just wish more people could be informed of the actual facts. The training centre in (city name removed, sorry!!) was full of people already training, who have already been sold the story and paid over the fees.

Was the site in (city name removed, sorry!!)…. have an another in (city name removed, sorry!!)…. In London? I have been there, and the classrooms were full, all 4 clasrooms with 12 people in them. But i must thank this site, as I have also been to the one in (city name removed, sorry!!)…., not impressed at all, no one in these classrooms.

I shall not be foloowing this line of work.

I feel it needs re-iterating though has been described before on this post and within comments by others.

Domestic energy assessors can undertake EPC certificates for domestic properties.

Home Inpesctors can undertake home condition reports (HCR) and EPCs for domestic properties.

However, it must be remembered and very very important in my opinion; at present there is little or no demand for HCRs as they are completetly voluntarily.

For those interested in becoming a Home Inspector there are many Home Inspectors who have done very very few HCRs some zero. The strong belief and feeling within the industry is that HCRs will never return or be compulsory.

There was a training company who was investigated – nothing was able to be proven.

Hi all,

Well this is interesting. I’m just preparing for an interview in (city name removed, sorry!!) this afternoon. It seems I can’t give out the name, but they’re listed on the ABBE website and seem legit.

I guess there is nothing to lose by going. I too am not easily suckered in to scams. Besides, if they try and sell me a course costing £4,000 there’s no way I can afford this anyway.

I’ll let you know how I get on.

Thanks

thank you all very much for your feedback. i am due to go to an interview tommorrow in (city name removed, sorry!!) but i aint going to bother now. i to was selected because the greedy idiot on the other end of the phone felt he had a “gut feeling” i was just what he was looking for. i just hope more people thinking about the course find this site

Further to the above the Government have now released the latest figures of Domestic Energy Assessors (DEA) and Home Inspectors in the system. See here for official government figures as of 22nd May 2008.

Please remember that there are about 3mths extra DEAs/HIs to be added onto these figures at the time of writing and it is suggested by many industry professionals that only about 3000-4000 assessors are needed to undertake the domeestic energy assessment.

It seems i discovered this site too late,I’ve been conned already, thankfully it is only £ 10.50 that i have wasted on a return train ticket to (city name removed, sorry!!), oh and £ 3.80 parking, it could have been a lot worse (like 350 times worse). I too met the recruitment director after ‘passing’ the telephone interview(didn’t I do well?) He claimed to be an ex policeman, I wonder how many he has nicked for daylight robbery.

He finished the interview by asking me what he could say to the ABBE to convince them to accept me on to their course, I replied that me agreeing to pay them £ 3,965 would probably clinch it. I dont think the ‘recruitment director’ liked my response. I nearly didnt bother completing the aptitude test after, but if i hadn’t i might not get offered a place on the course(ha ha) i reckon if you answered them all wrong there would be a place for you.

Thanks a million for setting up this site, it has confirmed my suspicions, don’t waste your cash!

I trained as a Home Inspector and I am a practising DEA (since July 2007).
The average Fee for an EPC started out at around £100, it is now down to about £40.
The property slow down combined with over subscription of DEA’s is driving the fee even lower.
I know of DEA’s who have not completed a single paying assessment yet – and are not likely to do so in the foreseeable future.
My advice to anyone who is reading this, and considering a new career as a HI – DEA, is simple – DONT BOTHER!

LOW WORK VOLUMES + LOW FEE’S + DEPRESSED MARKET = NO HOPE!
Spend your money on something that stands a chance of giving a return – buy Lottery tickets.

If you can’t afford to lose the Training Fee – don’t sign up because YOU WILL NOT RECOVER THE COST.

Listen to me, the REALISTIC earning potential of a lucky DEA is around £20K. The AVERAGE earning’s are @£11 – 15K and Most DEA’s won’t get near £15K.

Still interested? – Good luck (but just in case I don’t meet you after you have qualified – I TOLD YOU SO!)

Hi,
As a qualified DEA my answer is simple – that is an emphatic NO.
My training cost £3,500, all the gear I needed – computer, printer, scanner, etc added another £750.
I FOOLISHLY gave up my day job. (Idiot that I am).
From a reasonably healthy bank balance last Christmas, my bank balance is now near to empty.
I have not even earned enough to pay for the equipment let alone the course fees.

WORK IT OUT YOURSELF.

Best Regards

Richard

All I can say is don’t do it. Even the comapny that is offering subsidised training is still costing you alot. Ask this question and you will find out that you are still paying over £3000 and he would not give me the amount and he told me that I was only trying to pump inforamtion out of him, ‘well no, I wanted to know how much money I needed to pay as in your paper advert it said subsidised training. When I approach a college they tell me what I need to pay and they don’t wait for me to come to an interview. Going to (city names removed, sorry!!) will be a cost in its self, can’t even remember your other centres.

I am so glad that I found this site. Any mums looking to change career or go back in to work think about this option before you part with your money, if a training company can’t give basic info over the phone, what hope have you got for trusting them not to give you promising hopes or the hard sales drive when you get to your interview.

Good luck!

There definately needs to be more awareness about what is being highlighted in this site. It took me about two days to find this information. Some people aren’t so lucky and have carried out their training because of a lack of the real facts.

Hi Helena,

If you have legitimate questions, is it right that they are answered?

The figure of a 1000 may possibly refer to Home Inspectors, certainly NOT Domestic Energy Assessors; which in reality is the role you would be carrying out if you trained as a Home Inspector at present.

Please see here for official government released figures.

Home inspectors were intended to carry out Home Condition Reports – how many have actually be carried out in the last 6 months?

Just arrived back from “interview”. Luckily, I had googled DEA before going a few days ago. Their building was flooded, so had to go to another temporary place. Course cost was 3965 for level-3 DEA. and extra 2900 if Commercial EA done as well. else 1000 per module.
The Potential income section of the brochure says income “range from £50 to £120 per EPC”, ” a minumum of ten EPCs … with average fee £85 would generate …. £850 per week …”

I agree that if this is genuinely a scam then people need to mnow about it. WHy not interest “Watchdog” type BBC programs (consuner affairs) in it? They love this type of program!

Thanks for having this site available, or I would have thought it a good investment.

In response to your post ‘me’, i would like to address your points and clarify a couple of areas.

1. All comments are genuine – 90% of commentors have left valid emails and many linked back to their site unlike yourself.
2. All comments have been published in full, apart from where businesses names have been mentioned and this has been stated as being so.
3. We have only not published one comment left on this article due to it being offensive.

This article has been written as there is widespread empathy with the DEA industry with the issue raised within this article.

We felt we had the opportunity to help publicise the issue; with the aim to give those not in the industry a greater awareness prior to entering into the business and investing large amounts of money and time.

We feel that this has being achieved and will continue to. We never imagined such a high response of comments though demonstrates the strength of feeling and concern within the industry and those considering it.

HIP-Consultant.co.uk obviously has a vested interest in our own industry and we are certainly NOT only interested in it for the money. It is recognised accross the industry; the more DEAs, the cheaper the fee. HIP-Consultant.co.uk employ DEAs and would benefit with reduced costs in this scenario.

We have never tried to disuade people from entering the industry; we have provided facts and figures and an opportunity for others to share experiences and their views. With this information people can make an informed judgement on whether they choose to train as a DEA.

Yes there have been many kind comments and thanks towards the articles which are all very much welcomed.

