Heat pump and solar installers: texts from survey to MCS

In September 2026 installers sent Ofgem 9,738 applications for Boiler Upgrade Scheme vouchers, the most in any month since the scheme opened in May 2022. Solar is busier still: DESNZ counted 296,000 new solar installations in the UK in the twelve months to September, the most in any 12-month period on its records. For a heat pump or solar installer that's a lot of customers sitting in the long gap between a survey and a working system, and a lot of "any update?" phone calls. Heat pump and solar installer texts fill that gap with short, dated updates at each step, from the survey to the MCS certificate.

The steps are different from a boiler swap, and so are the texts. A heat pump job usually involves a grant application the customer has to confirm, a design that may change their radiators, two or three days of work, and a handover where the settings matter more than the hardware.

What the Boiler Upgrade Scheme figures show

DESNZ publishes the scheme's figures monthly, from Ofgem's records. To the end of September 2026 there had been 160,874 voucher applications, 98% of them for air-to-water heat pumps, and 131,619 vouchers issued. Grants paid reached 96,611, and September set records on every measure: 6,298 vouchers issued, 3,972 redemption applications and 3,332 redemptions paid.

The jump from July 2026 has a clear cause. From 21 July, installers could apply for a £9,000 grant on behalf of owners of homes off the gas grid that are heated by oil or LPG, against £7,500 for an air source or ground source heat pump elsewhere. In July to September that grant drew 8,107 applications, 32% of the 25,374 received in the quarter. GOV.UK says the extra £1,500 is available "until March 2027", which gives installers in oil country a deadline to plan around.

Most grants so far have replaced gas. Of the 96,611 paid, 55% went to homes moving off gas, 18% off oil and 13% to properties with no heating system at all.

The grants are spread unevenly. The South East had the most redemptions paid (19,069, 20% of the total) and the South West next (17,168, 18%), while the North East had 3,033 (3%) and Wales 5,148 (5%). The split between urban and rural homes is close to even, 51% to 49%, and 61% of the homes were on the gas grid. The rest, off the grid, are the homes the £9,000 grant is aimed at when they're heated by oil or LPG.

The money side is set out in the same release. The median cost of an air-to-water heat pump installation in July to September 2026 was £12,826 including the grant, and DESNZ says that after inflation that's 14% lower than in the scheme's first year. Since 28 April 2026 installers have had to take the grant off the customer's upfront cost, and MCS has been the only certification scheme accepted.

Solar is moving faster than ever

The DESNZ solar series counts 2.16 million installations in the UK at the end of September 2026, with 23.4 GW of capacity. In September alone there were 27,655 new installations, 19,449 of them on homes, and over the past twelve months "over 1 GW of domestic solar has been installed, across almost 200,000 homes". In 2025 as a whole, 269,500 installations came online, the most in any calendar year.

After installation, a solar customer who wants paying for what they export applies for a Smart Export Guarantee tariff. Ofgem says they can apply "with any SEG licensee", which doesn't have to be their electricity supplier, and that tariffs "must always remain above zero". That application is the customer's job, and a reminder from the installer after handover is a kindness that also saves a call later.

How a heat pump job runs, and where the questions come

GOV.UK sets out the order. The customer gets quotes from MCS certified installers, the installer confirms eligibility, the customer agrees a quote, and then "the installer will apply on your behalf on the Ofgem website". After that, "Ofgem will contact you to confirm that the installer is acting on your behalf", and might phone or visit to check the installation; "MCS might contact you to carry out their own checks". The installer has to "commission and install the heat pump within 120 days of applying for the grant or it will not be eligible".

Two things in that list cause most of the delays and most of the worry. The first is the Ofgem confirmation. DESNZ describes the scheme as "installer-led": Ofgem contacts the owner, who "will need to provide consent and confirm that the installer is acting on their behalf", and nothing moves until they do. A customer who doesn't recognise the email, or ignores it, can stall the job. (EV charger installers have a similar step with OZEV, which our post on EV charger installer texts covers.) The second is the 120 days, which run from the application whatever else happens.

There's a trust side to it as well. A customer who's been told to expect contact from Ofgem and MCS will recognise it when it comes, and has a reason to be wary of anyone else claiming to be them.

