When Susan Brameld agreed to have spray foam roof insulation installed in her Hilsea Portsmouth home little did she realise she’d opened the door to a nightmare which left it virtually worthless.
The 78-year-old widow, who now lives in Fareham, was cold-called by a spray foam insulating company in 2019 and persuaded to spend £4,800 under a government backed ‘green deal’ scheme to help slash energy bills.
But just two years down the line she had to pay a further £5,500 to have it removed when she ended up learning she’d been ripped off and her three-bedroom home valued at £360,000 was unsaleable.
Not in the best of health, she only discovered the problem when she wanted to downsize to a two-bed bungalow following the death of her husband Arthur.
Susan found that banks and other lenders were unwilling to advance money to potential buyers for properties that had their timbered roof spaces sprayed with foam insulation.
Spray foam insulation has been used for around 30 years and has become increasingly popular in the last decade. But property surveyors warn the foam, which expands and dries solid, can limit air circulation causing roof timber rot and put stress on a building’s structure.
Concerned that homeowners could fall into the same mis-selling trap, Susan wanted to warn others the only way they could sell their home was to pay out thousands of pounds to have it removed.
‘I now…
