OFTEC has responded to the government's consultation on Reforming Consumer Protection for Home Upgrade Schemes, calling for any new protections for home heating work to apply equally to every household regardless of the technology used or how the work is funded1. The trade body for the oil heating industry published its response on 22 September 20261; trade title Heating & Plumbing Monthly reported it on 24 September 20262.
In the consultation, the government proposed a new consumer protection service for households having work carried out under government backed schemes such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), but this would apply only to government funded work, leaving households who pay for their own heating upgrades without the same level of support if something goes wrong1. OFTEC said this risks creating a two-tier system and different levels of protection for consumers1.
OFTEC also raised concerns about the existing system. It said that because registration with a competent person scheme is not mandatory, compliance with building regulations can easily be compromised, and that this, combined with the cost and bureaucracy of holding renewable registration, has led to an increase in installations notified through so called umbrella schemes1. In those arrangements a third party submits the paperwork on behalf of an installer who may not hold the relevant registration, and in some cases the umbrella scheme provider never inspects the installation in person, relying instead on photographs or video sent by the installer as evidence that the work meets the required standard1.
The body further argued that the design of funding schemes affects installation quality, saying government backed schemes such as BUS can involve significant administration and cost to join, which falls hardest on the small, often family run businesses that make up most of the heating installation sector and discourages them from taking part directly1. Its proposed remedy is to make registration with a recognised competent person scheme mandatory for all tradespeople carrying out notifiable work in the home, whether that work is government funded or paid for by the homeowner1. It also called for closer working between certification bodies and local authorities, which hold the power to enforce building regulations when non-compliant work is found, suggesting a formal agreement so that enforcement action follows when problems are identified and rogue traders cannot continue operating1.
"We welcome that the government has recognised the need to put in place stronger protections for consumers. However, every household having heating work carried out in their home should have the same standard of protection, whether that work is funded by the government or paid for by themselves."
Malcolm Farrow is named as director of marketing and external affairs at OFTEC in the body's own release1; the trade report captions a photograph of him as head of public affairs at OFTEC while also giving the director of marketing and external affairs title in the quotation2.
Why it matters for households
The consultation as described would attach a consumer protection service to government funded work only, so a household paying for a heating upgrade itself would sit outside it1. OFTEC's argument is that the standard of protection a home receives should not depend on whether a grant paid for the work1. For a household, the practical difference lies in what happens if an installation turns out to be non-compliant: whether there is a route to putting it right, and whether the paperwork was signed off by someone who inspected the finished work in person1. OFTEC's account of umbrella schemes describes installations notified by a third party without a site visit, with photographs or video used as evidence instead1. Its call for mandatory registration of anyone doing notifiable work, and for enforcement by local authorities, is aimed at that gap1. Details of how a mandatory scheme would be administered, what it would cost installers or households, and how existing registrations would transfer are not set out in either account.
What happens next
Neither account states when the consultation closes, when the government will respond, or whether mandatory registration will be taken forward. No timetable for the proposed consumer protection service is given1.
Households wanting to check whether a technician is registered can read about OFTEC registration and oil heating technicians and how Competent Person Schemes and Self-Certification of Building Work operate, including which installers can self-certify their own work. Grant funding for heating work is covered in Boiler and Heating Grants in England and Boiler and Heating Grants in Scotland.