The UK Government published its response to a consultation on the Boiler Upgrade Scheme on 14 March 2024, confirming that the scheme will remove the requirement to have no outstanding recommendations for loft and cavity wall insulation on a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)1. The same day it launched a separate consultation on postponing the launch of the Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM) to 1 April 20251.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme provides grants of up to £7,500 to people in England and Wales to install low-carbon heating systems such as heat pumps1. Under the previous rules, a valid EPC carrying outstanding loft or cavity wall insulation recommendations could block eligibility; that condition is being dropped1. The change follows a consultation on amendments to the scheme regulations, and Nesta said it had called for the change in its own consultation response1.
The CHMM places an obligation on boiler manufacturers to sell a quota of heat pumps, starting with 4 for every 100 boilers they sell in the first year, rising to 6 for every 100 from 20251. Manufacturers that cannot meet the quotas can buy credits from companies selling heat pumps, or pay a fine of £3,000 per missing heat pump1. The consultation proposes moving the scheme start date to 1 April 20251.
Nesta, described as a research and innovation foundation, welcomed the eligibility change but raised concern about the CHMM delay1. Madeleine Gabriel, director of sustainable future at Nesta, said:
"Heat pumps are the most efficient low carbon source of heating for people's homes and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is helping keep installation costs down for households."
"Nevertheless, we are concerned that today's launch of a consultation on delaying implementation of the Clean Heat Market Mechanism sends the wrong signal to a key market for the future UK economy that needs stability to attract the right investment."
Nesta also published a report on how policymakers could improve current and future subsidy schemes that increase the number of households adopting low-carbon heating systems1.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| BUS grant amount | Up to £7,5001 |
| BUS eligibility change | Removal of the no outstanding loft and cavity wall insulation recommendations requirement on a valid EPC1 |
| CHMM first-year quota | 4 heat pumps per 100 boilers sold1 |
| CHMM quota from 2025 | 6 heat pumps per 100 boilers sold1 |
| CHMM non-compliance | Buy credits or pay £3,000 per missing heat pump1 |
| Proposed CHMM start date | 1 April 20251 |
Why it matters for households
The EPC condition sat between a household and a grant worth up to £7,500. Where an EPC recommended loft or cavity wall insulation, that recommendation could previously stand in the way of the grant, even where the household had not carried out the work. Removing the requirement separates the decision to install a heat pump from the state of the EPC's insulation recommendations, so the grant route is no longer conditional on those recommendations being cleared first. The eligibility rules are the practical detail here, and the specific question of an EPC recommending loft insulation is covered in more depth separately.
For a home's energy independence, the two measures pull in different directions. The eligibility change widens access to a grant that lowers the upfront cost of a heat pump, which is the step that shifts a home off gas for heating. The CHMM is a supply-side measure: it obliges boiler manufacturers to sell a rising share of heat pumps, which is intended to build the market that households buy from. Delaying it to 1 April 2025 does not change any household's own eligibility, but it affects the pace at which that market develops. Nesta's concern is about investment signals rather than household rules1.
The sources do not state how many households were previously blocked by the EPC insulation condition, nor what the removal is expected to cost or save. Those figures have not been reported1.
What happens next
The CHMM consultation proposes a start date of 1 April 20251. The government's response to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme consultation confirms the removal of the EPC insulation requirement, but the sources do not give a commencement date for that change1. No date has been reported for the outcome of the CHMM consultation1.