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Source: Homeowner Electrification Tracker Survey (HETS) 2025 by Electrify Research ¹
UK Knowledge Gap
If you read the British tabloids, you’d be forgiven for thinking that UK consumers are ideologically ‘anti-heat pump’ - a myth that even policymakers buy into. Heat pumps offer opportunities for consumers, including lower bills, more comfortable homes, cleaner air and home electrification which paves the way for integrating solar, EVs and other technologies and saving even more. But despite the positive trajectory of heat pump installations over the past three years (including a 63% increase in hydronic heat pump installation from 2023 to 2024) , the UK still lags behind peer countries. The UK is also off the pace on meeting its own target of installing 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028. Last year’s record-breaking installation figure of 98,000 is still only a sixth of what’s needed annually.
Why isn’t adoption going faster? One reason may be that UK homeowners just don’t know much about heat pumps. This piece tries to answer the question, Is heat pump unfamiliarity holding back growth?
In our Homeowner Electrification Tracking Study (HETS) we ask participants “How much would you say you know about heat pumps for home heating?” Thirty percent of UK respondents say they are familiar with them compared with an average of 47% across the US, Germany, and France. And when considering their next heating system purchase, UK homeowners are almost twice as likely to opt for a gas boiler compared to their counterparts in these countries. Only 29% of UK consumers plan to purchase a heat pump, compared to an average of 42% across the other nations surveyed. From this perspective the UK appears to be a laggard (and by most hard metrics, it is).
However, there’s reasons for optimism too: familiarity with heat pumps in the UK has been increasing. According to HETS, familiarity in the UK grew from 34% in July 2023 to 39% in October 2024. The latest quarterly wave of HETS (Wave 7) is currently in the field: it will be interesting to see if the trend continues. So, while the UK is starting from a lower base, the trend in this country is positive whereas it’s somewhat plateaued in France, Germany and the US.
Source: Homeowner Electrification Tracker Survey (HETS) 2025 by Electrify Research ²
The relationship between familiarity and purchase intent is yet more striking. Among respondents considering a heat pump, 37% of those familiar with the technology rated themselves as “extremely likely” to go ahead and purchase one. By contrast, not one of the unfamiliar respondents expressed the same level of certainty, even if they said they were interested in a heat pump (and quite a few were). This suggests that familiarity is not just correlated with heat pump adoption; it’s likely to be a prerequisite. However, it’s important to remember that while increasing familiarity is a crucial step, it is not the only factor influencing adoption. Upfront costs, installer availability, and uncertainty about performance are all considerations but we have and will address these in other articles in this series.
Back to familiarity, consumers who are familiar with heat pumps show a greater sense of urgency about upgrading their systems. They are 20% more likely overall to plan a system change and are nearly three times as likely to intend to do so within the next 12 months. One interpretation is that those researching heating system upgrades are more likely to encounter information about heat pumps, increasing their awareness and likelihood of adoption. It’s hard to say whether it's chicken or egg; in reality, it’s likely to be a bit of both. Either way, familiarity is a vital metric.
Knowledge is Power
Understanding the benefits of heat pumps is also strongly linked to familiarity. When asked, “What do you think are the greatest benefits of getting a heat pump for your home?” a fifth of unfamiliar respondents said they “don’t know.”
However, only 9% of this group claimed there were 'no benefits' to heat pumps, highlighting that unfamiliarity does not equate to opposition. Those who are familiar tend to appreciate the benefits more and are more likely to be swayed by them.
By contrast, those familiar with heat pumps were four times less likely to say they 'don’t know' the benefits and were twice as likely to cite efficiency and performance as advantages. Those who were more familiar with heat pumps were also nearly 10% less likely to perceive high upfront costs as a barrier, suggesting that knowledge can help reframe affordability concerns. While other factors - such as financial readiness or knowledge of the BUS grant - may also play a role, the data indicates that increasing familiarity has a tangible impact on perceived affordability.
