State subsidies for house renovations are only available if an energy consultant is involved. But the profession is not protected. And even state-recommended consultants are not always reliable.
Frank Deitschun is a publicly appointed and sworn building surveyor and is always in demand when there is a mess involved. In his office in Bremen, complaints about energy consultants are piling up: “We look at things and then seriously ask ourselves: What are the energy consultants doing with home builders?”
An example: A homeowner from Bavaria who does not want to give his name publicly. He wants to get rid of his oil heater and do some more renovation work. The refurbishment roadmap presented to him by his energy consultant is riddled with errors at first glance: photos of someone else’s house, the heating system was completely wrong and the cellar ceiling is said to be uninsulated, which in fact has had insulation for years.
“The thing is worth nothing.”
This homeowner is surprised that he imagined the procedure to be much more professional and admits that he lost confidence in the energy consulting process as a result of this failure.
The building expert Frank took a closer look at the homeowner’s renovation roadmap and came to the following conclusion: Even the evaluation of the current energetic condition of the single-family home was useless. The object was obviously not committed intensively. When it came to thermal insulation, the energy consultant specified values, but did not explain whether and how they can be achieved. The conclusion of the construction expert: “In my opinion, the thing is worth nothing.”
Advisor recommended by the German Energy Agency
In this case, the expert assessment is directed against an energy consultant who is officially recommended by the German Energy Agency – dena for short. So the homeowner did the right thing. If you want to apply for federal funding for certain energy-related measures, you are even obliged to commission one of the energy efficiency experts listed on the dena website.
When asked about quality assurance, the state-owned company said, among other things, that only relevant professional groups such as architects or master craftsmen were allowed to work as energy consultants. In addition, random on-site checks are carried out for funded measures.
Focus of training: Filling out applications for funding
Extensive specialist knowledge of the energy consultants does not seem to be a matter of course. Even the professional association demands better work. Stefanie Koepsell from the German Energy Advisors Network in Offenbach points out that dena’s list of energy efficiency experts is the only way for consumers to look for experts in the field of energy advice. From the point of view of the professional association, the topic of quality assurance and inspection must be further promoted and a job description for energy consultants must be developed.
One problem could lie in the training to become an energy consultant. YouTuber Alexander Boerger from Berlin has insider information on this. He has specialized in energy topics in his channel. To expand his knowledge, he completed an online energy consultant course in November 2022. The learning content surprised him. He expected to learn how insulation and a heat pump work. Instead, the focus of the training was on filling out funding applications correctly and preventing funding fraud.
“Risk greater than 50 percent”
Poor energy advice can have costly consequences. The building expert Deitschun warns: “The risk is greater than 50 percent that energy advice goes in the wrong direction, that property owners spend a lot of money and have no income.”
In any case, the renovation schedule would have pushed the Bavarian homeowner to his financial limits. The energy consultant had estimated 180,000 euros for the renovation measures – almost his entire pension. After the bad experiences, he will reconsider his plans thoroughly.