It has also been brought to our attention that people have quoted and referred to the article in places, including on internet forums which has undoubtedly helped towards the success of the article.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank all those that have taken the time out to leave comments including ‘me’.

Jeez louise, thank god for this site.

I attended an interview at the (college name removed, sorry!!) on Friday, and got a call today to say i had been ‘accepted’, i was really pleased but also bothered by the fact that im deep in debt and was struggling to find the money to pay the £3775+ vat was going to ask the mother-in-law.

The director said that the sister company would provide the work plus any we find ourselves being a bonus, sounded so good. I currently run my own business as a gardener and really want a change from being dependant on the weather, i really liked the idea of being a DEA and thought after October 1st the amount of work would be huge, i guess not.

Another dream burst, oh well. Thanks for the heads up guys.

jobs as DEAs avalable.
has any trained DEA applied for this?
is it genuine?

http://www.chrisrodgers.co.uk/recruitment/homes-and-energy.php

Hello

I was invited to take a test and interview after passing the phone “test”. I was told I’d passed with flying colours and they would love to have me and offered me a role as a consultant once I’d completed the training.

I smelt a rat when they asked me for the money straight up. Other educational institutions accept payment in instalments.

I was saving up for a new car but thought, when I qualify, I can get a better car! Don’t think I’d be happy at all if I’d spent the money on the course and got nothing back.

Do you think the situation will change after 1st of October when the law comes into practice? ie will there be a need for more Energy Assessors?

Very interesting stuff. I am just about to qualify as a DEA and obviously the future looks gloomy. I too was wondering how the market for Non-Domestic Assessors was looking. Is it worth going straight into training for the commercial stuff?

Thanks for any advice. Rachel

Wow thanks guys and this website i was also thinking about doing the course luckily a little research and this great website stopped me
nice one

Glad to find this site – amazing!. Attended an interview / assessment in Bristol last week and really wanted to believe the slick speil from the ‘Recruitment Director’, but the one thing I couldn’t get over is that he refused to give me a copy of the ‘agreement’ or anything in writing come-to-that; other than some glossy marketing material. When I asked for a copy of the agreement, the RD said that I would get to read that when I go to sign-up and pay the full £6,800 (‘subsidised’ training fee). Definitely a case of ‘buyer beware’, I think. Thanks everyone.

I am so glad I found this site. I too have been in contact with the training company based in (city name removed, sorry!!)….. I have already a very busy business within the property (mostly rental) sector and wanted to add to my services offered, so am thinking my circumstances not so crucial as someone entering a whole new world. However I am obvioulsy still worried by it all. After having my telephone “interview” (and of course passing)I was invited for the formal interview in (city name removed, sorry!!). Perhaps becaused I told them I was far too busy to contemplate booking a day from work to chat to someone about paying some money (I had to phone back and leave a message to ask how much exactly) and just needed them to send me the details of exactly how the course worked – I have heard no more!
However I have also spoken to another training provider – just dealing with DEA’s – much less money and starts with home study, 3 days training and then home study and practical thereafter. Part payment when you enrol and the rest before the training.
I am supposing that because I already have the basic set up – no need to buy computer etc. and customers who already know me, I will be ok, but after reading your site – I’m still waivering??
Am I still being a bit thick??

hi all. same story as many above i’m afraid.recently made redundant, looking for a gap in the future work place to submerge myself 100% ..phoned up the number in the local paper and immediately smelled a rat…. no hard answers to my questions eg.is it possible to get help with fees from funding councils, how much is the course . how many practising companies are there .how many people are currently employed in the business etc etc.the techniques used to try to get me to the college were very INTERESTING.i always research anything i’m looking to commit myself to and the more i read and hear from people about this subject the more angry and frustrated it makes me feel. the set up at the ‘college ‘ i called was very similar to other hard sell scenarios i encountered a few years ago, many of which have appeared on watchdog and similar programs. legally everything they are doing may be correct . morally … i’m not sure . it would appear that some of the coleges are more reputable than others.having spoken to associates who were willing to go into debt to try and get themsevles out of difficult financial situations through this route i have found that upon deeper research this would be exceedingly difficult, especially in the present economic climate. the dream being sold would appear to be very different from the reality. other comments on this web site would appear to also confirm this .are the government aware of how their legislation is being carried out ? i’m currently writing an article on this subject and i would like to hear from ALL associated with this business through this excellent website. i’d recommend to anyone thinking of going into debt to solely become an assessor, to independently research the matter extensively. excellent comment from emma on the 29th sept and would appear very informative.

In reply to Johnny
We used one of the first training centres in Milton Keynes whose software we still use. I have to say there was no hard sell, we weren’t given inflated figures of what we might earn, bearing in mind at that time we were one of the first DEA’s to be studying, so things looked a lot brighter then. I think best way for people to look into it is with reputable training centres set up solely to undertake Energy Assessors, rather than colleges and HIP providers online. They really are only interested in getting bums on seats and getting max money for little return. There is a huge variance in prices, we are currently studying CEA course and the difference in prices were £1500 between highest and lowest, so it does pay to shop around. Dont be afraid to grill these people before booking, if they can’t or won’t give you the answers then look elsewhere. Also another thing to bear in mind is that the software costs money each year too, as well as yearly registration, so it isn’t just the one off fee that you have to take into account.

Went for interview at (city name removed, sorry!!). Today.
I must say that I was not promised the earth. £30k was mentioned as a target for 25-30 hours a week. That’s if work is available. They said that this could not be guaranteed. I was interested in saturation of the market but they could not give me total numbers of DEA’s (I know now!)
They are also looking for ‘consultants’ to qualify as there are not any yet in the market!!? These guys would advise on improvements and get commission on any work done.
Alarm bells rang when I was ordered to ring back the next day (tomorrow) to either commit or move on (all presented in the nicest possible way). Panicking I stumbled across this site. Hmmm who to believe?

Hi
I have just stumbled across this site and read the comments.I quit my Job and I signed up for this HI course back in March and paid £6800! Have just completed Mod 6 and studying for the exam!
I feel conned and a total idiot! Not sure whether to continue as it would seem a waste of time? But I suppose if I have paid for it I might as well complete it if I can pass the final exam.

Any thoughts?apart from no not another mug!

Steve,

On a personal note i for one would continue to do the HI course without doubt if you have already paid for it.

Maybe, the HCR will become mandatory though am yet to speak to anyone in the industry who believes this. Am afraid that is my belief as well.

In fact most i have contact with, even those who studied as a HI have resigned themselves to the HCR never returning. Many HIs continue to undertake EPCs or have returned to their previous occupation.

I’m an architect…and thought a career change whould give me flexibility for when I start a family. I passed the telephone test, the interview and aptitude test. I did think it peculiar why he didn’t tell me the cost of the course over the phone, and when I did find out 6,800 sounded a lot, but because of potential earnings it seemed like a good investment. I was told that I was over qualified and so didn’t suspect anything suspicious…and it all seemed quite professional.

I was suppose to register on the course last monday, and I was there reading through all the terms and conditions of the course before signing…I didn’t understand why they didn’t send it to me in the post to read beforehand!

Fortunantly I missed heard about the part that I had to pay the full amount for the course upfront on that day. So when I got there I hadn’t prepared for all the money to be in my current account.

He seemed a little stressed over the fact that my payment date would be different to the date of the signed contract. And asked if I had a credit card to pay instead. Or we’d need to fill in and sign the contracts again.

