<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=448100748896598&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
⚠ We're here to serve you during the COVID-19 pandemic. Click here to learn how >>
Regency Lighting logo
  • Shop Products
    • Light Bulbs
    • Ballasts & Batteries
    • Batteries
    • Electrical
    • Fixtures
    • Specialty
    • Business Account Signup
  • Services
    • Problems We Solve
    • Design Consulting
    • Construction Services
    • Replacement Products
    • Lighting Maintenance
    • Retrofit Management
    • Sustainable Recycling
    • Product Lines
    • Client Success Stories
  • Resources
    • Lighting Blog
    • Total Cost of Lighting
    • Energy Savings Calculator
    • Lighting Glossary
    • Title 24
      • Title 24 FAQ & Glossary
      • Does Title 24 Apply to Me?
  • About Us
    • Culture
    • Values
    • Causes
    • History
    • Team Success Stories
    • Leadership
      • Ron Regenstreif
      • Mike Goldstone
      • Scott Anderson
      • Judah Regenstreif
      • Ron Pilner
      • Hoon Kim
    • Careers
    • Regency Lighting News
    • Event and Social Photos
    • Regency Branding
  • Contact Us
    • Credit Application
    • Apply for Tax Exemption
    • Contractor Network
    • Office Locations
  • Store Login

Start typing and press Enter to search

bg.jpg

Lighting Insights Blog

Lighting Insights from Regency Lighting Regency Lighting Logo

< Back to blog

Lighting rebate updates and trends for 2018, according to BriteSwitch

Posted by Brittany Woodard on Mar 27, 2018 11:31:00 AM
Find me on:
LinkedIn
print
  • Tweet

Rebate-trends-of-2018

BriteSwitch is a company we've partnered with in the past to pass along their resourceful information on lighting rebates. They help businesses across the United States and Canada apply for utility rebates and tax incentive programs. 

This post, originally published on their website, has been adapted for our readers.

LED lighting rebate amounts start to plateau

Historically, rebates for LED lighting have decreased 10 - 20% every year. This year, the rebate amounts have started to level out. The average prescriptive rebate for LED only went down 1% across all product lines. That being said, some specific products saw some big changes as well. LED linear tube replacements dropped by 19% and screw-in HID replacement lamps by 35%. These decreases likely reflect the changing price in the marketplace as the costs of those solutions have also decreased significantly in the past year. In contrast, rebates for LED down lights and linear panels (2x4's) went up 5% and 10% respectively.

Rebates for DLC standard vs. DLC premium

A Design Lights Consortium (DLC) rating has always been important for LED rebates with about 80% of programs requiring it. In 2017, DLC introduced a new "DLC Premium" category. Products must meet higher qualifications and testing requirements in order to be considered for the premium classification.

It’s been unknown how utilities would adapt their programs to this classification. Looking at the current rebate landscape, DLC premium has not had a significant impact. Only a handful of programs require the DLC Premium qualification in order to get rebates. More commonly, programs offer an additional rebate or bonus if using a DLC premium product instead of a standard. The amount is usually an additional $10 to $20 so it doesn't always cover the additional cost of using a premium product. Right now these extra incentives are less than 10% of LED rebates.

Lighting control rebates are still strong

Rebates for lighting controls like occupancy sensors, daylight dimming, etc. are still remarkably strong. In fact, since we have been tracking rebate changes over the past 8 years, rebates for controls are the only category that has not decreased at all. For products like fixture mounted and remote mounted occupancy sensors, the average rebate is still high ($20 - $30) compared to cost and in many cases the rebates make sensors an attractive and cost effective addition to most lighting upgrades.

With the addition of a new DLC category of networked lighting controls, we've seen some programs start to offer more rebates for these systems. Many networked lighting controls are more complex than stand-alone sensors, so other rebate programs are still trying to figure out how to best implement them.

