Heat pump customers may soon be able to pay for a new heat pump in instalments rather than a large lump sum.
Swedish company, Aira, will sell ground andair source heat pumpslater this year and charge using monthly fees rather than one initial payment.
When this becomes available, it could give UK households that have found the upfront cost of installing a heat pump unaffordable a chance to add the technology to their home.
Reducing emissions using the 'Swedish model'
Approximately 10% of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe originate from non-environmentally friendly home heating options such as oil or gas boilers.
However over in Sweden, 60% of households have switched over to heat pumps effectively decarbonising the country's home heating. Leading the charge is Swedish heat pump manufacturer Aira whose heat pumps use a more environmentally-friendly refrigerant calledR290rather than the far more polluting F-gases.
During a press conference in Stockholm, Harald Mix from Vargas, the parent company establishing Aira, said the Swedish model should be used in more countries. Now Aira has set a target of installing 5 million heat pumps across 20 European countries over the next decade, a venture that will necessitate the training of tens of thousands of installers. According to Lewerth, using what they call the 'Swedish model' could reduce emissions to an extent equivalent to removing 10 million fossil fuel-powered cars from the roads.
How will the monthly subscription work?
Aira's monthly subscription will last for 10 years and include all heat pump maintenance in that time. If homeowners sell their properties before the contract ends, they can either settle the subscription in full to exit early or transfer the subscription to the new owners.
最初,安装wi团队ll come and assess your home to see if it is suitable for a heat pump (for instance whether there is enough insulation). Installers may also replace radiators if it is deemed necessary.
There will be two heat pump models offered to customers, with one option being specially designed for much smaller homes to replacecombi boilers. These heat pumps will be manufactured in Poland and will be designed to integrate with other environmentally friendly devices such as solar panels, batteries, and electric car chargers.
Lewerth claims: “Consumers will save from the very first day,” and could even see savings of 30% meaning a typical monthly bill in the UK could be around £75.
When can you apply?
Aira has outlined plans to make monthly payments available for its heat pumps later this year. The Swedish company has already started trials in Italy for the scheme in anticipation of a roll-out across Europe.
This outlines the company's commitment to reducing carbon emissions and the company claim the aim is to make the scheme available to as many consumers as possible as Mix stated: “Now is the time to act.”
Can this improve UK heat pump installation rates?
The Energy Saving Trust estimates that an air source heat pump typically costs between £6,000 and £8,000, while aground source heat pump installationcan cost between £10,000 and £18,000.
These high installation costs have been blamed for the UK's relatively low heat pump installations, as according to the European Heat Pump Association, out of the 21 European countries evaluated, the UK has only 564 heat pumps per 100,000 people, ranking it 20th.
David Hilton, Homebuilding & Renovating's heating expert, explains: "Things are changing but more needs to be done to enable heat pumps as a common mainstream go-to heating solution."
Is monthly subscription 'too good to be true'?
Asked about this monthly heat pump subscription service, David Hilton warns: "If you are offered a ‘free’ heat pump or even a heat pump on an ‘affordable’ fixed monthly cost then there are a number of questions that you need to ask: Who owns the heat pump? If an investor is ‘giving’ you a heat pump for a fee then is it your heat pump or is it a ‘rental’? If the heat pump is not yours then will this fact negatively affect your home value and resale potential?"
Hilton added homeowners should check for who is accountable for the performance and maintenance of the heat pump. He continued: "If the heat pump is not yours then will this fact negatively affect your home value and resale potential?"
"If the fixed monthly cost is indeed a purchase agreement then (as you would with a car) find out the interest rate, the term of the agreement and whether it is fully paid off at the end of the term or is there a balloon payment? It is also worth checking if the loan is personally guaranteed or secured against the home.
"Check whether the agreement can be sold on by the loan company to another loan company. Check what early settlement options you have. Confirm if there are any extra costs. You may get the heat pump for the fixed monthly fee but what if there are extra costs for additional radiators, pipework changes and new cylinder and controls etc, who pays for that?
"Make sure you cross every T and dot every i. If it seems too good to be true then I would say it probably is."
How will this affect the BUS?
TheBoiler Upgrade Scheme(BUS) offers heat pump grants of £6,000 and £5,000 for ground andair source heat pump installation.
However, this scheme only applies to initial upfront payments rather than for instalments as offered by Aira.
Ultimately, this is likely to make the BUS redundant for heat pump installations such as this. Although, for those wanting theheat pump grantsthis payment method this method could be limited in its impact.
