Heating engineers across Britain are being urged to take up the offer of a government-funded heat pump to install in their own homes, as part of efforts to roll out the clean technology.

Research and innovation firm Nesta is running a “start at home” initiative to provide heating engineers with a funded heat pump and training on how to install it, so they can learn the ropes before fitting the technology for customers.

The initiative comes after a pilot scheme by Nesta found supporting heating engineers to install their first heat pump in their home boosted their technical knowledge, understanding of living with the technology, and confidence in promoting them to customers.

Experts warn large-scale deployment of clean electric-powered heat pumps is key to replacing the widespread use of gas boilers in homes to reduce carbon emissions as part of targets to cut greenhouse gases to “net zero” by 2050.

That means installing round 450,000 heat pumps in existing homes a year by 2030, requiring 38,000 more installers trained and confident to install heat pumps before then, Nesta said.

The organisation said heat pumps were more efficient than gas boilers, potentially lowering energy bills, and tend to require less maintenance and last longer, keeping homes warm for years.

But Nesta pointed to research by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) suggesting only 27% of newly trained installers have gone on to complete an installation within a year, partly due to a lack of a confidence in the technology and the process of putting it in.

So the start at home scheme is being rolled out with partners across England, Wales and Scotland, providing heat engineers with heat pumps for their own homes and expert support, and putting them on the path to the accreditation needed to install the technology for customers under government schemes.

Madeleine Gabriel, Nesta’s director of sustainable future, said: “As more and more households look to switch their home heating, it will be all hands to the pump – and we want to help ensure that Britain’s heating workforce is ready to respond.

“Although lots of heating engineers are curious about heat pumps, many rarely get the chance to see one, let alone install one.

“The ‘start at home’ scheme changes that by beginning where it makes most sense – at home.

“Our message to all heating engineers is simple: secure your future by getting hands-on with the tech with installation yourself.”

Eric MacRae, a heating engineer who took part in the pilot which ran across Scotland, added: “I have confidence now that I’ve got one running in my own property that I have 24/7 experience of.

“Instead of giving people a spiel, I can now speak from personal experience of using it myself.

“It’s giving me an extra edge, and I feel that I can emphasise more of the advantages than I previously would have been able to.”

Compensation payouts on around 14 million unfair motor finance deals could start next year, at an average of about £700 each, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said.

The regulator previously suggested motorists could receive less than £950 per deal, but it now suggests they could receive less compensation than previously estimated.

The redress scheme was previously estimated to cost lenders between £9bn and £18bn; it is now expected to cost lenders £8.2bn, based on about 85 per cent of eligible consumers taking part.

Motor finance firms broke the law or its rules by not properly informing customers about commission paid by lenders to the car dealers that sold them the loan, the regulator said. This meant that many motorists did not have the opportunity to negotiate or find a better deal and therefore may have paid a higher interest rate for their loan.

Nikhil Rathi, the FCA’s chief executive, said in a statement that it was time for customers to get fair compensation.

“Many motor finance lenders did not comply with the law or the rules,” Mr Rathi said. “Now we have legal clarity, it’s time their customers get fair compensation. Our scheme aims to be simple for people to use and lenders to implement.”

The FCA boss said that not everyone would get what they wanted following the ruling, as the regulator will work on the compensation scheme.

“We recognise that there will be a wide range of views on the scheme, its scope, timeframe and how compensation is calculated,” he said. “On such a complex issue, not everyone will get everything they would like.

“But we want to work together on the best possible scheme and draw a line under this issue quickly.

“That certainty is vital, so a trusted motor finance market can continue to serve millions of families every year.”

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The FCA found that car buyers “may have been charged too much” by their lenders, meaning that anyone who bought their car before January 2021 using a car finance scheme could be eligible for compensation.

Some companies used “discretionary commission arrangements” with brokers, which gave them the power to adjust customers’ interest rates on Personal Contract Purchase and Hire Purchase agreements.

The watchdog, which looked into data from across some 32 million agreements made between 2007 and 2024, believes setting up a free compensation scheme will be easier and quicker for customers to access, and more cost-effective for firms by removing much of the legal and administrative work.

As up to 90 per cent of new cars purchased in the UK are bought using motor finance, it’s estimated that millions could potentially be due payouts following the ruling.

Because these brokers earned more commission on higher rates, this created an incentive to maximise the rate given. An estimated 40 per cent of car finance deals were thought to be affected by the issue.

The FCA outlawed this practice from 28 January 2021, but acknowledged that a “high number” of people have now come forward to claim they had been overcharged before the ban.

NEW DELHI: Auto retails surged by a strong 34% to a record 11.6 lakh units in the auspicious Navratri period as GST cuts – that came into effect from September 22 – as well as start of the festive season in north boosted demand. The same was 8.6 lakh units in the nine-day Navratri period last year, according to retail sales data released by Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). The full month of September, however, had a relatively-modest 5% growth year-on-year on total automobile retails of 18.3 lakh units (against 17.4 lakh units). The two months are seen as broadly incomparable for statistical understanding since the larger part of September this year did not see customers take deliveries as they waited for price cuts from September 22 when the lower GST rates kicked in. The Navratri growth saw record demand for passenger cars, two-wheelers, and 3-wheelers. The passenger vehicles numbers were up 35% at 2.2 lakh units against 1.6 lakh units in the Navratri period last year.For 2-wheelers, the growth was 36% on total retail of 8.3 lakh units against 6.1 lakh units in the same period last year, as per FADA.

“Navratri 2025 will go down as one of the most memorable chapters in the country’s automotive retail journey… For the first time, dealerships across the nation witnessed record-breaking footfalls and deliveries,” FADA VP Sai Giridhar said.Companies across the board had passed on the GST benefits to the market, and some had even sweetened the deal further through festive offers. Maruti, Hyundai, Tata Motors, Mercedes-Benz, TVS, HMSI and Bajaj Auto witnessed strong traction. “It reminded us what the right policy at the right time can do for a nation’s sentiment.”Three-wheelers saw a growth of 25% at 46,204 units (37,097 units) in Navratris, while commercial vehicle retails were up 15% at 33,856 units (29,481). Sales of tractors were up 19% at 21,604 units.Companies expect demand to stay strong till the Diwali period, and have seen stock out of certain models. Shailesh Chandra, MD of Tata Motors’ Passenger Vehicles division, said the surge in demand “sets a promising tone for sustained growth” in the months ahead. “Across our portfolio, customer interest remained exceptionally strong with new bookings doubling in the latter half of September following the lowering of GST rates.”Mercedes-Benz sold a record 2,500 cars in the Navratri period.“We have never seen this kind of a demand in the past. This is a record for the number of cars sold in a particular number of days,” Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer said.Mahindra & Mahindra said customer purchases are at record levels. “Thanks to the impetus from GST 2.0 and the preceding weeks’ pent-up demand, we have seen robust growth in dealer-reported customer retails during the first nine days of Navratri with over 60% growth in the SUV segment when compared to the first nine days of Navratri last year,” said Nalinikanth Gollagunta, CEO of the company’s Automotive Division.