£9,000 heat pump grant: who gets the letter and what to do next

From July 21, the government will write to thousands of UK households offering a £9,000 grant for a heat pump. That is £1,500 more than the standard Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) rate, and enough to cover the full cost of installation for many homes.

The letters target properties not connected to the gas grid, as reported by the Manchester Evening News. Rural homes that rely on oil, LPG or electric storage heaters stand to benefit most, typical annual heating bills for such properties run £1,800–£2,500, versus £900–£1,200 for a gas-heated semi.

Who qualifies, and who doesn’t

The letters will go to households already identified by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero as eligible. You need to be off the gas grid, own your home (or have landlord permission), and have a property with adequate insulation, loft insulation at 270mm and cavity wall insulation where possible. Homes with solid walls may need internal or external insulation first, which can cost £8,000–£15,000.

The grant covers air source heat pumps only, not ground source. Installers must be MCS-certified, about 4,000 firms across the UK, though rural areas often have waiting lists of 8–12 weeks. Ofgem administers the scheme and expects to process applications within 30 working days.

What it costs a typical 3-bed semi

A fully installed air source heat pump for a 3-bed semi-detached home typically costs £7,000–£13,000. With the £9,000 grant, the homeowner pays £0–£4,000. That compares favourably to a new oil boiler at £3,000–£5,000, but the heat pump will cut annual fuel bills by £400–£800, according to Energy Saving Trust figures.

The catch is the upfront insulation work. Many rural homes built before 1990 have solid walls or single glazing. A full retrofit, insulation, double glazing, heat pump, can hit £25,000. The grant only covers the heat pump, not the prep work. Households on low incomes may qualify for the Great British Insulation Scheme, which offers free or subsidised insulation, but the two schemes are separate and must be applied for independently.

EPC impact and resale value

Installing a heat pump can lift an EPC rating from band E to band C, a two-band jump that adds an estimated £5,000–£8,000 to a property’s value, according to Nationwide’s 2023 analysis. For landlords, the minimum EPC rating of C by 2030 makes the grant especially timely. A band F or G property cannot be let after 2028, and retrofitting a heat pump is often the quickest route to compliance for off-gas homes.

Yet the scheme has limits. Only 50,000 grants are available in the current funding round, which runs until March 2026. The government says 120,000 heat pumps were installed under BUS in 2023–24, but the Climate Change Committee estimates the UK needs 600,000 a year by 2028 to meet net-zero targets. Supply of trained installers remains the bottleneck, there are roughly 3,000 MCS-certified heat pump engineers in England, compared to 130,000 gas boiler fitters.

What to do if you get the letter

If the letter arrives after July 21, act within 90 days, the grant voucher expires after that. Contact three MCS-certified installers for quotes; the Energy Saving Trust’s website lists local firms. Check whether your property needs insulation upgrades first; a free home energy assessment from your local council or the Simple Energy Advice service can identify gaps. Apply through the Ofgem portal with your quote and property details. The grant is deducted from the installer’s invoice, you pay the balance. Applications close on 31 March 2026, or earlier if the fund runs out.