What’s next for lighting rebates? Biax / PL-L Lamps & 8’ tubes

Later this year, DLC will be finalizing its criteria for several popular types of lighting such as 3' tubes, 8’ tubes, and Biax/PL-L lamps as well as up-and-coming technologies such as color tuning fixtures. These categories represent much needed additions where rebates have fallen behind due to lack of a DLC category. These new DLC categories are launching mid-year, so we do not expect widespread adoption of prescriptive rebates until 2019. In the interim, once these products start appearing on the DLC list, there will be potential for custom rebates for these solutions. Custom rebates are generally more complicated to pursue than prescriptive rebates and need to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

*This post was originally published at BriteSwitch.com. The information found in this post is not proprietary of Regency.

For more on energy savings and switching to LED lighting, download our LED Buying Guide.

LED Buying Guide to find the best pricing and right specs for LED lighting products

Topics: Lighting rebates

Related posts

Answering your questions on lighting rebates [Ask the expert series]
Answering your questions on lighting rebates [Ask the expert series]
The best areas for lighting rebates [Map]
The best areas for lighting rebates [Map]
kW vs. kWh: How much energy is my lighting using? [Calculator]
kW vs. kWh: How much energy is my lighting using? [Calculator]

Have a comment?

Shop Regency Lighting

Sign up for a Regency Lighting Business Account

Recent articles

View all posts >
 

Articles by topic

  • LED (63)
  • Energy efficiency (42)
  • LED retrofit (30)
  • Commercial office lighting (29)
  • Fluorescent light (27)
  • COVID-19 (26)
  • Energy savings (26)
  • Retail Lighting (26)
  • Savings, Payback, & ROI (24)
  • Parking Garage Lighting (22)
  • Lighting maintenance (21)
  • Restaurant Lighting (21)
  • Lighting 101 (20)
  • Lighting design (20)
  • Germicidal UV light (19)
  • Hotel lighting (19)
  • Multifamily lighting (17)
  • Product Comparison (17)
  • Inside the Industry (16)
  • Project Management (14)
  • Education facility (11)
  • FAQs (11)
  • Incandescent lighting (11)
  • Lighting rebates (11)
  • HID (10)
  • Hospital lighting (10)
  • Lighting technology (10)
  • Inside Regency (9)
  • Ballast (8)
  • Movie theater lighting (8)
  • Lighting tidbits (7)
  • CRI (6)
  • California Energy Code (6)
  • Color temperature (6)
  • Title 24 (6)
  • Healthcare lighting (5)
  • LED dimming (5)
  • T12 (5)
  • Warehouse lighting (5)
  • Building inspections (4)
  • Code enforcement (4)
  • Lighting as a service (4)
  • CFL (3)
  • Energy Star certification (3)
  • LED lifespan (3)
  • Light bulb part numbers (3)
  • Lighting controls (3)
  • Manufacturer warranty (3)
  • Wattage (3)
  • Charity highlight (2)
  • DLC listed (2)
  • Hallway lighting (2)
  • CCT (1)
  • ETL listed (1)
  • Energy code (1)
  • Halogen (1)
see all

Quick Links

  • Insights Lighting Blog
  • Energy Savings Calculator
  • Lighting Glossary
  • Product Lines
  • Client Success Stories
  • Our Values
  • Careers
  • Mobile Store Login

Lighting Insights

RL Headquarters

Regency Lighting 
9261 Jordan Avenue
Chatsworth, CA 91311
Phone: +1-800-284-2024
Fax: +1-800-763-7636
Send us a message.

rl-us-map-locations-web-small-r

National Lighting Distributor since 1983

Find the location nearest you.

 

Regency Lighting Logo Website

© Regency Lighting
All Rights Reserved.

  • Problems We Solve
  • Products + Services
  • Lighting Resources
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Site Map
Regency Lighting Logo Website

© Regency Lighting
All Rights Reserved.

  • Problems We Solve
  • Products + Services
  • Lighting Resources
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Site Map