Interestingly, 30% of those respondents who were unfamiliar with heat pumps identified their lack of knowledge itself as a reason they might not choose one, compared to just 9% of those who were familiar. This highlights a clear opportunity for education and awareness campaigns to close the familiarity gap.
Government Action
On the 31st of December last year, the UK Government announced that they would be creating a single access point for all consumers, homeowners, landlords and tenants at varying points in their retrofit journey through GOV.UK. It will simplify and expand the current government advice and information offer by bringing into one space the available sources of funding, links to trusted installers and other relevant information. This will be a big step forward, and we hope to see more details in the upcoming Warm Homes Plan.
Other Solutions
Organisations looking to increase sales of heat pumps should also consider how they can improve prospective customer familiarity. One obvious way of doing this is through advertising. Vaillant, for example, advertise heat pumps on TV regularly – including during prime time for their ‘able to pay’ target audience such as during international rugby matches. This is an excellent opportunity to dispel myths and showcase aspects of heat pump ownership that homeowners will be interested in (see Part 1 of this series).
Some organisations, such as the Heat Pump Association and Octopus Energy, have worked to increase familiarity amongst decision making ministers and parliamentarians by demonstrating heat pumps directly outside parliament and at party conferences. And Nesta, the UK’s innovation agency, is currently running a ‘visit a heat pump’ programme, allowing prospective consumers across the country to see heat pumps in operation in nearby homes. But this campaign although very positive is relatively small scale.
Another way consumer awareness can be improved would be through expanding the professional knowledge base for heating system installation. If, for example, a low carbon heating module were added to the Gas Safe training certification (and crucially the annual re-certification), then within a year all heating system installers would have expert knowledge on heat pumps. This knowledge would then trickle down to their consumers.
Fundamentally, by addressing the knowledge gap, we can empower homeowners to make informed decisions, which is particularly important in a market where misinformation and inertia often dominate.
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The Homeowner Electrification Tracking Study (HETS)
All data comes from Electrify Research’s Homeowner Electrification Tracking Study (HETS), the world’s largest ongoing study of consumer attitudes, usage, and path to purchase in home electrification. Based on 24,000 interviews with homeowners in the UK, France, Germany, and the US, it provides a data dashboard offering instant, actionable insights into homeowners, helping organisations identify key barriers and drivers to purchase, refine marketing and communications, and make data-driven decisions to accelerate the adoption of heat pumps, EVs, rooftop solar, and home batteries. With powerful filter and compare features, advanced analytics, deep qualitative insights, and real-time tracking, HETS delivers real homeowner decisions, real adoption trends, and real intelligence to lead the energy transition.
[1] Sample: UK homeowners who currently own mains gas boiler. / Sample Size range: 908 to 1029 respondents. Question Wording: “Which type of home heating system are you hoping / planning to change to?” [Options: Electric storage heaters, electric heat pump, mains gas boiler e.g. a combi boiler or conventional boiler, bottled gas / oil / wood / coal boiler, shared heating system with other residents e.g. in my building], By familiarity: “How much would you say you know about heat pumps for home heating?” [On a scale of 1 to 5].. Fieldwork: Conducted with approximately equal sample sizes over six quarterly waves: July 2023, October 2023, January 2024, April 2024, July 2024 and October 2024. Question Wording: “How much would you say you know about heat pumps for home heating?” [On a scale of 1 to 5]. Fieldwork: Conducted with approximately equal sample sizes over six quarterly waves: July 2023, October 2023, January 2024, April 2024, July 2024 and October 2024
[2] Sample: UK homeowners who currently own don’t own a heat pump, considering a heating system change in the next 3 years. Sample Size Range: 709 to 1033 respondents. Question Wording: “How much would you say you know about heat pumps for home heating?” [On a scale of 1 to 5]. Fieldwork: Conducted with approximately equal sample sizes over six quarterly waves: July 2023, October 2023, January 2024, April 2024, July 2024 and October 2024
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