Plumbing and heating installers say they are optimistic about the future of their businesses as more households explore low-carbon heating solutions, according to new research.
Daikin UK’s latest Installer Confidence Monitor, which surveys members of its Sustainable Home Network, found that 53% predict that between half and all of their business will come from installing heat pumps and hybrid heat pumps in the next five years.
Meanwhile, almost two thirds 62% expect their profits to increase over the next 12 months, and four out of five (88%) expect profits to increase over the next five years.
The research comes amid increased calls for government support for households to make the heat pump transition, with nine out of ten (93%) agreeing that more must be done to make heat pumps affordable and accessible. More than half (59%) agree that the government should support hybrid heat pumps as an important transitional technology for homeowners.
Daikin UK’s research also found that installers are seeing more inbound enquiries from homeowners about heat pumps, with 84% reporting an increase over the last three months.
Installers believe this is down to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (69%), the introduction for zero VAT on cost of heat pumps (42%) and the energy price cap increase (38%). However, despite an increase in customer interest, installers (62%) believe public understanding of renewable technology is below par at the moment. Nine out of ten (93%) think educating homeowners is important to driving demand for hybrid heat pumps and heat pumps.
Martin Passingham, product and training manager at Daikin UK, comments: “It’s encouraging that Sustainable Home Network installers see a bright future for heat pumps and hybrid heat pumps, and are confident (84%) about the future of their businesses. Upskilling is vital to help decarbonise the UK’s home heating, so it’s great to see that training is still a top priority for many, who plan to invest time and money in installation training for both heat pumps (87%) and hybrid heat pumps (40%) over the next 12 months. This will help installers future-proof their businesses as existing customers upgrade to cleaner, green options, while growing and expand their customer base.”
For more information, visit https://sustainablehomenetwork.daikin.co.uk
Original Article: https://www.phamnews.co.uk/heat-pumps-are-the-future-say-installers/