Homeowners across the UK may be eligible to claim back a contribution towards improvements in heating efficiency. These are aimed at reducing CO2 emissions and protecting against climate change. The scheme has been designed by the government to encourage homeowners and small business owners to swap their gas boilers to low carbon heating systems, such as air sourced heat pumps.
What is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme?
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a Government initiative that offers homeowners and businesses financial assistance with upgrading their old, inefficient boilers to low carbon heating systems. The Scheme is designed to help reduce carbon emissions and save money on energy bills.
For those eligible, the government are offering a incentive of £5000 off the cost and installation of air sourced heat pumps. This is a significant saving and could make the switch to a cleaner, greener heating system like air sourced heat pumps much more accessible.
Who is eligible?
You may be eligible if you live in England or Wales and you own a property. This can be your home or even a small non-domestic property. Also, good news for landlords or those with second homes as you are also eligible to claim the grant.
There are also some eligibility criteria for your property as well. Your property must have an installation capacity up to 45kWth, this should cover most homes. Your property also needs a current energy performance certificate (EPC), with no outstanding recommendations for loft or cavity wall insulation – so it’s worth making sure your EPC certificate is up to date before applying.
Unfortunately, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme does have some exceptions, these include social housing, new builds and any property that has already received any kind of funding or support for a heat pump or biomass boiler.
What type of heating system does the Boiler Upgrade Scheme cover?
Grants are available on the following types of products;
- air source heat pumps
- biomass boilers
- ground source heat pumps (including water source heat pumps and those on shared ground loops)
In order to qualify, the new heating system must have;
- have been commissioned (that is, installed and fully checked by your installer) on or after 1 April 2022
- be capable of meeting the full space heating and hot water requirements of your property
- replace an existing fossil fuel heating system (such as oil, gas or electric)
- meet certain technical standards, such as minimum efficiency requirements (your installer can advise you on these)
Although this may seem confusing, an experienced installer such as Godiva Build will be able to guide you through the process and advise you the correct system in order to receive the grant.
How does it work?
This is the easy part for property owners as your installer claims the grant on your behalf. The grant money is then discounted from your final bill for the installation of your new heating system.
In order for everything to run as smoothly as possible, it’s important for property owners to use an experienced and trusted installer, such as Godiva Build. The work must be carried out in accordance the MCS quality assurance scheme in order for the work to qualify for the funding.
Ofgem may also contact you to carry out checks on the installation. This may involve a phone call or a visit to your property.
What is Air Sourced Heat Pumps and how does it work?
Heat pumps work by extracting heat from the air outside and using it to heat your home. They are a more environmentally friendly option than traditional boilers as they use less energy and produce no emissions.
Because they use far less energy than traditional gas boilers, you can make significant savings on your energy bills. So not only do you get a grant for installing the air source heat pump, you can also save in the long run.
Conclusion
If you are looking to upgrade your inefficient gas boiler to a energy efficient, greener heating system such as an air sourced heat pump, then the government backed Boiler Upgrade Scheme could be a great option for you. With £5000 off the cost of installing your new heating system plus the added bonus of reducing your energy bills, it almost seems too good to be true.
But like any government funding, they don’t last forever. So if you are interested in this funding, we recommend acting quickly to make sure you don’t miss out.