Heat Pump Installation Quote: How to Compare Commercial Bids

Two quotes for the same building can differ by a large margin without either bidder being dishonest, because each has assumed different things. A heat pump installation quote that does not say what it assumes cannot be compared with one that does. This guide shows how to force bids onto the same footing, which lines a commercial quote should contain, which exclusions to hunt for, and how to score the result. It is the practical companion to choosing a commercial heat pump installer, and the figures link to the commercial heat pump cost guide.

Step 1: give every bidder the same brief

Before any price arrives, decide what every bidder will be given: twelve months of gas or oil consumption, half-hourly meter data if it exists, the plant room and roof or compound drawings, the emitter schedule if known, and the building’s operating calendar. Bids built on different data are not comparable, and a bidder who prices before asking for data is guessing.

Step 2: the lines a commercial quote should contain

• Sizing basis: a heat-loss survey and consumption data, with the design peak load stated. Not floor area.
• Efficiency: seasonal efficiency (SCOP) to BS EN 14825 at a stated design flow temperature, not only a rated COP to BS EN 14511.
• Plant: number and size of units in the cascade, buffer arrangement, controls and weather compensation.
• Emitter and pipework works: what is replaced and what is retained, priced as a schedule.
• Electrical: supply capacity check with the distribution network operator (DNO), any upgrade, G99 work if there is generation, and who pays.
• Siting and acoustics: plant compound or roof deck design and a BS 4142 acoustic assessment where neighbours are close.
• Refrigerant: F-Gas certified handling and the refrigerant type.
• Commissioning: a pack that proves delivered efficiency against the design figure, plus a maintenance plan.
• Programme: survey, design, planning, supply, installation and commissioning dates, and the changeover plan.

If a line is missing, ask whether it is excluded or forgotten. The answer decides whether it appears later as a variation.

Step 3: hunt for exclusions

Most of the gap between a low bid and a high one sits in what the low bid leaves out. Typical exclusions are the emitter upgrades the flow temperature requires, the DNO supply upgrade, the acoustic assessment, planning fees, making good after the plant is installed, and the commissioning pack. Put them in a table and ask each bidder to mark every row as included, excluded or provisional.

Step 4: score the bids on one sheet

The last row is the one that counts. Add back the cost of every exclusion, using the highest estimate from the other bids, and compare the adjusted totals. Then compare the efficiency promises, because the running cost over the life of the plant usually outweighs a capital difference.

Contract points to settle before you sign

• The efficiency the design promises, how it will be proved at commissioning, and the remedy if it is not met.
• Who is responsible for the DNO supply application, its cost and its programme risk.
• The programme, the changeover plan and the arrangement that keeps the existing boiler live until commissioning.
• Warranty terms in writing, with any insurance-backed cover evidenced by the policy document and not by a badge.
• The handover pack: commissioning record, controls settings, maintenance schedule and certificates.
• Payment terms linked to milestones, with a retention until commissioning is proved.

None of these is exotic, and a firm that has done commercial work will have standard answers. The ones that struggle to give them are the ones to question before the order is placed.

Step 5: check the funding assumptions in each bid

A bid that assumes a grant should name it, its eligibility and its status. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (England and Wales) can be used for a building used for a business, not only a home: it pays £7,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump that replaces a fossil-fuel heating system, within DESNZ capacity caps (45 kWth for a single system), and hybrid systems are excluded. Larger plant falls outside those caps. The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme has had no open application window since Phase 4 closed in November 2024, and gov.uk lists no further phase. The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund closed in July 2025 and gov.uk states that no successor fund is planned. The Green Heat Network Fund runs in application rounds: Round 12 closed on 25 September 2026, so check gov.uk for the next round. Tax relief works differently from what many guides say: a heat pump is part of a space or water heating system, which HMRC lists as an integral feature (special-rate plant), and full expensing covers main-rate plant only. The Annual Investment Allowance gives 100% relief up to its limit (£1 million), and companies can then claim a 50% first-year allowance on special-rate plant, with a 6% writing-down allowance on the rest. Confirm the treatment with an accountant. Always confirm the exact treatment with an accountant. The grants and funding page keeps each route current.

Red flags in a bid

• A fixed price before anyone has surveyed the building.
• An efficiency figure with no standard or flow temperature attached.
• No emitter schedule, with an assumption that existing radiators will do.
• No mention of the DNO supply.
• Certificates described but not given as numbers you can look up.

Before a short list becomes a decision, verify the certificates using the guide to checking MCS heat pump installers, and see the approach to shortlisting installers. If you want a neutral reference figure to test bids against, the brief request works from your meter data with no obligation. Commissioning and handover terms, which are often missing from a bid, are set out in the commissioning checklist for commercial buildings.

How do I compare commercial heat pump quotes?

Give every bidder the same data, require the same lines in the quote, mark every exclusion as included, excluded or provisional, add the excluded costs back, and compare the adjusted totals together with the efficiency each bid promises.

What should a commercial heat pump quote include?

The sizing basis, a seasonal efficiency to BS EN 14825 at a stated flow temperature, the plant and controls, emitter works, the DNO supply position, acoustics, F-Gas handling, commissioning and maintenance, and a programme.

Why are heat pump quotes so different?

Because bidders assume different things: different sizing methods, different flow temperatures, different emitter works and different exclusions. Most of the gap between a low and a high bid sits in what the low bid leaves out.

Is a fixed price quote without a survey reliable?

No. A price given before the building and its emitters have been surveyed rests on assumptions, and the difference tends to appear later as a variation.