Everything between you and an MCS air-to-air certificate.

Installer certification bodies need UKAS accreditation for air-to-air scope before they can certify you. Get in the queue now so you are assessed in the first wave, not the fifth.

• Choose your MCS certification body+3

  NAPIT and Certsure (NICEIC) have said they intend to offer air-to-air certification. If you already hold MCS for another technology, start with your existing body.

  • MCS: Certification bodies(opens in a new tab)
  • NAPIT(opens in a new tab)
  • NICEIC (Certsure)(opens in a new tab)
• Register interest for air-to-air scope+2

  Ask your body to notify you as soon as its UKAS accreditation for air-to-air lands, and what evidence it will want at assessment.

• Read the redeveloped MCS installer scheme documents+2

  The updated Installer Operating Requirements set out how your business must run quality, complaints and records. Map your current processes against them.

  • MCS: Getting ready for air-to-air (implementation update)(opens in a new tab)
• Join a consumer code+2

  MCS installers must belong to a consumer code approved by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, such as RECC or HIES. Budget for the joining process and deposit protection.

  • RECC(opens in a new tab)
  • HIES(opens in a new tab)

MCS requires the Technical Supervisor assigned to each air-to-air installation to hold Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps (RACHP) competence at Level 3 or above. This is usually the longest lead time.

• Name your Technical Supervisor for air-to-air+3

  One person takes responsibility for the safety and quality of every air-to-air job. They can be employed, or brought in by agreement, but must be named.

• Confirm RACHP Level 3 or above+4

  Check the supervisor's qualification against the MCS-approved RACHP Level 3 courses. If you are training now, note the course and expected completion date.

  • MCS: Getting ready for air-to-air (implementation update)(opens in a new tab)
• Hold F-gas company certification+3

  Businesses installing refrigerant systems need company F-gas certification, with engineers individually certified. Most air-conditioning firms already have this; heating firms often do not.

  • REFCOM(opens in a new tab)
• Cover flammable refrigerant handling+1

  Many heating-optimised split systems use mildly flammable R32. Confirm your engineers are trained and equipped for the refrigerants on the products you will fit.

Only products listed on the MCS Product Directory can be installed under the grant, and the design must heat the whole home. Choose your range and learn the new design method before demand arrives.

• Shortlist products from the MCS Product Directory+3

  Air-to-air entries are being added as product certification bodies process them. Manufacturers such as Daikin have publicly backed the scheme, but pick on performance, support and lead times, not brand alone.

  • MCS Product Directory(opens in a new tab)
• Line up supply with your distributor+1

  Agree stock, pricing and lead times for your chosen range now. Launch-week demand can empty shelves.

• Learn MIS 3005-D and MCS 031b+3

  MIS 3005-D now includes air-to-air design requirements, and MCS 031b sets the performance estimate method. Run a practice design on a real house.

  • MCS: Standards and tools library(opens in a new tab)
• Standardise your room-by-room heat loss survey+2

  Build a survey template your team will use on every job, so designs are consistent and auditable.

• Decide how you will advise on hot water+1

  Most air-to-air systems do not heat water. Have a clear, honest answer ready for customers who currently get hot water from their boiler.

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) is installer-led. You apply, Ofgem pays you, and your customer sees £2,500 off the quote. Quoting it wrong costs you the grant or the customer's trust.

• Screen eligibility before you quote+3

  Residential only for air-to-air. England and Wales only. Must replace fossil fuel or electric heating. No social housing. Most new builds excluded, qualifying self-builds allowed.

  • Ofgem: Boiler Upgrade Scheme for installers(opens in a new tab)
• Show the £2,500 as a line on the quote+2

  Show the full price, the grant deduction and the customer's contribution separately. Never present the grant as guaranteed before Ofgem approves it.

• Map the application and consent flow+2

  You submit the application. The customer must confirm with Ofgem within 14 calendar days or it may be rejected. Build a reminder into your process.

• Respect the 120-day window+1

  Commissioning must be no more than 120 days before the application. Plan install and paperwork together.

• Position it as heating, not air conditioning+2

  Design and sell to heat the whole home. Cooling is a benefit, not the pitch. Cooling-led jobs put the grant at risk.

Certified firms will be scarce at first and homeowners are already waiting. The firms that win are the ones with a plan the day their certificate arrives.

• Define your service area by postcode district+2

  Pick the districts you can reach profitably and list them. Start tight and expand with capacity.

• Set installs-per-week capacity for the first eight weeks+2

  Know how many surveys and installs your teams can do. Marketing should never outrun fitting.

• Promise a response time and staff it+1

  Enquiries go cold within hours. Decide who answers, how fast, and what happens out of hours.

• Prepare honest launch creative+1

  Explain the grant, the hot water question and your certification plainly. Avoid 'free air con' claims; they attract the wrong jobs and the wrong attention.

• Plan how you will capture reviews and case studies+1

  Your first ten air-to-air jobs are your best marketing. Agree a process to photograph, document and ask for reviews.