So I looked in my purse and realised that I had a visa debit card, and had a go anyway! Fortunantly my overdraft doesn’t stretched that much…so the machine declined the card! (BTW I saw about 7 credit card machines in that office all lined up next to each other!!). Because my card didn’t work I made another appointment to come back the following day. As I had signed two contracts one copy for myself and as he’d mentioned earlier we have to redo the contracts…I asked him if I could take a copy home to read through properly. His response was ‘no, I can’t give it to you without the receipt…and regards to the date that’s easy..we’ll just change that bit only!’

How bizare I thought…and that’s why I thought to do some more research and I found this site!

Thanks very much!

A big thank you to all your honest comments,im pleased to hear their is still some honest citizens in this country
My interview would of been this friday(a 2hour drive)in (city name removed, sorry!!).,the day after my birthday,safe to say i will be having a much better birthday now,saving myself a small fortune.
I have no previous experience and like most people at the moment im not rolling in money so a lucky escape indeed,many thanks

Try asking

-how many HCRs have been completed and lodged on the Governments database.

-how many DEAs qualified?

-and how many are anticipated needed based upon Governments’ estimation?

The answers to last 2 questions can be found here.

We have just been given an interesting press release about these figures which we will be writing an article about shortly. The figures are quite shocking really

Hi there, just found this website because i was looking for info about this `domestic energy assessor` training, and i’m very glad i did. The training sounds like a complete waste of time at present and i will not be wasting money on it.

Hi All,
Like all of you i read the advert and decided this would be a great carreer change after being out of work so long and over 60 but very active.
I went to (city name removed, sorry!!). last Friday by train which cost me £22 return and had the interview and yes i admit was taken in with all the jargon the Director provided, yes i was really excited becuase it was a job role where you can carry out flexible work if and when you want it,
i was told two companies would invite me to carry out assessments and these would come to my email box m i did not have to except the work if i did not need it.
i was given the impression that there would be plenty of work once qualified and limked to these two companies(companies names i do not have) probably dont exist…
Anyway the interview went very well and carried out the aptitude test which speaking to the director the following day past easily and was offered a place on the training course for £3995 inclusive of VAT. I was told i would have to make another appointment to travel to (city name removed, sorry!!). again to sign the relevant forms and hand over the money, likeeverbody else this is a large amount of money when you are unemployed…. At the time I said I would have to get back to him with dates becuase i could not confirm my schedule. Like most of you you feel excited but apprehensuve that you could train for something that you could get your teeth into and really enjoy…..but fortunately for me i did further research and found this site…..many thanks to you all and for whoever setup this great site….there are to many greedy people out there ripping innocent people of of there hard earned money without any feelings for the consequences… Well done
Leachim

Hi Paul

The ads you see are generated by google based upon the content of the article. We have limited control over which ads google chooses to display on each article. Each article displays different ads which are often very relevant to our readers and we feel adds to the end users experience.

In regard to telling people not to train, this is not our stand point. We have tried to bring certain issues into the public domain to promote discussion and awareness.

Hi,

With the rental market coming on stream and bringing some badly needed work to DEA’s because of the diabolical private housing market stall, it needs to be remembered that the large amount of house sales is and has been in recession for some time now, and the rental market is such that not all the rental properties need an EPC now, only when a new tenant rents that property. This then means that the millions being quoted can be immediately cut to maybe a few hundred thousand. This is not a good market to payout large sums of money to train. Please think hard before you make the decision to part with your money, it is going to take you a long time to recover it before you even break even and don’t forget as well as travelling expenses (it’s not just the fuel, but tax and maintenance as well) there is your national insurance and tax to consider. These two particular bills don’t hit you for a good long while but rest assured they will,

Richard

Before long you will only have to ask your next door neighbor whats its like being a DEA. Look its so over subscribed my local letting agent more or less laughed when i polity offered my services.The rental market is another red herring being spun by training companies. As for 3000 needed we have more than 4 times that already, the Government have not updated DEA numbers for many months.The so called extra work for the rented market will soon dry up as the EPC will last ten years, i suggest anyone thinking about becoming a DEA waits ten years too.

Hey Website Guys; lets add an ‘e-mail to your friends’ feature…………

Paul,

Quoting the numbers can often be used to say what ever you want, the numbers that you have used are speculative.

Some of the facts that you have omitted are.

1) The number of qualified DEAs who have little or no work.
2) EPCs for rentals last for 10 years.
3) EPCs for house sales last for 3 years.
4) Training providers do not guarantee work.

There should be no need for the hard sell, anyone interested in such a career would see the benefits of training and do not need to be put under pressure to sign up.

If sufficient numbers of qualified DEAs have not been obtained using the hard sell, this should be telling you that its wrong, you are recruiting the wrong people to fulfil your contracts, you have obtained contracts that you cannot fulfil and it simply doesn’t work for what you are trying to achieve [fulfil contracts] (except make money from training courses); try something else, there are plenty of qualified DEAs available, several have left comments on this thread, make contact with them; if you have so many contracts, you should be offering full time employment with training provided to the right candidates not courses costing a lot of money.

Hi
I rang a branch based in (city name removed, sorry!!), who has sister companies based in (city names removed, sorry!!) doing EPC training etc. The guy seemed friendly and spoke about EPCs and other training courses especially on the commercial side. He said once I train I will never look back as it was a very lucrative business to get into. I passed the telephone interview. But thought it was a bit strange him asking me about how long I lived at my address and how long I have been working. (Obviously checking if I was credit worthy) He would not tell me about the cost as he said he would discuss that with me when he sees me, and he advised me that the governmnent will be contributing towards the cost and one can pay in installments. I thought it seemed ok. But had it in my mind that I was not going to pay more than £2,000. Anyway I was booked in for an appointment on Monday 10th Nov.

I started to google more info on EPC’s & courses, would you believe I saw an advert from an ebay seller advertising a training course for £6,000 reduced from £6,800. The seller said due to unforseen circumstances he would not be able to go on the course. And surprise surprise, it was with the same company I was going to see on Monday. More alarm bells.

I have also seen these comments and will not be attending the interview. Thank you very much for your comments. I agree that these so called training companies should be reported to BBC’s Watchdog.

Sandra

Watchdog need to be informed about these conartists thank you one and all for your comments regarding the energy assessor training. I think these companies need to be reported as they are praying on innocent individuals trying to earn a living in difficult times. I have just been accepted onto one of these courses but after reading some of your messages no thanks!

I’ve got an interview in (city name removed, sorry!!). tomorrow morning. Now extremely sceptical having read some of the above comments. I’m still going to go – I was made redundant last week, but have a background in construction, so thought that I’d got a head-start. Apart from the train fare to (city name removed, sorry!!)., I’ve got nothing to lose at this stage – I need a new source of income.

Will see what is said tomorrow, but I’ve certainly now got a long list of questions to ask myself, and there’s no way I will be signing up to anything that’s going to possibly cost me £4000 without a cast-iron 100% guarantee of good amounts of work once qualified, and I can’t see any such guarantee being made.

The figures I’ve seen this afternoon seem to suggest that there’s already 13,000 qualified assessors, with the industry only needing 3,000. If this is true, why are training courses still being so readily offered? Apart from making money at the would-be assessor’s expense, where is the sense in training loads more assessors when there’s insufficient work for those already-qualified??

I’ve added this page to my favourites, so will post again once I’ve been to (city name removed, sorry!!) tomorrow.

Matt.

Hi Matt,

Will be interesting to hear the questions you asked and the responses you received.

