The government will require all installers working on state-funded home upgrade schemes to hold mandatory accreditation by 2026. That is the headline from a new package of consumer protections announced this week, a direct response to the chaos of the Green Homes Grant, which left thousands of households with shoddy insulation, leaking heat pumps, and no clear route to redress.
As reported by GOV.UK, the new measures include a single complaints gateway, mandatory insurance-backed guarantees, and a requirement for all installers to be registered with a recognised certification body. It is a belated but necessary attempt to restore faith in the retrofit industry.
Why trust matters, and what went wrong
Between 2020 and 2021, the Green Homes Grant issued vouchers worth up to £10,000 per household. Ofgem later revealed that nearly 40% of completed installations had defects, from cavity walls filled with the wrong material to heat pumps wired incorrectly. The scheme was pulled early, but the damage was done: surveys by Citizens Advice found that one in five homeowners said they would now avoid government-backed retrofit schemes entirely.
The new protections aim to close that trust gap. Installers on the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, Great British Insulation Scheme, and any future retrofit programmes will need to prove competence through bodies such as MCS, PAS 2035, or TrustMark. The government will also create a single ombudsman route, so homeowners no longer have to chase multiple agencies when something goes wrong.
But the catch is timing. Accreditation rules will not be fully enforced until 2026. That leaves a gap of at least 18 months where the old, patchwork system still applies. Households planning upgrades now should still ask for proof of certification, check the installer’s complaints history, and insist on a written guarantee before any work begins.
What it costs, and what it saves
For a typical 3-bed semi using 12,000 kWh of gas and 3,000 kWh of electricity per year, a heat pump installation under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme currently covers £7,500 of the cost. The remaining £3,000–£5,000 comes from the homeowner. Poor workmanship, a poorly sized unit or incorrect pipework, can wipe out the expected savings of £300–£400 a year on heating bills.
The new protections should reduce that risk. Mandatory insurance-backed guarantees mean that if an installer goes bust or refuses to fix defects, the homeowner can claim directly from the insurer. The single ombudsman route also cuts the time spent resolving disputes, which Citizens Advice estimates currently averages nine months.
Yet the government has not published cost estimates for the scheme itself. The industry expects accreditation fees to be passed on to consumers, potentially adding £100–£200 to a typical heat pump installation. Officials have not confirmed whether grant funding will rise to offset this.
Who qualifies, and who doesn’t
The protections apply only to installations funded through central government schemes. Private installations, those paid for entirely by the homeowner, are not covered. That matters because many households still choose to pay out of pocket to avoid scheme bureaucracy. Energy Saving Trust data shows that around 40% of heat pump installations in 2024 were done privately.
For those households, the existing Consumer Rights Act 2015 still applies, but there is no single ombudsman or mandatory guarantee. The government has said it will consult on extending protections to the private market, but no date has been set.
Homeowners on standard variable tariffs can check eligibility for the Great British Insulation Scheme through the Energy Saving Trust website. Applications for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme remain open until 2028, though the grant amount is subject to change. The new protections will take effect from 1 April 2026 for all new applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. The protections apply only to installations completed after the rules come into force in April 2026. For existing installations, you must rely on the installer's guarantee or the Consumer Rights Act 2015. If you have a problem with a past government-scheme installation, contact the scheme administrator directly.
Ask for their MCS or PAS 2035 certification number, then verify it on the relevant register (MCS website or TrustMark). The government also recommends checking the installer's complaints history on the Citizens Advice website. Do not rely on a logo alone, scammers have been known to forge certificates.
