If your home is off the gas grid and heated by oil or LPG, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme now takes £9,000 off an air source or ground source heat pump, £1,500 more than the standard grant. That improves the upfront maths but does not settle running costs, and for some off-gas homes the honest answer is "not yet".
How common off-gas homes are in East Riding
Government estimates for 2024 put about 20,800 of the roughly 164,700 domestic properties in East Riding of Yorkshire off the gas grid. That is about one in eight (12.7%), against 15.6% for England and 6% in Hull. It counts homes without a gas meter, whatever their heating, so not all are on oil or LPG. On mains gas, the grant is £7,500 and the comparison differs: see our heat pump vs gas boiler running costs guide.
Who gets £9,000 and who gets £7,500
The scheme is open in England and Wales. An MCS-certified installer applies to Ofgem on your behalf, and the grant comes off your quote and invoice. The £9,000 applies from 21 July 2026 when an air-to-water (air source) or ground source heat pump replaces oil or LPG heating in a property that is off the gas grid.
| Your situation | Air source (air-to-water) or ground source | Air-to-air (homes only) |
|---|---|---|
| Off the gas grid, replacing oil or LPG | £9,000 | £2,500 |
| Off the gas grid, replacing electric, coal or other heating | £7,500 | £2,500 |
| Mains gas property, including a capped or clamped supply | £7,500 | £2,500 |
An off-gas home heated by electricity gets £7,500, not £9,000. The scheme funds heat pumps and, in limited cases, biomass boilers, but not solar panels or batteries.
What "off the gas grid" means here
Ofgem's installer guidance (version 5.1, July 2026) says the property must not:
- be fuelled by mains gas (a capped or clamped supply still counts as mains gas);
- have any record of an existing gas meter point;
- be attached to a heat network;
- be a new build.
Eligible self-builds can get £7,500 but not £9,000. Since 28 April 2026 an EPC is no longer required. Without one, your installer supplies other evidence, such as a recent fuel receipt and photographs of the heating system.
The window: 21 July 2026 to 31 March 2027
The higher grant applies to applications properly made between those dates, and Ofgem will review it before the next financial year. An application is only properly made once the evidence, your consent and identity checks are in, so do not plan around the final weeks. After a voucher is issued, the heat pump must be installed and commissioned, and the voucher redeemed, within three months (six for ground source), or the voucher expires. Installing a heat pump in a home is also zero-rated for VAT until 31 March 2027, reverting to 5% from 1 April 2027.
Running costs: heat pump against oil and LPG
The Nottingham Energy Partnership's August 2026 fuel cost comparison uses East Midlands prices, and its electricity prices include VAT and standing charges, so treat it as a guide:
| Heating | Fuel price (August 2026) | Efficiency assumed | Cost per kWh of heat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heating oil (kerosene) | 86.75p per litre | 90% | 9.86p |
| LPG (propane) | 127.16p per litre | 90% | 21.29p |
| Direct electric, standard tariff | 31.00p per kWh | 100% | 31.00p |
| Air source heat pump | 31.00p per kWh | 294% | 10.54p |
| Ground source heat pump | 31.00p per kWh | 350% | 8.86p |
On those figures, an air source heat pump cost about half as much per unit of heat as LPG and a third as much as direct electric, but slightly more than oil.
The Competition and Markets Authority found that average heating oil prices rose from 64p a litre in February 2026 to 104p in March, then peaked at 123p in April, 92% above February. On the Partnership's conversion (9.78 kWh per litre at 90% efficiency), that is roughly 7.3p, 11.8p and 14.0p per kWh of heat. Meanwhile, Ofgem's cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 sets an average Direct Debit electricity unit rate of 26.32p per kWh. Domestic electricity carries no VAT from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027, while other domestic fuels stay at 5%. At 294% efficiency, 26.32p is about 9p per kWh of heat before standing charges.
Against oil, running costs are closer to a draw; the stronger arguments are the £9,000 and leaving a fuel with prices this volatile.
When a heat pump is not the right call
- The house loses heat faster than you are prepared to fix. Ofgem's property owner guidance says heat pumps perform best in a well-insulated home, and that loft or cavity wall insulation can significantly reduce heat loss. The grant does not require insulation first, so read your installer's heat loss assessment: if heat loss is high, insulate first or expect higher running costs than the table shows.
- You are on oil, oil is cheap, and bills are all that matter. If oil fell back to February 2026's 64p a litre (about 7.3p per kWh of heat), it would undercut a heat pump at the October 2026 cap unit rate (about 9p). With an efficient oil boiler in good order, waiting is reasonable.
- Your address has gas history. A capped or clamped meter, or any record of a gas meter point, means £7,500 rather than £9,000, so re-run the numbers.
- It is a new build. New builds cannot get the higher grant, and most are outside the scheme.
- You would be rushing to beat the deadline. A hurried design is a poor trade for an extra £1,500, and Ofgem's guidance says it can issue vouchers until 31 December 2029.
ECO4 runs until 31 December 2026 after a nine-month extension. It is aimed at low-income, fuel-poor and vulnerable households and can fund heating upgrades, and a home that has already had public funding for low-carbon heating is usually not eligible for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. If your household might qualify, ask your council whether it takes part or contact an energy supplier first; our grants guide covers the other schemes.
How we quote for an off-gas heat pump
YEERS is a Hull-based, MCS-certified installer covering East Yorkshire, Humberside and North East Lincolnshire. We carry out a heat loss calculation on every property, recommend insulation upgrades where they are needed, and apply for the grant on your behalf. Every installation carries our 10-year workmanship warranty. If you are eligible for £9,000, Ofgem's guidance says your quote should show it. Read how the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant comes off your quote, or see our air source heat pump installers in Yorkshire page. When you request a quote, tell us your current fuel and whether the property has ever had a gas supply.