Hello Everybody!

This forum makes interesting reading. The situation seems like we will all be struggling for work at some point.

I think we should all contact Watchdog and make a stand against the training companies for the wrong advertising and marketing. At the end of the ITS NOT FAIR TO TAKE MONEY FROM PEOPLE WHEN A MARKET IS SATURATED. On the other hand all of us qualified DEA’s need to try and re-coup our expensis.

Regards

Scott

This is the truth the whole truth and all anyone needs to know. The market for DEAs was sown up 18 months ago and that seed has mainly died apart from a lucky few. Unless you have contacts the work is sparse and frankly pointless as you will be undercut by those who have also been conned in the first place. For some reason Watchdog don’t want to know, maybe because its the Government who started this mess in the first place, and you know the BBC, they dont want to upset them. If you want the truth ask HMG why they have not published the amount of DEAs who have qualified?

The official figures have been released and are linked to in the article at the top. Since the article was written they have further updated figures though granted not recently.

Original official figures when the article was written were 11,246. (see article above)

Please find links below:

Article on updated Domestic Energy Asessor numbers

Updated official Domestic Energy Asessor numbers

Hi Martin

Very heartened to have read your blog. You were dealing with the same Training Provider who scammed my friend.

I guess with your background in sales, you knew from the telephone conversations that you were being verbally manipulated. Seems that from your research you became sufficiently annoyed to be prepared to give the ‘Director’ a verbal spanking! Well done!!

This Training Provider continues to advertise in free local newspapers (name of newspaper and description of advert removed, sorry)

Have been researching opportunities in the Energy Assessor market for a while. Always a sceptic and suspicious of anyone who wont tell you how much their fees are.

Had a pleasant trip to our friends in (city name removed, sorry!!) on Monday. Enjoyed the day out, but something never felt quite right.

Reminded me of 1980s independent financial consultants – remember the pension mis-selling.

Have been accepted – need to confirm by Friday. Don’t think so.

Oh and watch out for the “we can sign you up for a loan with Barclays” approach if you mention money.

Sorry guys, the figures just don’t add up.

Very interesting reading, i so wanted this to be the right career move for me. i was also interviewed at (city name removed, sorry!!) and can reiterate everything written about the process. im due to go back for the “induction” on Wednesday and sadly having read this blog i will not be attending. I thank you all for helping me make this decision and from spending thousands of pounds that i cant afford.

I too was swayed by the pitch and promises of the Training Company that has a base in B’ham and other places. I am at the moment pursuing a complaint against them. Their ’sister’ company which was convinced it was going to be the market leader in HIP supply told me on qualifying that I’d probably not get any work from them

A body called IHI are accepting e-mails to pass on to CLG who are compiling a list of complaints against Training Companies and their performance. I would suggest that you all send one to the secretary of IHI (address on website).

Thanks for the blog, it has saved me what would have been a wasted journey to (city name removed, sorry!!) not mention the money.

After months of trying I managed to establish links with two local estate agents and recieve a trickle of rental EPC requests, website and panels bring in a few more. On average I do two or three EPCs a week at between £35.00 and £50.00 a pop. I am doing this part time, there is no way enough work for me to go full time. If I had known this when I trained I would have found something more useful to spend my money on.

My best advice.. get a proper job, this market is all sewn up.

Wow i knew it!
had interview today at (city name removed, sorry!!) the whole things felt a con, sat joint interview with another chap who told me earlier he had 2 kids and hasnt worked for six months he seemed so keen i told him there we be a large fee for the course guesstatemated 1500k boy was i well out. we were alternativly asked the same question while the lady doodle our responses the questions i answewred with out much effort. i felt she was selling this to much £75 each assesment 1hour to do you easily do 10 a week. i mentioned the the property market is a poor time to make that sort of money she did not argue but just push the rental market the poor chap next to me was blinded by his greed and could see him lapping up her every word. she continued with a few more questions i did not care to give a toughtful answer to as i felt i could do this job and was confident id be offered it. i constantaly kept avoiding my answers to quiz her more about the course which she was vague with her answers, and seemed to find it to only give you bits and pieces of info. then the money nearly £4k for the domestic and same for the commercial and combined the in one you only pay nearly £6.5k and a bit saving you some dough oh thank you!….. then its £45 for exams 3 of the £ 300 for final exam. i looked over to the chap next to me he didnt flinch kept a poker face, i knew he couldnt afford it but kept nodding and seemed ok with this fee. i began to ask question on how to pay installments etc nope one lump sum before you take a seat on any course, i said it was alot fot 8 days of training she tried comparing it to a plumbers courses she said cost £12,000 to qualify. now i know a plumber would spend a minimum of 3 years to complete all elements of that field of work not 8 days then alongside 3 years site training. she then went on to say we could train to be fire officer and energy consultants, again why sell add on courses? the enegey assessor course seemed to be getting worse. then on to an aptitude test your even given a calculator i wizzed through mine guess around 3 answers couldnt be bothered to work out some sums and walked out after 5 mins met her outside she asked if i was ok and that i look a little concerned from the happy man that walked in this morning told her i need to think about this career path some more and left. googled the net found this site it was to good to be true god i wish i could speak to that guy who sat the interview with me im sure he’ll borrow that money which he doesnt have to live there dream career well again these people would get away with this if more of us put away our greed and use our common sense. i await her call monday to tell me how lucky i am to have passed that vulture sure wont be making a penny out of me oh well stick to me current career. energy assessor what was i thinking.

Hi Steve (Dec 11)

I would caution against interpreting the Housing Minister’s statement as meaning Home Condition Reports becoming mandatory.

The relevant part of Margaret Beckett’s Dec 8 statement is;

“Although take-up of home condition reports has been disappointing, we know that people want to know about the condition of homes before they commit to buy them. I will establish a working group to explore options for making sure that consumers have appropriate information about a property’s condition. This will build on the work carried out by the Stakeholder Panel to develop market-led models that can be delivered by existing practitioners, including Home Inspectors.”

The key phrase here is ‘market-led models’ which was used in the 2007 Home Inspection Pack Regulations to justify making the Home Condition Report voluntary rather than compulsory, (otherwise, in the words of the Memo to 2007 Regulations, page 21) “a large number of consumers would end up paying both for an HCR and a valuation survey.”

i.e. ‘market-led models’ = cost

The adverse response in the national press to the Minister’s statement regarding the introduction of the Property Information Questionnaire in the HIP pack, makes it difficult to envisage the housing market being able to bear the additional cost of a mandatory HCR.

Regarding the numbers of Home Inspectors / DEAs, I have received the following statement from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG):

“As regards the second part of your e-mail, we have reached the required number of DEA’s, so we are no longer collecting figures for either Home Inspectors or DEA’s.”

Hi Dave (Dec 14)

Encouraged to hear of your successful litigation. There are a number of us who are attempting to retrieve money through the same route. It would be helpful if you could expand on the processes, your experiences and the legal basis of your claim.

Hi Ian,

A reader of our site has done some interesting research, specifically commercial energy assessor numbers and via the Freedom of Information Act received assessor numbers from the government and their estimations of requirements.

It does appear that the commercial market is going towards a similar route as the domestic one. Also of concern is that some companies are using data collectors (not qualified commercial energy assessors). These people are collecting data which is being inputted and signed off via actually ‘qualified’ individuals.

Whether this supports those who have spent large amounts of money qualifying as a commercial energy assessor or the industry as a whole is debatable. We will be writing an article in regard to this is due time.

