The validity of the index of vulnerable homes : evidence from consumers vulnerable to energy poverty in the UK

Castaño-Rosa, R; Sherriff, GA; Solís-Guzmán, J; Marrero, M

Abstract

Energy poverty is a multidimensional issue, and this means that it is difficult to understand the different levels of vulnerability to this phenomenon and its relationship with households’ quality of life. This paper presents the validation of an innovative index for the analysis of vulnerability to energy poverty according to monetary, energy and thermal comfort factors: The Index of Vulnerable Homes (IVH). The IVH goes beyond the use of single self-reported indicators of thermal comfort, and instead uses the adaptive thermal-comfort model defined in the normative UNE EN 15251:2007 to assess thermal comfort in relation to energy poverty. Furthermore, it has the potential to evaluate societal impacts of current energy poverty policies by providing the economic analysis of different situations of vulnerability. The IVH is validated by comparing its results to those obtained from a survey conducted in a small-scale study undertaken in Salford, UK. To this end, evidence from households living in terraced houses built before 1980 is used to analyse health status in terms of vulnerability to energy poverty vulnerability according to their monetary situation and the characteristics of the dwelling. In the end, the results show good agreement between both the IVH’s assessment and households’ evidence, leading to consider the IVH as a suitable approach to understanding different levels of vulnerability to energy poverty.

Citation

Castaño-Rosa, R., Sherriff, G., Solís-Guzmán, J., & Marrero, M. (2020). The validity of the index of vulnerable homes : evidence from consumers vulnerable to energy poverty in the UK. Energy Sources, Part B, 15(2), 72-91. https://doi.org/10.1080/15567249.2020.1717677

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 13, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Feb 2, 2020
• Publication Date: Feb 2, 2020
• Deposit Date: Mar 5, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 2, 2021
• Journal: Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning, and Policy
• Print ISSN: 1556-7249
• Electronic ISSN: 1556-7257
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 72-91
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15567249.2020.1717677
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/15567249.2020.1717677
• Related Public URLs: http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/uesb20/current
• Additional Information: Access Information : This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Energy Sources Part B: Economics, Planning and Policy on 02/02/2020, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/15567249.2020.1717677.; Projects : European Energy Poverty: Agenda Co-Creation and Knowledge Innovation (ENGAGER); Grant Number: GB1088361; Grant Number: CA16232