If you’re exploring heat pumps, you’ve probably come across a jungle of industry logos and badges on installers’ websites: MCS, RECC, HIES, NICEIC, NAPIT, TrustMark… It all looks reassuring — but what do these logos really mean?
Do they guarantee quality? Safety? Accountability?
The short answer: absolutely not!
In this guide, we unpack the maze of schemes and certifications so you can understand who’s who in the UK’s heat pump world, what protection (if any) they offer, and where to turn when something goes wrong. Because in the world of low-carbon heating:
Accreditation ≠ Accountability
Accreditation ≠ Competence
MCS: The Badge Everyone Talks About
What is it?
The Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) is the gateway for renewable installations like heat pumps. If you want to access the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), your installer must be MCS certified.
What does it do?
MCS sets standards for both products and installers. It’s meant to ensure systems are designed, installed and commissioned correctly. In reality, that often doesn’t happen.
What it doesn’t do:
Guarantee that the person on site is competent, experienced or properly trained. MCS is a process, not a badge of skill, and the system is only as strong as the weakest link in its enforcement.
Also important: MCS does not audit or certify installers directly. That job is outsourced to Certification Bodies, who are authorised by MCS and accredited by UKAS to operate the scheme. And the quality of those audits? Inconsistent at best.
Certification Bodies: Who Actually Certifies Installers
Certification Bodies (CBs) are accredited under ISO/IEC 17065 by UKAS to operate the MCS scheme. They don’t install heat pumps. They certify companies to carry out installations that meet MCS standards. The installers themselves then certify each install on the MCS database. CBs assess the installer’s competence and processes… not every install.
What are MCS standards? That’s a good question. Even insiders struggle to define them clearly, and we’ve seen plenty of “MCS-compliant” systems that are unsafe, badly designed or completely unfit for purpose.
Here are the main certification bodies in the heat pump space:
- NICEIC (via Certsure)
Known for electrical certification, NICEIC also certifies heat pump installers under MCS.
Installer training? Not directly. They assess and audit. Training comes from external providers.
Complaints: If your MCS certificate lists NICEIC, they are responsible for technical issues. - NAPIT
Similar role to NICEIC, offering MCS certification across various renewable trades.
Installer training? Again, NAPIT certifies but doesn’t train. Installers must prove competency, often via paperwork.
Complaints: If NAPIT certified the install, they’re who you approach for faults. - OFTEC
Best known for oil heating, but they also certify heat pump installers.
Complaints: Go to OFTEC if your installer was certified by them under MCS.
There are others, but these are the most commonly seen on heat pump projects.
Coming Soon: MCS 2.0
MCS has announced plans to launch its own consumer code, potentially replacing the need for installers to be members of RECC or HIES. But unless it gains CTSI approval, it may offer weaker consumer protections than the current framework. In short, MCS 2.0 could simplify things or strip out safeguards.
Consumer Codes: Where Service Complaints Go
All MCS installers must belong to a consumer code, which governs their conduct, payment terms, cancellation policies and dispute resolution.
The main ones in the heat pump space:
- RECC (Renewable Energy Consumer Code)
The biggest. Covers sales practices, contracts, deposits, complaints.
Complaints: Lodge them with RECC for commercial issues. - HIES (Home Insulation & Energy Systems)
Offers a similar framework to RECC, plus optional insurance with a dispute resolution arm.
Complaints: Service, delay, and contract issues go here.
UKAS: Who Watches the Watchers?
The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) oversees all MCS Certification Bodies. Their job is to ensure these bodies (like NICEIC, NAPIT) are competent and operating fairly.
UKAS does not resolve homeowner complaints. But if you believe a Certification Body failed in its duties (for example, by allowing poor workmanship to go unchecked) you can complain to UKAS.
The Big Myth: Accreditation ≠ Accountability
There’s a dangerous assumption that if a company is MCS certified and has a handful of logos on its website, you’re in safe hands.
That’s not how it works.
- MCS accreditation doesn’t guarantee skill on the tools.
- Certification Bodies don’t oversee every install.
- Consumer codes may not cover technical issues, and will bounce you back to the certification body
- Subcontractors (and even sub-subcontractors) often do the actual work, despite not being MCS certified themselves.
And the result? Installations that are technically certified, but practically unusable, unsafe, or massively inefficient.
Accreditation ≠ Competence
A heat pump system can be fully certified and still fail spectacularly. On the Renewable Heating Hub forums, we’ve seen countless examples of:
- Dangerous wiring
- Poorly designed systems
- Installed without plans or design documentation
- Unsafe cylinder placements
- Shockingly plumbed buffer tanks
- Incorrectly specified units
- Installed by people who clearly didn’t understand what they were doing
All certified. All compliant. All disasters.
If you want real insight into finding a skilled, competent installer (not just someone who’s passed an audit) read our guide: Looking for the best heat pump installer in the UK? Here’s how to find them
So Who Do You Actually Complain To?
| Issue Type | Who to Contact |
|---|---|
| Poor workmanship, unsafe install | Installer → Certification Body (e.g. NICEIC) |
| Contract breach, delays, payments | Installer → Consumer Code (e.g. RECC, HIES) |
| Certification body failure | UKAS |
| Design flaws, poor efficiency | Start with Cert Body, but likely no clear recourse |
| Subcontracted work gone wrong | Difficult — often falls into the grey zone |
Don’t Be Logo-Blinded
Logos are not a guarantee of quality. They’re just the entry ticket to a scheme that too often protects its structure more than the homeowner. If you’re about to invest £10,000+ in a heat pump system that will define your comfort and energy bills for years to come:
- Ask who will actually be doing the install.
- Ask which Certification Body and Consumer Code they’re with.
- Ask whether subcontractors are used — and if they’re certified.
- Ask for a design before signing anything.
And remember:
Accreditation ≠ Accountability
Accreditation ≠ Competence