I work for a company supplying inventories to Letting Agents in Birmingham and have noticed that the majority maybe as high as 80% are choosing to ignore the EPC requirements, I do come into contact with individual Landlords who just state that this is big brother gone to far, could this be the reason for oversupply of DEA’s ?

i passed the telephone interview & went to meeting.
i too felt i was scammed into this little sceme.
i went to my interview. i also took the apptitude test.
a few days later i was contacted with congratulations….
youve managed 100% on your aptitude, you were also very good in the interview.
i am a builder with my own company, due to the current downturn i thought a career change with a building background would be ideal.
i was really pleased.
i was given a couple of days to think about it & was rung back.
the basis of this conversation was strongly regarding payment & the ability to pay.
i was willing to pay ( could claim it back off my tax ).
i then asked the representative about the employment with the sister company, & if it was guaranteed.
nothing is guaranteed he replied.
this got me thinking.
apparently if you work for the sister company for two years, your training is subsidised.
i then discovered this site….which i have since e.mailed to him, with an accompanying letter saying….thanks SIMON, but no thanks.

thanks for supplying the site.

john

I too am so glad I found this website. Below is a copy of my comments to ‘WATCHDOG’ – I think more of us should complain about this to hopefully stop these training companies from profiting from vulnerable people in this current economic climate:

I went in for an interview for training to be a Domestic & Commercial Energy Assessor. I attended the intereview where I was told how there was such a demand for Energy Assessors. I was also told that the fee for the course is £4950+ VAT and if I wanted to go onto to do further training to be a Property Professional, this would cost me a further £4950+ VAT – both of these fees being subsidised by their Sister Co if I were to agree to sign up to them for 2 yrs. I then went on to complete an Apptitude Test and was advised they would ‘Be In Touch’. 2 days later they contacted to congratulate me on being successful in the intereview and test, and would like to offer me a position on their course. However, I was very sceptical about this and decided to research the internet before accepting their offer. I found a website where other people had experienced a similar situation to myself, some who had gone on to complete the training course, only to find out there was no guaranteed job on qualification (as promised), and ultimately there was not enough work for them to realise the income advised by the sales rep at their initial interview. Relieved that I had read this site before signing up for the course, I contacted (name removed) and advised I would not be taking them up on their offer.
However, I am concerned, especially in this current economic climate, that there are people out there who will be sucked in by the sales pitch and borrow money, they may not be able to afford, to complete the training, and to ultimately, not acheive the income they were expecting.
I would be grateful if you could investigate this, and other similar companies, who making these false claims, and conning people to part with their money, only to be left extremely disappointed.

30 Jan 09.
Have Just found your site unfortunatly too late.I have been unemployed over a year despite having qualifications.
And i too whent to an intiview in (name removed) And have paid
£3880 for the DEA course.With the addition of the commercial
EA Course it would be £6583.The intiview was very sales orientated and the intiviewer was in a big hurry for me to pay up as he said the course was about to start for the new season.Have noticed that all of your replys seem to be from people who have not fallen victim or they do not want to admit to it.Would like to hear from other victims.It would be good to join forces. peterich4u@googlemail.com

i have just come back from (City name removed) did not pay the fee. the other person in the interview is part of the scam.everybody should notify their local paper and try to stop them advertising.elaine in scotland should carry out her own research through estate agents but dont pay to much for the fee.peter should try to claim it back through the court.

Guys, if you feel you have been sold this course in a scam, report it to the Trading Standards. The awarding body can’t do anything about the advertising. You will need evidence though. I suggest secretly recording the interview through a friend or something.

Thanks for your insightful comments Vince.

I read your comments with interest on the Response to draft NOS this afternoon.

The number of comments has astounded me, if they received a call per day from each i think you may find the phone number ceasing to work.

No way! I’ve just remortgaged my house for over £50k to be a multi skilled assessor and a fire risk assessor. I’m sure you guys have the wrong end of the stick or something?! We’ve already got contracts secured for over £200k. It’s obvious half of you guys had the intention of being greedy but you seem to have been swallowed up by someone higher up in the food chain! This is a professional industry and from the way you guys slate it you are not professional so don’t even attempt entry into a market you know nothing about.

Vince has all the time in the world to air his emotions! Poor guy. Look us up and maybe we can train you to make positive phone calls on our behalf?!

Much is made in society today about the pros and cons of the internet. Sure, there’s a lot of bad stuff there but if you’re prepared to look for information then there’s some really good stuff too – this website is a prime example.

Now, I stopped reading each comment at August and then read recent ones. Whoever created this site certainly has my utmost appreciation. If you were awarded £10 from every contributor to this page who’s wrote “I’m so glad I’ve found this . . ” or such like, I reckon you’d be worthy of the total sum. Think how much money you have saved people, it’s quite considerable.

I’m currently assessing the career market, with my contract to expire March 31st and no current offer of renewal I’m looking into other things. I read some media on the DEA career, though I initially thought you required a current career specific qualification to take up the course. Being CORGI registered it sounded like a potential opportunity, though definitely not now.

If the market has been flooded for so long, I’m a bit confused as CORGI ran an article on Energy Assessment in their magazine within recent months. Perhaps because the rules now apply here in Scotland too.

Anyway, many thanks to all other contributors and the person who created this site in the first place. Many people “owe you one”.

All is not lost. (Exam board name removed), probably the main body that awards the DEA qualification, has some excellent news for DEA’s old and new.

The Government has just announced a £6.5 billion spending programme as part of the Home Energy Saving policy. The programme includes money for energy efficiency improvements. There may be a short top up course needed to apply to work under this initiative which is managed by local councils in fuel poor areas.

Come on guys, don’t be fooled into thinking you will be mega rich. There’s a post on here (amongst the many!) that says ‘if you’re not confident on running your own business, don’t do it.’ Being a DEA gives you a license to run your own business in a trade that is set to hot up in the coming years. With all the mighty industries of yester-year falling daily, how else do you think the jobs will be replaced? How else do you think money will be generated? By Woolworths? Retail? Finance? No. By supporting and developing new industries such as the Environmental sector, to which the major economies of the globe are committing to.

I say again, all is not lost. Obviously some of you thought the money would grown in your back garden along with your mortgage payments but that shows lack of professionalism and entrpreneurship. Two qualities needed to thrive as an Energy Assessor.

Thank the Lord I’ve just seen this site…have an interview…or rather, did have an interview next week…pretty good sales guy on the end of the phone…recruitment director actually !!

Looking for a new career…try sales maybe ??!!

I am glad people are listening at last to others about a certain training company in the (place name removed) with three other branches.This company is nothing short of criminal when it comes to trying to get your money back.I found out too late unfortunately and stand to loose £12000 with them.I have written and complained to my local newspaper to try and stop them printing the adverts in the job section.Everyone should do this.

Almost suckered did the interview and test shock Im an ideal candidate. Given the costs over 6000 for DEA and CEA training with a promise of work. To good to be true. Thats what I thought. Recently made redundant and my husband about to be in 2 weeks, had to seriously consider if this was the right move, research brought me to your site. Like many others saved me some dough. thank you all

ref Linda.Well done Linda , keep passing the word around . As I said before , complain to the newspaper you saw the advert in , ask them to stop printing it.

John is right, this is a con now for anyone who thinks they can get work. It does not exist you will not get any work, that’s all that needs to be said. The TPs are lying and should be all locked up for this scandal.