Heat pump and solar installer texts, from survey to handover

Written for a fictional installer, Thornbury Renewables. All of these are about a job the customer has asked for, so they're service messages under the ICO's guidance and need no opt-out line.

The survey:

Thornbury Renewables: your heat pump survey is booked for Tue 10 Nov, 09:00 to 12:00. Tom will measure each room for the heat loss calculation, so allow about 2 hours.

After the grant application goes in:

Thornbury Renewables: we've applied for your £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. Ofgem will email you to confirm we're acting for you. Please reply to them, as nothing moves until you do.

A chaser if the voucher hasn't come through after a week:

Thornbury Renewables: Ofgem is still waiting for you to confirm your grant application. Check your inbox and spam for their email. Reply here if you can't find it.

Voucher issued and install booked, with the practical bits:

Thornbury Renewables: your grant is approved. Install starts Mon 7 Dec for 3 days. The heating and hot water will be off for part of days 1 and 2. Please clear the space by the cylinder cupboard.

The morning of day one follows the same pattern as our on-my-way texts for trades. Then commissioning and handover:

Thornbury Renewables: all done. Your MCS certificate and the settings guide are in your email. Ofgem or MCS may contact you to check the install; that's normal. Any questions, just reply.

And for a solar customer, a week after handover:

Thornbury Renewables: a reminder that you can now apply for a Smart Export Guarantee tariff to be paid for the power you export. It doesn't have to be with your current supplier. Your MCS certificate is in your email.

The grant texts name Ofgem so the customer knows which email to look for, and the handover text repeats GOV.UK's warning that Ofgem or MCS may be in touch, so a call from either doesn't come as a surprise. Everything else carries a time window and the one thing the customer needs to do.

Running it from the job board

The dates for these texts live in whatever runs the jobs, whether that's installer software or a shared spreadsheet. The survey confirmation and the day-before install text can be scheduled when they're booked; on CaptiFi Connect a scheduled text can be cancelled, with its credits refunded, if the date moves. If your software can call an API, POST /messages with schedule_at covers the timed texts, and putting the job number in client_ref brings it back in the webhooks so a failed text or a reply lands against the right job.

The Ofgem chaser works best as a list: customers waiting on their confirmation go on it, and come off it when the voucher arrives. A weekly send to that list keeps to campaign quiet hours (21:00 to 09:00 London time by default), so nobody gets a grant reminder at bedtime. Replies come into a two-way inbox the office can see, which matters for heat pumps more than most jobs, because customers ask things that need a person ("can the outdoor unit go round the side instead?").

Keep an eye on the 120 days. A job whose install date has slipped towards the limit is worth a phone call, and a text afterwards confirming the new date gives both sides a record.

Batteries, reviews and the line into marketing

A review request a week or two after handover is fine as a service follow-up, and our review request page covers the wording. A text that offers a battery to last year's solar customer is a different thing. The ICO says a message that "actively promotes or encourages people to make use of a particular service, special offer, or upgrade" is likely to be direct marketing. The soft opt-in lets you text an existing customer about "a similar product or service" if you gave them "a clear chance to opt out" when you took their number and in every message since. A battery for an existing solar customer is the kind of case that fits, provided the opt-out was offered at the start and "Reply STOP to opt out" goes on the text. A text about a heat pump to someone who only asked for a solar quote and never bought is harder to argue, and is better left to a consent box on the quote form.

Common questions

How does the Boiler Upgrade Scheme application work?

The MCS certified installer applies for the grant on the property owner's behalf on Ofgem's website. Ofgem then contacts the owner to confirm the installer is acting for them, and the grant is taken off the price. The installer must install and commission the system within 120 days of applying.

How much is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant?

GOV.UK lists £7,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump, £2,500 towards an air-to-air heat pump and £5,000 towards a biomass boiler. Until March 2027, homes heated by oil or LPG with no mains gas connection can get an extra £1,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump.

Why does Ofgem email me after I apply for a heat pump grant?

Ofgem needs the property owner to confirm that the installer is acting on their behalf before it issues the voucher. The application doesn't move until the owner replies, so it's worth checking the spam folder if the email hasn't arrived.

Can a solar installer text past customers about batteries?

Usually, under the soft opt-in, if the customer bought solar from you, was given a clear chance to opt out when you took their number, and gets an opt-out in every text. Service texts about their own installation don't need consent.