- Alternative dispute resolution
- An independent way of settling a complaint without going to court, offered through consumer codes. More
- Boiler Upgrade Scheme
- The grant towards heat pumps in England and Wales: £7,500 for most homes that qualify. Only MCS certified installers in a consumer code can apply. More
- Cancellation period
- The time after signing a contract made in your home or at a distance during which you can usually cancel. More
- Certification body
- The organisation that certified a firm for MCS, shown on its register entry. More
- Commissioning
- The checks and settings an installer completes when a heat pump first runs, written up in a commissioning record you should receive. More
- Competent person scheme
- A government-authorised scheme letting registered firms self-certify building regulations work. More
- Consumer code
- Rules an installer agrees to follow on contracts, deposits, warranties and complaints. Ofgem lists HIES, RECC and MCS for the grant. More
- CTSI
- The Chartered Trading Standards Institute, which approves some consumer codes, including HIES and RECC. More
- Design flow temperature
- The water temperature a heating system is designed to run at on the coldest day. More
- DMCC Act 2024
- The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act; its Schedule 20 bans practices such as fake reviews and false approval claims. More
- Heat-loss calculation
- The room-by-room estimate of heat lost on a cold day, which sizes the heat pump and radiators. More
- HIES
- A CTSI approved consumer code listing deposit protection, insurance-backed warranties and dispute resolution. More
- MCS
- The Microgeneration Certification Scheme, which certifies installers for each technology; needed for the grant. More
- MCS 020 a)
- The MCS sound calculation for air source heat pumps installed under permitted development in England. More
- MCS certificate
- The certificate produced when a certified installer registers a completed installation. Keep it with your house documents. More
- MIS 3005-D
- The MCS heat pump design standard. More
- Network operator
- The company running the local electricity network. Some heat pumps are notified to it after connection; larger ones need its agreement first. More
- Permitted development
- Rules letting some work go ahead without a planning application. In England an air source heat pump fitted this way must meet conditions, including the MCS sound calculation. More
- RECC
- A CTSI approved consumer code requiring at least a two-year workmanship warranty with financial protection. More
- Register entry
- A firm's listing on MCS Find an installer: certification number, technologies, regions, grant registration and certification body. More
- Stage payment
- One of several payments made as a job progresses, rather than all at once. More
- Trading Standards
- Council teams that enforce consumer law. Reports usually reach them through Citizens Advice. More
- TrustMark
- A quality scheme some trades belong to; check claims on its Find a Business. More
- Voucher
- What Ofgem issues when it approves a grant application. The installer redeems it once the work is done, and it has a time limit. More
- Workmanship warranty
- The installer's promise to fix problems with its work for a period after the job. More
Words that sound official but are not
Adverts sometimes use phrases that sound like formal terms. For heat pump installers, the formal checks are the ones defined above: MCS certification, a consumer code, a competent person scheme and, if claimed, TrustMark. If a firm uses a term you cannot find here or on the register itself, ask what it means and which organisation grants it.