How-to Guide
What happens on the MCS onboarding call (and how to prepare)
The move to the redeveloped MCS scheme starts with a 15-minute onboarding call. What MCS asks on it, who should be on it, and how to prepare.
Georgia Eves
30 October 2026
Compliance
20 articles tagged with Compliance
How-to Guide
Do you still need RECC or HIES on the redeveloped MCS scheme?
The redeveloped MCS scheme doesn't require RECC or HIES, and BUS work no longer does either. When it's safe to cancel, and what replaces the code.
Jamie Duncan
26 October 2026
How-to Guide
Heat pump grants 2026: amounts, rules and quoting
Current Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant amounts, which heat pump jobs qualify, and the quoting rules your business has to get right before you apply.
Ben Clarke
21 October 2026
How-to Guide
MCS Technical Supervisor: requirements and who can hold it
What the MCS Technical Supervisor role requires, what happens when their qualification lapses, who can hold it, and when you need more than one.
Jamie Duncan
16 October 2026
How-to Guide
Do you need planning permission for battery storage?
Batteries have no permitted development class of their own. When a home battery needs planning permission, and what to capture at survey.
Jamie Duncan
12 October 2026
How-to Guide
Who is my DNO, and do you actually need to know?
Your DNO is whoever owns the network at the property, not the energy supplier. How to look it up, and when you don't have to.
Jamie Duncan
6 October 2026
How-to Guide
MCS ready checklist: what to have ready for your MCS audit
The MCS audit checklist for the redeveloped scheme: the documents, records and evidence you should be able to produce in ten minutes before the assessment.
Jamie Duncan
14 September 2026
How-to Guide
DNO 'further information required': what happens next
'Further information required' is not a rejection. What the status means, where the DNO actually contacts you, and what it does to the 45-working-day clock.
Jamie Duncan
7 September 2026
How-to Guide
Warm Homes installer certification: which route your business actually needs
Warm Homes work runs on two separate certification regimes, and which one applies depends on the measure you install, not the scheme you are bidding into. Here is how the split works.
Jamie Duncan
4 September 2026
How-to Guide
DNO works required: what the status means and what to do while you wait
Payaca now shows the DNO's own reasons on a 'works required' connection application, so installers know whether they're waiting on paperwork or a network upgrade.
Jamie Duncan
24 August 2026
How-to Guide
The install workflow that runs itself: from customer signature to assigned tasks
Payaca automations now fire the moment a document is signed, and task templates carry a default assignee and deadline. How UK installers chain signatures, stage moves and pre-assigned tasks into one workflow.
Jamie Duncan
28 July 2026
How-to Guide
The DNO replied and nobody noticed: automating the middle of the job
Payaca automations now fire on DNO application status changes and on every change proposal event, not just acceptance. How UK installers wire up the two mid-job waits that stall installs: grid applications and scope changes.
Jamie Duncan
20 July 2026
How-to Guide
Heat pump permitted development in 2026: the noise assessment that decides the job
England relaxed permitted development for air source heat pumps, but the right hinges on an MCS 020 noise assessment under 42 dB(A). A practical guide for UK installers on what changed and where jobs slip into a full planning application.
Jamie Duncan
18 July 2026
Blog
The Clean Flexibility Roadmap update: what it changes for solar and battery installers
July's Clean Flexibility Roadmap update sets dates that will reach installers' quotes: minimum standards for smart batteries later in 2026, a Smart Readiness EPC metric in 2027, and a landlord deadline in 2030. What to do about each.
Matt Franklin
14 July 2026
Blog
The redeveloped MCS scheme: what changes before your certification body calls
Every MCS certified business moves to the redeveloped scheme by 31 March 2027. The roles to assign, the new assessment model, and what to have ready.
Jamie Duncan
6 July 2026
Blog
Solar PV commissioning under MCS: from survey to sign-off
What an MCS-certified solar installer has to produce by commissioning sign-off - MIS 3002 evidence, IEC 62446 tests, the EIC, DNO notification, MID registration within 10 working days, and a handover pack that unlocks the customer's SEG application.
Jamie Duncan
2 July 2026
Blog
BUS V5 and the upfront discount: what changed on 28 April 2026
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme moved to V5 on 28 April 2026. The voucher mechanism is unchanged - what's new is the mandatory upfront discount on the customer's quote and invoice. Here's how that changes installer cash flow, T&Cs, and template configuration.
Jamie Duncan
11 May 2026
Blog
MIS 3005-D vs MIS 3005-I: who designs, who installs, who signs
MIS 3005 split into two documents on 1 April 2022 - one for design, one for installation. Most growing UK heat pump installers still treat them as one workflow, and that's where the data leaks. A practical guide to the design-to-install handoff for scaling installers.
Jamie Duncan
11 May 2026
Blog
Heat pump commissioning under BUS V5: a 2026 compliance playbook
Commissioning is where heat pump jobs get signed off - and where margin and customer satisfaction most often leak. A practical playbook for growing UK installers on MIS 3005, the MCS Installation Database, BUS V5 voucher applications and redemption, and clean handover.
Jamie Duncan
28 April 2026
Blog
Complete your solar installations faster with automated commissioning applications
Payaca now handles commissioning applications for G98 and G99 installations. Complete the full DNO compliance workflow from initial application to final energisation approval.
Jamie Duncan
13 August 2025