Hi all, I am another of the many zombie brained victims who fell for the 50k a year advertisement in the paper. I was told i could pay in 2 installments, i paid the first installment of £3000 which would entitle me to do the first 4 modules including tests (can i just add that it was £35 a retest if you failed your first attempt). i was then told after the 3rd module that after completing the 4th module you could become a dea if you passed the rdsap exam and submitted your portfolio.
to be homest i was exhausted with the amount of work expected so i saw this as a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, i would finally see some of that money i foolishly dished out.
so passed 4 modules then i was told it was £100 for the exam but i wouldn’t be able to book onto that until i paid my 2nd installment, another £3000,
to be honest i should have throen the towel in then, but no i soldiered on, paid the installment and paid for the exam,

I passed the exam and then came another hurdle, due to the time taken up by portfolio’s assesment the training centre were now charging £100 a pop for you to submit your portfolio.
lets just say ive had better days, oh i’m not finished yet due to the time taken for me to do the course so far i was then told i had run out of time (12 month) and would now have to start payin extra for any modules taken even though i had not long paid my second installment. they said it would be £250 per module now the time had expired.

so 3 modules left = £750
Portfolio (they reckon it never passes 1st time) = £100 +
oh they definetly saw mw coming, does anybody know anyone who as tried to claim there fee’s back and where i would start as there is no way i’m letting them off with this one.

Thanks (A very P£$%£d off) Lee

Should also mention that anybody looking into current training should hold off until the summer or when an announcement is made. Do not believe a word any Course provider or other vested interest tells you. As you will have gathered from previous comments prospects for deas are grim and will become worse in the near future.

This must be my lucky day. Just passed the telephone interview with a property professional company. They refused to disclose the cost of training as a DEA until my interview next week !!!!! Began to smell a rat. Found your blog and will now cancel interview .
Your site has given me a lucky escape. Huge thanks.

After reading the many helpful comments posted on this blog I called IDEA (Institute of Domestic Energy Assessors) direct. The helpful ‘person’ on the other end of the phone told me that there are nearly 15,000 trained DEA’s and that the demand is for only 5,000.

In his EXACT words; “I wouldn’t bother, it’s not worth it!”

I was genuinely considering proceeding with a training company based in (city name removed), all the same patter involved as stated by many people above (£4,950+VAT; I’m sure you can figure it out) needless to say, my interest in becoming a DEA ends here.

This site alone seems to have saved people 100′s of thousands of pounds… so far… and long may it continue.

Thanks again.

hi me again, i’m just wondering is there anybody out there who fell for the god dam scam, or is it just me, wondering if anyone as tried to claim there monies back and actually won, please reply

fairycuffs

Thank you Tom O for your kind donation of £2.

Never thought of myself as having a big flashing neon sign on my head saying ‘Idiot’ and thankfully i havent as i had the foresight to research the DEA training prior to my interview today, fortunately coming across this site.
However are we all idiots for falling for the glitzy promises in the advert in our local papers of upteen pounds to be earnt and so make the call.?
Unfortunately desperate times maketh man desperate who under normal circumstances would smell a rat from a mile away. I shant be attending the interview, i do so hope they are sat in their plush offices waiting with bated breath for me (the next potential sucker) to turn up
Thanks for a great informative site

Thank you John for your kind donation of £4.

The well-known training company are advertising in the jobs section of my local paper again this week (as they do every week). Except they have gone all shy – apart from the advert reference number and a phone number (south-west area), there is nothing to identify them – no company name, no details of office locations, no accreditation logos, nothing.

As Matt K wrote on 10th March, IDEA themselves have advised that there are nearly 15,000 qualified DEA’s already, with a demand for only 5,000, so “why bother”…??? On IDEA’s own website, they advise anyone thinking of becoming a DEA to “think again”.

So why are training courses still being advertised? The national demand has been exceeded many times over already, with qualified DEA’s struggling to find any work, let alone make something resembling a living, but more un-suspecting “victims” must be getting sucked in by this continuing “scam” on a weekly basis.

Somebody needs to stop this continuing recruitment, and it would seem to me that IDEA would be the best people to act. But will they, and how many more will part with thousands of pounds in the meantime…???

Yes Matt , I just noticed the same thing in my local paper last night.They must be stopped.Write to the paper , give them a link to this website.Basically tell them to stop advertising for this company.No adverts hopefully means no business for them.

Here’s an idea (assuming the moderator on this message board will allow this message to be posted…):

(Content removed sorry)

Time to turn the tables…??? Anybody agree, or is it just my slightly devious mind…???

As all before me I too passed then telephone interview and off I went off I went for an interview in B’ham.

I didn’t smell a rat straight away. The lady interviewer was lovely and we had a very relaxed interview and chat and a wonder round the office.

After the apptitude test I felt a little umm well flat …

With a job prospect like this I would of thought I should be buzzing, but no.

The wife did some research on the company and thankfully found this site.

The training companies should not be aloud to miss sell their courses and that is exactly what they are doing.

I currently work for an energy company selling gas and electric door to door and we do it honestly whereas another company has just been fined 9.6 million for mis-selling.

Something needs to be done as this is mis-selling on a big scale. Does anyone know if these training companies have an ombudsman ?

How many of you saw some trainees in the class rooms and now think……Poor sods ?

Possible progress – no sign of an advert in my local paper’s Jobs section this week. Are the training companies starting to get the message, or has somebody taken action to stop them from luring in any more unsuspecting punters…???

I have managed to get back just over 40% of my fees.Obviously I am still thousands of pounds out of pocket , but I fel this was a result as according to the training company , I was not entitled to anything back at all unless I found someone to take my place on the training course. I have leanrt my lesson the hard way and will never be so gullible again . Good luck to others still trying to get a refund .
Please Mr. Moderator , post the details of Watchdog researcher on line or let me know personally. I would definately talk to them.

HIPS……EPC’s are just another burocratic obstacle to people selling homes or renting business premises. When purchasing a house; searches are carried out by solicitors and have been done so as a matter of coarse and it does not need some erk in government or the EU to create other ideas just to justify their own jobs…….time wasting burocrats. The fact of the matter is….the UK is now bogged down with red tape, eco friendliness and bumff created by a control freak government that professes to hellp business. There are now thousands of small business people looking for an EPC and that cost is hard to find for many as they are now forced; at their own expense to demolish business premises because they cannot afford to pay NDR business rates due to….well I never; we are in a World recession. I am not impressed by the fools running the United Kingdom; they also should be on the dole.

Thanks fellows,after 10 wks unemployed I too thought this was the answer, but alas not to be,cant believe the government hasn’t stepped in to get hold of these
ragamuffins by the short & curly,s and give em a twist !!!!!! Thinking of a revolution,anybody up for it ???? XX

I was thinking of going for this job as i had passed the interview and test but i did think something didnt quite added up when i was asked for over £5000 for training and was told the only way that i could do it was a loan from barclays bank which is fixed for three years but i would be able to pay it all back within 6 months of qualifying as they coould comfirm that i would have the work.
I am so glad that i found this site as i did think that this would be a good career move for me but i guess there is another career out there for me, one that doesn’t try to steal money from people and make promisses that they can not keep.

I advise everyone to stay away from this company as they are just after money….

They have no feelings for people who want a career they wnat to leave us with nothing!!

I am awaiting a phone call to confirm my place on training and i dont think that i will even bother answering the phone!!

