The Dublin Retrofit Gap: What People Want vs What They Can Do
A new survey by Codema, “Your Voice: Dublin’s Energy Future”, captures the sentiment of nearly 700 Dubliners regarding climate action and home energy use. The results paint a clear picture: Dubliners are ready to take meaningful climate action, especially around energy use in the home, but financial limitations and lack of agency are holding many back.
As Ireland races to meet its 2030 target of a 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, this report provides crucial insight into the challenges and motivations of Dublin’s residents. Let’s take a closer look at the findings and how digital solutions like BERWOW are helping close the retrofit gap.
Who Took Part in the Survey?
The insights from Your Voice: Dublin’s Energy Future are drawn from 687 survey responses, providing a rich and diverse cross-section of Dublin’s population. The demographic spread skews toward adults aged 35 to 54, who made up nearly half of all respondents with women slightly overrepresented at 54%.
Notably, 70% of respondents were homeowners, either with a mortgage or owning their property outright, while 17% were renters. The majority (89%) live in Dublin, providing a highly localised lens on how people in the capital view climate action and energy upgrades at the domestic level.
What Actions Are People Taking?
The survey found that 62% think about their everyday energy use “a lot of the time”. And 44% prioritise cost and bills when considering their energy use, followed by environmental impact (28%) and comfort (27%).
When asked about specific energy actions, Dubliners showed strong intent:
- 29% plan to switch to a renewable energy supplier
- 28% aim to switch to an electric vehicle
- 26% want to install renewable energy technologies in their homes
However, there’s a notable gap between what Dubliners want to do to reduce their energy use and what they feel capable of doing.
Intent vs Ability
While enthusiasm for climate action is high, especially when it comes to improving energy performance in the home, barriers such as cost, agency, and technical limitations are slowing momentum.
The survey highlights that 36% of respondents want to install renewable energy technologies such as solar panels or heat pumps, and 26% want to improve their home’s insulation. However, these actions are considered out of reach for many.
Respondents described feeling stuck after already completing the more accessible, low-cost changes, like switching to a green energy provider or reducing daily usage, and unable to progress toward more impactful upgrades without external support.
Renters vs Homeowners: Two Very Different Journeys
The gap becomes even more pronounced when comparing renters to homeowners. Renters, who represent 17% of respondents, reported a much higher level of frustration and inaction, with 67% saying they would like to install renewable energy technologies but can’t.
The same proportion said they felt unable to improve insulation or upgrade windows and doors. In contrast, only 25% of homeowners said they were blocked from installing renewable energy tech, and just 15% cited insulation as out of reach.
In other words, this discrepancy underscores a critical issue of control and agency. Renters are often dependent on landlords to make property improvements and are far less likely to have the power to initiate retrofits, even if they are motivated to do so. For example, even switching to an electric vehicle can be complicated for renters, who are less likely to have access to home charging facilities.
Who Do Dubliners Trust to Lead Climate Action?
While 78% believe the government is responsible for leading on climate change, 64% of respondents have no confidence in them to deliver. In contrast, scientists, researchers, and environmental charities are seen as both credible and competent, with around 46-47% of people placing their confidence in them.
So, this gap in trust suggests that tools and solutions developed outside of government channels, especially those supported by science and independent expertise, are more likely to earn public engagement.
Bridging the Retrofit Gap with BERWOW
In summary, Dubliners are ready to take climate action, but they need better tools, better support, and better access to funding. Digital retrofit solutions like BERWOW are helping turn intent into impact by making energy upgrades more accessible, understandable, and actionable.
BERWOW is designed to empower homeowners to understand their energy performance and take control of their retrofit journey, without upfront consultancy or engineering input.
Here’s how it works:
- Enter your BER cert number or MPRN, and BERWOW pulls the official data from the national BER database
- It analyses current energy conditions, like insulation levels and heating systems
- It recommends best-practice upgrade measures, with typical industry costs, CO₂ savings, and energy bill impacts
- No BER cert? No problem! BERWOW includes over 89 building typologies for manual selection
- Homeowners can select and deselect upgrade measures to plan their project in a flexible, visual way
- BERWOW calculates available grants, incentives from energy partners, and provides a financial dashboard, CO₂ storyboard, and mapped BER indicators
- When ready, the user can book a home survey directly from the platform to start the retrofit process
With over 100,000 visits to the platform and a 60% increase in retrofit conversion rates, BERWOW is a proven tool that’s helping households transition to low-carbon living faster and more confidently.
Test BERWOW now on your preferred platform:
