How do I check an installer is MCS certified?
Direct answer
Search the installer’s name on the MCS installer search and confirm the technology you need (ASHP, GSHP or WSHP) is listed against them, on the date you check. Every listing here links straight to that installer’s own MCS profile page. Read our full method, including its limits, on the How We Verify page.
MCS certification is issued per technology and can be added, lapse or renew independently of a business’s overall trading status, which is why we link to the live profile rather than only quoting our own check date. See How We Verify for the full method and its limits.
Is my home suitable for a heat pump?
Direct answer
Most London homes can take a heat pump, but a proper heat loss survey from your installer — not a desktop estimate — is the only reliable way to size it correctly. Insulation, existing radiators and available outdoor space all affect the specification and cost. Ask your installer for the survey before agreeing a quote.
Suitability is a design question, not a yes/no property test. An MCS-certified installer's heat loss survey looks at your walls, glazing, existing heating and available outdoor space to size the system and specify emitters correctly — the single biggest factor in whether a heat pump performs well.
Can I have a heat pump in a flat?
Direct answer
Flats can have permitted development rights for one outdoor unit up to 0.6 m³, smaller than a house’s 1.5 m³ allowance, and leaseholders need their freeholder’s consent regardless of planning permission. Article 4 directions can also remove permitted development rights on some streets — check your council’s planning portal first.
Planning permission and lease consent are separate hurdles. Clearing the permitted development threshold under Class G, Part 14 of the GPDO does not remove the need for freeholder or management-company sign-off on external works, which most leases require. See our grant guide for the funding side and the FAQ below for conservation areas and listed buildings.
What does it cost to run compared with gas?
Direct answer
It depends on your boiler’s efficiency, the heat pump’s SCOP, and your electricity and gas unit prices — there is no single answer. Use our running-cost calculator to work it out from your own numbers, with the arithmetic shown so you can check it. At today’s Ofgem price-cap rates, a heat pump is cheaper to run than gas above a SCOP of about 2.81 — and electricity currently carries no VAT until 31 March 2027, which flatters that comparison against a normal quarter.
Try the running-cost calculator with your own gas use figure from a recent bill. It shows the working, not just a result, because the comparison genuinely depends on inputs specific to your home and tariff.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need to be MCS certified to install a heat pump?
Direct answer
You don't need MCS certification to install a heat pump, but the homeowner needs an MCS-certified installer to claim the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. Both plumbing and electrical firms appear on the MCS installer search — certification is technology-specific, not trade-specific, so check the listing names the right technology, not just the right trade.
Why does my house feel cold with a heat pump?
Direct answer
A heat pump that feels cold is almost always a design or commissioning problem, not a fault with the technology. Efficiency (SCOP) depends on system design, flow temperature, building fabric and how well the installer commissions it — not on the brand. Running it like an on/off gas boiler, rather than at a steady lower temperature, is the most common cause of complaints.
Which homes are unsuitable for a heat pump?
Direct answer
No home type is automatically ruled out, but poor insulation, undersized radiators and restricted outdoor space for the unit all make installation harder or more expensive. Listed buildings and scheduled monuments have no permitted development rights for an outdoor unit, so any installation there needs planning permission and usually listed building consent.
Do I need planning permission in a conservation area?
Direct answer
Usually not, but the unit can't go on a wall or roof fronting a highway, or nearer to that highway than the building, in a conservation area or World Heritage Site. Listed buildings and scheduled monuments have no permitted development rights at all — a full planning application, and usually listed building consent, is required there.
What are the real downsides of a heat pump?
Direct answer
Higher upfront cost than a like-for-like boiler swap, more disruption during installation, and running costs that depend heavily on your electricity tariff and how well the system is designed. Radiators sometimes need upsizing to work at the lower flow temperatures heat pumps run best at, which adds cost and disruption beyond the outdoor unit itself.
Spotted something wrong?
Direct answer
Tell us and we’ll fix it. If you run one of these businesses, or you’ve found a detail that’s out of date, use Claim / Correct a listing to submit a correction with its source, claim your listing, or request removal — removal requests are honoured without argument.