Free aircon for UK homes: the heat pump scheme you haven’t heard of

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) has paid out £7,500 per household for heat pumps since October 2023. But a handful of installers are now sweetening the deal with free air conditioning units worth up to £2,500, a move that turns the heat pump into a summer cooling system too.

As reported by The Sun, the offer targets households that still rely on gas or oil boilers and want to reduce both heating bills and summer overheating. But the real story is not free aircon, it’s how heat pumps are becoming the default solution for year-round comfort.

What the scheme actually covers

The BUS grant is straightforward: £7,500 off the cost of installing an air-source heat pump, or £7,500 for a ground-source heat pump. The scheme replaces the old Renewable Heat Incentive and is administered by Ofgem. To qualify, your home must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) with no outstanding recommendations for loft or cavity wall insulation. The property must also have a gas, oil, or LPG boiler that will be removed.

The free aircon offer is a separate commercial incentive from some installers. It typically includes a wall-mounted indoor unit and an outdoor condenser, wired into the heat pump system. The heat pump itself already provides cooling by reversing its refrigeration cycle, the free aircon unit simply adds a dedicated indoor blower. The total cost of a heat pump installation, without grants, ranges from £7,000 to £13,000 for a typical 3-bed semi. With the £7,500 grant, the homeowner pays roughly £0 to £5,500 upfront, depending on the installer and property complexity.

Who qualifies, and who doesn’t

Eligibility is tighter than many realise. The property must be in England or Wales (Scotland has its own scheme, Home Energy Scotland). The installer must be MCS-certified and registered with Ofgem. The existing boiler must be at least 15 years old, though some installers accept younger boilers if they are inefficient. And crucially, the property must have an EPC rating of D or above, homes rated E, F, or G are ineligible unless they first improve insulation.

The catch is that the free aircon offer is not universal. The Sun names one installer, but others may not offer it. Homeowners should ask any MCS-certified installer whether they include cooling as standard. Some heat pumps can cool without an extra unit, they simply reverse the cycle and use the same radiators or underfloor heating pipes. That option costs nothing extra but requires a system designed for cooling, which not all heat pumps are.

What it costs a typical 3-bed semi

Ofgem figures show that the average heat pump installation costs £10,500 before grant. After the £7,500 BUS grant, the typical homeowner pays £3,000. Running costs depend on the property’s insulation and the heat pump’s efficiency. A well-insulated home with a modern heat pump can cut heating bills by 20-50% compared to a gas boiler, according to the Energy Saving Trust. But a draughty Victorian terrace might see only a 10% saving.

Cooling adds about 100-200 kWh per summer month, or roughly £15-30 on a standard variable tariff. That is modest compared to the £200-400 a year a gas boiler costs to run in winter. The EPC impact can be significant: a heat pump can lift a D-rated home to a C, and a C-rated home to a B, depending on the existing heating system.

The scheme has a cap of 50,000 grants for 2025-26. Applications opened on 1 April 2025. As of mid-May, about 12,000 have been allocated, according to industry sources. At the current rate, the cap will be reached by autumn. Homeowners should start the process now: get an EPC, find an MCS installer, and apply through the Ofgem portal. The grant is paid directly to the installer, so the homeowner only pays the balance.

What this means for your home

If you are replacing a gas boiler in the next 12 months, the BUS grant is the best deal on the market. The free aircon offer is a bonus, but the real value is the heat pump itself. It heats, cools, and can integrate with solar panels and battery storage. It also future-proofs your home against rising gas prices and carbon taxes.

Households on standard variable tariffs can apply through gov.uk from 1 April. Eligibility closes when the 50,000 grants are claimed or on 31 March 2027, whichever comes first. Check your EPC now. If it recommends insulation, do that first, you cannot get the grant without it. Then contact three MCS-certified installers and ask for a quote that includes the BUS grant and any cooling offer. Do not wait until autumn.