EIGHT days before Lorna Rolfe was due to complete the sale of her three bedroom Devonshire bungalow, her buyers pulled out because spray foam insulation had been found in her loft.
Her buyers’ bank refused to give them a mortgage unless the foam was removed, the property’s valuation dropped by £10,000 down to £485,000 – and Lorna was inches from losing the sale.
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Lorna, a retired occupational therapist, paid almost £5,000 to have the spray foam installed just two years before in a bid to cut down her energy bills.
She phoned the installer Mass Foam Systems to complain but never got a reply.
To save the sale of her property, she agreed to pay £5,000 to have the foam taken out straight away. She also agreed to sell the property at the lower valuation of £485,000.
Lorna lost £19,840 from the cost of the installation, removal and the valuation drop.
“It’s a lot of money for a pensioner,” she said. “It’s sickening that homeowners and consumers are being preyed on by these companies.”
What is spray foam?
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Spray foam is a controversial type of insulation sprayed into loft spaces and on the underside of roofs to stop homes from being drafty.
Around 250,000 homes are thought to have it.
How much it costs varies on the size of your home and the company installing it, but expect to pay around £2,500 for a three-bed semi-detached property, according to the National Insulation Association.
If it is installed incorrectly, it can reduce ventilation and cause damp and condensation, which could lead to rotting wood.
Industry body Property Care Association (PCA) says 35 per cent of homes fitted with spray foam insulation have one or more issues like damp and decay to roof timbers.
Some 27 per cent of homes needed the insulation removed or roof replaced.
Despite the risks, spray foam insulation can be paid for using government grants for green home improvements.
The financial impact
Having spray foam removed can cost between £4,000 to £8,000 depending on the size of your house.
If the damage caused by the foam means you need a new roof or rafters, it could cost between £12,000 to £20,000 for a three-bedroom semi-detached house, estimates the PCA.
This could lead to a lender or buyers knocking at least £20,000 off the value of your home.
It could even prevent you from selling your home entirely. Most banks refuse to lend on homes with spray foam.
Lorna was unaware of the risks.
She was persuaded by a cold caller from Mass Foam Systems to have a visit in March 2020 from one of their sales representatives.
Within a couple of days, the rep turned up.
After a quick check he said there was damp in the beams so she would benefit from the insulation.
Lorna paid a deposit of £1,452 on her credit card for the work to begin.
Some 10 days later, she paid the £3,388 balance splitting the amount across two credit cards.
“I’ve since been told you wouldn’t put this foam in if there was damp in your loft,” said Lorna.
“I feel like I was misled and mis-sold the foam because no-one told me I would not be able to sell my home.”
Lorna also worried the foam was applied in a dangerous way.
The company had sprayed the foam over her BT line, electrical and aerial cables during the installation and directly onto the underside of the roof.
She feared the risk of an electrical fire and the fumes the burning foam would give off.
Our lives fell apart after we were tricked into installing spray foam
Fiona and Andre Barton were left with an unmortgageable home after installing spray foam in their loft.
The couple, from Midlothian, Edinburgh, paid £4,925 for the insulation.
But while they were selling their home, they were later told that homes with this insulation are “un-mortgageable.”
After finding a specialist company based in Liverpool, Fiona and Andre forked out another £5,490 for the removal of the spray foam insulation and the two skips needed to haul it away.
The couple have urged others to avoid spray foam installers.
“They sounded very professional and believable, otherwise we wouldn’t have gone ahead with it,” Fiona said.
“”He said it would reduce the cost of our fuel – and given the cost-of-living crisis, it seemed to be the right way to go.”
The couple, who wanted to sell up their property at the time, were told to remove the insulation in order to be able to sell.
“It was very stressful. We’d put in the offer for the property we’re in now, so we only had a month legally to get our own property under offer.
“We found a company down in Liverpool who sold themselves as the UK’s specialist foam removal.
“They were charging an eye-watering amount – more than it had cost to install it, but we had no choice.
“My world fell apart. We’d already bought our next house and we had to sell in order to move.”
Getting the money back
First, complain to the company who installed it.
If you are getting nowhere, contact the manufacturer.
If this is unsuccessful, and you paid for the work on a credit card, you may be able to get your money back under a powerful consumer protection called Section 75.
It covers you if something goes wrong and you paid between £100 and £30,000 for goods or services.
James Barnes of JBA Surveying helped an elderly man get his spray foam costs back using Section 75.
He could prove that the foam used was not installed in the right place.
“Having the written evidence that you can hang your hat on to say it was applied incorrectly is crucial,” he said.
James’ report, which cost £150, was given to the credit card company as evidence and it paid out the claim within days.
It’s important to claim back spray foam costs from your credit card company before having it removed.
You’ll need paperwork from the installer which states the type of foam you have, as well as a quote for removal costs.
If you used a debit card, claim a refund under a process called chargeback.
Unfortunately for Lorna she did not know about the refund process until after she’d had the spray foam removed.
Mass Foam Systems says it is “sorry” to hear about the issues Lorna had selling her home but could not find her complaint on its system.
The salesman who visited left the company in late 2020 but had received no other complaints about his work.
It says at the time of Lorna’s visit there were no concerns about the sale-ability of homes with spray foam.
It says homeowners should contact their installer with any concerns before taking action.
A Government spokesperson said: “It is unacceptable that some homeowners with spray foam loft insulation are suffering at the hands of rogue operators, which is why we are working with industry to tackle this.”
Spray foam insulation risks
There are several risks with spray foam insulation, according to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
RICS advises consumers to carry out appropriate checks on the material being used, as there are different types of spray foam, and to be aware of the risks involved.
Anyone considering the insulation should using independent experts, who are both commercially and independently separate from the installer and manufacturer.
Hidden problems – It can make it difficult to spot other issues with the roof, as it restricts the view of the space, for example roof damage from storms or a leak.
Damp and condensation – Poorly installed insulation can lead to dampness and uncontrolled condensation which can cause damage.
Once installed, the measures are not easy or cheap to reverse.
Removal from a typical three-bed home could cost anywhere between £3,000 and £4,000, depending on how much foam there is to dispose of, says Ollie Creevy, managing director of Insulation Advisor.
Read RICS full guide for consumers at www.rics.org/news-insights/rics-release-new-spray-foam-consumer-guide