I was at my parents’ house yesterday, and the jobs section of their local rag (which only contained a page & a bit of jobs…) contained 2 separate ads for Energy Assessor training. The one ad was for the (seemingly anonymous…) national company with several offices – but only gave the phone number, no company name, location etc. The other (smaller) ad gave an 0845 number.

So they are STILL advertising for new recruits to sting for several thousand of pounds. As Mike pointed out on 14th April, the Conservatives are looking to scrap HIPs if they get into power – without getting into a political debate about who will win the next General Election, the election has to happen by (according to Wikipedia) 3rd June 2010, so in less than 14 months. So in theory HIP’s (and potentially the requirement for an Energy Assessment??) could be dead by next summer.

So why would anybody willingly spend several thousands of pounds now to gain new qualifications & skills that might well be worthless within a year or so? But whilst people are still answering the ads in their local paper (and nationals, it would also seem…), I guess the training companies don’t care…..

WARNING!! ENERGY ASSESSOR COURSES, BE VERY CAREFUL!!
I completed an interview with one of these training colleges in a large city the midlands in April 2009.
I am 45 years old and have been out of work for some time, so when I saw this advert in the paper, I thought I would like to have a go at becoming a qualified energy assessor. So I called them and arranged an interview.
The offices were very nice and the staff were friendly, I was quite impressed.
However, The first unusual thing that struck me was… in all the interviews that I’ve been to since I left school in the late 70′s,I have NEVER had to share an interview with another prospective candidate alongside me, but here I was in an interview to commence a DEA’s course with a total stranger. I was uncomfortable with this arrangement but went through with it anyway, since I was already there.

We were asked a number of questions in turn and then were shown a couple of DVD’s about what we were likely to be
doing as a qualified DEA. Of course the focus was on the earnings potential and figures starting at around £37,000 per annum were quoted.
It all looked very impressive but alarm bells started ringing from the moment I entered the interview room.
On the plus side, the qualification that you gain once you pass the course is recognised and legitimate, I understand that you even get ‘letters’ after your name. What these DEA training colleges/companies are doing may be legal, but they are also very misleading.
What they don’t tell you is that there are way too many qualified DEA’s out there already (government figures say over 11,000) chasing far too few clients.
In the interview, I was told the total opposite, and that in fact there were not enough DEA’s for the work available.
The most disturbing thing of all is that they were willing to take over £3800 from me the very next day after I completed the interview. There was no offer of financial help or advice whatsoever, bear in mind many of the people that were applying for these courses would have been unemployed or on a low income.
I am so glad that I did my research because I was more than willing to get a loan from somewhere to pay for the course,
because I didn’t have that sort of money just lying around.
There is way too much competition from other qualified DEA’s who have alot more experience and contacts than any
new-comer to the business. Just be aware that you have to generate most of your contacts yourself, and you would not
have clients waiting as it was implied at the interview.

My advice? Stay well clear of these courses. These are not fly-by-night ‘Del boy’ type operations, these are slick, very well crafted money making schemes in my opinion.
It doesn’t appear to concern these people how you get the money to pay them,they just want it as quickly as possible.
If there is so much work out there, then why can’t you pay them back in installments after you get all this work that they say is available? It just horrifies me to think of the all the money I would have owed, and that I would’ve had no way of paying it back.
I would’ve been screwed twice over… Not enough work, and I would’ve been nearly £4000 in debt at least!
We all know the saying “If it looks too good to be true, then it probably is too good to be true” Just remember a diamond is very valuable, but if everybody had lots of diamonds then the value plummets. No different with the qualified DEA’s that are out there now. The market is saturated and they are trying to undercut one another in order to get clients.
Don’t waste any money on these courses, you’ll regret it. Just look at all the horror stories you can easily find online of all the out-of-work DEA’s that there are around.

I made the mistake,after seeing a small advert in the local Oxford paper for Energy Assessors and parting with £4000 to the (college name removed, sorry!!) in (city name removed) in February to the slick Recruitment Director (Salesman) who said you will find a way to pay for the course. After attending the first training Module (two days & two manuals) I worked out with other course trainees that it works out at £500 per day (six hours of Lectures 9 to 5 one hour lunch and two half hour coffee breaks, there not pushing it.) as there are four modules of two days each with a manual for use with home study on eNVQ. After being out of work since last August I hoped this would lead to some work but it appears there is very little, because of the over supply of D.E.A.’s.
I have since decided to drop out of the course. What refund I will get I do not know, I will probably have to resort to a solicitor. These colleges are getting money for old rope and providing very little in materials as apart from the small module manuals, you have to provide on top, all your own paper, printer ink for pages of down loads and exam fees as well.
Would not recommend it to anyone. Now down to the C.A.B. to see how to proceed. Wish me luck.

jethrow of socialist Scotland needs to remember that a Labour socialist government set all this up and is now doing nothing to stop it.
Ever since they have been in power the country has got worse. that we all can agree on.

The sad thing about all this is, what they promise, you really want to believe, as it’s a reprieve from the stresses of everyday cost. But instead, all it really amounts to is cold heartedly taking your money from you, even to people who are in extreme financial situations anyway and this NEEDS to be stopped.

Chusie – glad to see that you’ve realised the truth before committing yourself. That’s one more saved from financial heartbreak / ruin… Plus that’s another face-to-face interview that won’t now happen – I wonder if the training company you were going to see are starting to realise that they have been rumbled…???

The ads in the jobs section of my local rag now seem to only appear every other week. I have emailed the editor of the paper to highlight the issue with him, although I’ve not had a reply…..

Let’s hope Chusie is not the last to to saved, before it’s too late.

Hi,

I am thinking about going for an interview in relation to becoming a ‘ multi-skilled Energy Assessor’ so is it worth going as during the telephone conversation it was made clear to me that there is plenty of work and not enough Assessors ?
Any comments ??
Thanks

Doi – I back up Gab’s comment. Don’t try to become a “multi-skilled Energy Assessor”. You’ve missed the boat by a couple of years…!!!

What you were been told during your telephone conversation is, frankly, totally un-true. As you will see if you read through all of the previous posts above, the true situation is the reverse of what you were told – there are already far too many assessors, and therefore not enough work. The figures quoted in the recruitment ads for potential earnings (both for domestic & commercial assessments) are also very wide of the mark, if you can get the jobs at all.

Not only are the ads in the press misleading, but what you were told during your conversation was naughty (and, I repeat, un-true), and really should be seized upon as the basis for action against the training company.

Another one saved from financial ruin…..

It would be great if this web page was more prominent (ideally top), when searching terms like ‘energy assessor training’. More people would find it and save their money.

I would like to thank my wife who has never stopped me from doing anything I felt I need to do. Done the ad done the test 97% must be a natural they even picked up my obsevational skills from my last job. Was I that easy to read, totally convinced two sister companies willing to subsidise my training and screaming out for me to do their assessments £4000 from me and its a goer. look around she said, ‘maybe you could get it cheaper’ she,s onboard and looking for me as well, then she’s off to work leaving me a little note to check out this site. Well energy assessor domestic or otherwise I will not be!! Thank you all of you so much for the heads up but mostly thank you to her indoors. This scam has been going on for over 2 years!!

Hello I’m back again, just did a search for energy assessors in my area, there are 20 of them within 18 miles of my address and I live in a rural area: poor *******.

This post is now closed for further comments.

We will be writing a new updated article on the issue shortly with some interesting developments, news and facts.

Many thanks to all that have left comments on the article and for the personal emails we have received.

looked in local news paper seen great opportunity “energy assossor” spoke to lady seemed very nice as if i was a juicy fish paying for her sportscar .she said i’d be great for the job with a wide construction back ground ,but after some research and of the company in question, I found this to be a money scam . the thing is if your the right man for the job companies pay for your training and do not charge an extortionate training rate with idol prommises. so i shall not be going to interview tommrrow . D E A = Don’t Even Attened

this is urgent everyone i am 26years old i saw the advert everyone is talking about 2 years ago took on the course which i am now regreting and i am now a multi skilled property professional with no work it is really competitive and every1 is out for themselves they state that they will aid you with finding work or even place u in 1 of there companies thats bullsh#t they forget about u as soon as u hand over the money this is the only course where u cant pay in installments its a scam and i know this cause i was fooled into it. ppl lookin for a new career take on a computer course mcdst or mcse my brother and couson have done this and have been placed in high paid jobs within 8 months.

I started training as a Home Inspector some two years ago, I have now qualified etc and am actively trying to promote myself although as has already been stated work is limited or is shared through so many companies. To me it seems like the only people to loose out from this little deal for Energy Assessments is the Energy Assessor. He pays for the course or in my case Home Inspector, pays for accreditation and then all the work is over subscibed to. The Hip pack suppliers want to nail the price down to an Energy Assessor to about £20 plus lodgement fees and the only real beeficiaries of all of this is the Training companies. So whats next for the Energy Assessor /Home Inspector?

Well i think many will leave the business disillusioned and as for CPD well you can not keep putting good money after bad as they revamp things, change their minds about how this is done or that is done or advise you to retrain as a Commercial Energy Assessor. For one there is no enforcement of the legislation and if there was it would result in a £200 fine which is often less than a HIP pack.

The only way forward i can see for the Energy Assessors and Home Inspectors is to work as one, remember this is a European directive and so they must be produced. Hips will be abolished in the next Government so then you may only make a few quid on an EPC and not on a HIP pack. There should be an association for us all to join, where minimum pricing can be ‘advised’. So the reuslt is we all make a reasonable living out of it. After all we have all trained hard to reach where we are so why should we be dictated to by so many others. If we stop assessing, houses stop being sold and let, if you had an ‘advised’ minimum for EPC’s then we also have more control over the pack providers.

I think the idea of an association for Home Inspectors and Energy Assessors is the best bet so we all work toegether and not against each other. That way we would be in the driving seat.

I would be interetsed to know if other DEA/ NDEA and HI’s think this is a good idea, maybe I will set it up.

I was due to have an interview this coming Friday. Thank heavens I found this site! Needless to say, I won’t be attending the interview.

Woke up this morning, all excited about my interview this p.m in Surrey. So glad I did my research and found this wonderful site, even though it was by accident. Thank you one and all for the info you have provided. Needless to say, I shall not be attending the said interview.

All interesting stuff.
It seems that one of the companies that can’t be named is currently blanketing the recruitment market with ads like
these

< <<<>>>

ending with an (number removed sorry) number – ignore it you will be wasting time at best money at worst.

Best bit of advice which could be provided is not bother becoming a DEA.

If you have the contacts and the work lined up like we did you may make a go of it but is hard graft and not really going to make you much even if you do have the workload to keep you busy. Most of the work has been already signed up and doing a EPC course now is a waste of time as unless you have the contacts your going to be lucky to get a couple of EPC’s a month from a pannel at about 20-30 quid a go. not a good way to make a living so save your money and maybe over the next 10 years or so it may evolve into a business where a bit more money can be made. But lets be honest doing an EPC is hardly difficult so it will always be a low cost product and fees are going to be limited it.

Had an interveiw on Monday, in london. I assume for the same company as above. I had already come across this sight, so to be honest I used it as a practice interview, as I had been laid off in May and interviews had been a bit scarce. After asking a few questions of my interviewer (which is resonable considering you were being asked for £7.000 in funding) he started to throw his toys out of the pram. His response was that if I was not convinced by what he was saying I should leave the building. This is not the sort of reaction you would expect from a reputable company. They have now become aware that there is information available online which is making their job harder. Are there no honest people out there anymore?

My husband joined (college/training providers name removed sorry) to qualify for commercial energy assessor. He even took out a loan through them to then complete the home inspector course. He was told you could do the course part time and fit it in around your hours off work. This proved to be very difficult and he fell behind also my father was ill in hospital and my husband had to cover his delivery work as well as doing his own job. He was then told by (college/training providers name removed sorry) he would have to pay £300 to be allowed to continue with the course. He then decided that due to a lot of hidden costs such as exam fees ect he would not continue with the course. Since the loan had not started yet he asked (college/training providers name removed sorry) to settle the loan off. They have since written to us and stated that as they had already booked him in for the year and have paid to cover his course material they were able to refund the money back! I wish I had read this forum before we phoned them as we are now £12,000 in debt and it does not help that we are in the middle of a recession. What a RIP OFF. These people have no shame and should be punished and locked up in prison as it’s daylight robbery and I cannot believe the government is allowing it to happen. If any one has actually sued these people please let me know as I am thinking of getting a solicitor involved and contacting trading standards but not sure were we stand legally.

Isn’t it slightly ironic that the Goolgle ads for this site is filled with DEA training and funding!

I’ve been doing some research into becoming an energy assessor, so obviously read this article with interest.

It’s seems clear that in the domestic space, training as an assessor is not a wise move at the moment. However there’s little mention of the NDEA market & I was wondering if the Non-Domestic/Commercial sector is in a similar position?

Would be interested in any opinions on becoming an NDEA and prospects for a career in this field,

N

[...] Train as a DEA? [...]

Hi, I was suckered into the course in a swanky block in a county town up-Thames of London in the winter of ’07-’08, did all the modules successfully & then dropped out, realising (sadly belatedly) that despite my best efforts & investment there was no future.
I would be interested in following this up/through if you are coordinating any approach to Government. But with the election now imminent, I suspect this little rash of misfortune will slip into oblivion.
Keep up the good work, anyway. The least we can to is ensure nobody else follows in our unfortunate footsteps ~ if there are still any of this particular breed of shark still in business out there.

Hi,
I’m curious why courses and trainings in UK are so so expensive.
Similar course in my country (9 days on average) costs less than a thousand Quids (650 – 800 GBPs on average, depending on location), with 3-4 hotel nights with meals incl.
On top of the above I managed to get on a course co-financed in 80% by EU funds (well, available in my country), and there are some courses free in structural jobless areas.
It looks in UK trainers get the cream !!
What is sad the government exam here costs alone extra 200 GBPs (
And only +/- 40% of applicants passes…

[...] Train as a DEA? [...]

Ok I missed this site before training worst luck (due to lack of opertunities)but i only paid £700 including exam fee. I was doing this to fill in the gaps in my other job so wasnt looking to make it a full time job. I am amazed at how many companies are charging stupid amounts of money for this course. and what is all this about interviews to be accepted on a course…. its a city and guilds course that doesnt need any previous experience….. if ever there was a case for doing your home work this is one of them. Good luck everyone with what ever you end up doing….

The market place certainly doesn’t require more DEAs but there is other openings in related sectros – solar power surveyors, air conditioning reports, air tightness testing etc.

These avenues could be explored in a growing market but training as a DEA is a huge risk. We get offered EPCs at just £25 now trade rate, though we do them in house.