A heat network is a system of insulated pipes that transports hot water from a central source (or multiple sources) to multiple buildings, where it’s used to provide heating and hot water to residents and business in each building.

Heating networks can range in size from a few hundred metres of pipe, supplying just a few homes, to several kilometres supplying heat and hot water to multiple buildings in a development. They provide a more efficient way of heating our homes and businesses by using a larger central heating source instead of lots of small individual heating systems.

The UK government maintains a database of registered heat networks in the UK. In 2015, there were just under 14,000 heat networks serving nearly 480,000 customers. The UK government is investing in heat networks because they provide a reliable and efficient way of heating homes and businesses, and are important in moving to a stronger energy system that used low carbon sources. Up to five million homes could be on a heat network by 2030.

On a heat network, it’s not possible to switch supplier. We understand that you might be used to changing energy supplier and switching tariffs. Heat networks work differently from traditional gas and electricity services.

For a heat network to maximise its potential, it provides heating and hot water (and in some cases cooling) to all the properties in a development. This means that there is one heat network operator for the entire development.

We’re your heat supplier as we built the heat network you’re connected to, or we’ve been chosen to operate it by a housebuilder or building owner like a council or housing association.

Heat networks are regulated by Ofgem, who ensure customers are treated fairly, prices are clear, and extra support is provided for vulnerable households. We’ve also been registered with Heat Trust since 2024, providing customers with protections equivalent to those expected by gas and electricity customers.

We’re committed to providing an excellent service to all our customers, outlined by our Guaranteed Standards of Service. If we fail to meet these standards, we will compensate you.

Your electricity is separate to your heat supply, and you can choose your electricity supplier.

A heat interface unit (HIU) is a unit that looks like a boiler from the outside, however it does not burn fuel or produce emissions within your home. The HIU transfers heat from the main heat network into the central heating system in your home to provide heating and hot water.

The amount of heat used is measured accurately with a smart meter inside the HIU, and cooler water is recirculated back through the main network to be reheated again at the energy centre. The main heat network and your central heating system are separate.

No, your heating charges cover all repairs and maintenance. There is no extra cost for repairing of replacing your HIU, provided you have not damaged the equipment.

There is a heat meter inside the HIU. It measures how much heating and hot water you use. Heat is measured in kilowatt hours, shown as kWh on your statement. You can view how many kWh of heating and hot water you’ve used by logging into your customer account online, checking the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app, or reading your in-home display.

We will take care of the heat network from the energy centre up to and including the HIU and heat meter in your property. The central heating system inside your property remains your responsibility to manage (or if you rent, your landlord’s). This includes radiators, underfloor heating, thermostats, heating programmers, showers and taps.

If you have a problem with your heating and hot water and you’re unsure who’s responsible, please call our Customer Care team – they’ll be happy to help.

We have a team of experienced heating engineers to keep your heating equipment working safely and efficiently. If you do have any problems then a professional is on-hand to help. We carry out regular maintenance checks to make sure that your equipment remains safe, and to prevent issues before they occur.

No, your home has an HIU (heat interface unit) instead of a boiler. It looks similar to a boiler and you’ll usually find it in a cupboard. As part of our all-inclusive service, we and take care of all servicing and maintenance for the HIU.

No, we only provide your heat and hot water. You have a separate electricity provider.

Yes. As a heat network customer, you are protected by regulation set by Ofgem, who also oversee regulation for gas and electricity customers.

Ofgem became the regulator for heat networks in Great Britain in January 2026. They oversee suppliers and operators like us to make sure that customers are treated fairly.

Areas of customer protection provided by Ofgem include:

• Clear and transparent bills and prices for our customers
• Support for vulnerable customers
• Effective complaints handling

As well as protections provided by Ofgem, we’ve been registered with Heat Trust since 2024, providing our customers with protections equivalent to those for gas and electricity customers. gas and electricity customers. gas and electricity customers.

If you have a complaint about your heating and hot water supply, you can contact us directly here. Or, if you’d prefer to speak to someone independent, you can also find third-party support available here.

Ofgem is the national energy regulator. Every three months Ofgem sets a price cap for domestic gas and electricity supply.

Ofgem’s energy price cap is a set limit on the cost of each unit of gas and electricity that domestic gas and electricity suppliers can charge domestic consumers.

Additionally, it sets a maximum daily standing charge amount. It applies to the standard or default tariffs charged by domestic gas and electricity companies. It is important to note that the cap isn’t a cap on how much money is spent on energy, it’s a cap on how much each unit of energy costs. The more energy a household uses, the more money the consumer will pay. Ofgem has produced a energy price cap guide here: Energy price cap explained | Ofgem

No. Ofgem’s price cap only applies to domestic gas and electricity consumers.

It does not cover heating and hot water supply from a heat network.

In January 2026 Ofgem became the regulator for heat networks in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). Ofgem regulations focus on ensuring good outcomes for customers, including good customer service, improved reliability of supply, transparent, easy to understand energy bills and fair pricing. Ofgem also has the power to investigate and intervene if it believes heat network charges are disproportionate or unfair.

Heat networks offer a better way to provide heating and hot water to residents and businesses in an area or city.

Fairly priced: When connected to one of our heat networks, you’ll be served with reliable heating and hot water at a fair price.

All-inclusive service: You won’t have to worry about maintenance as we offer an all-inclusive service with expert customer care.

Dedicated monitoring and support: We have a team monitoring the entire network to ensure it’s running at its best.

Better for the environment: Your property will also be connected to a more resilient, low carbon and future proofed energy system that improves air quality both in your home and local community, and helps the UK reach its net zero targets.

A heat supply agreement is a legal contract between you and us , setting out the terms of our service and how we’ll provide heating and hot water to your property. It states what protections are in place if we fail to meet any of our Guaranteed Standards of Service and outlines the compensation you could receive as a result. The heat supply agreement also sets out any actions needed from you to ensure that we can deliver our service; it also outlines your agreement to pay your heat charges when they’re due.

It’s an important document that you should read carefully.

You can set up your account online or over the phone.

To set up your account online, complete our move-in form. For step-by-step guidance on setting up your heating and hot water account online with us, watch our how-to video below:

To set up your account over the phone, call our Customer Care team at 0808 143 3633 and they will be able to help you.

To create your account, please have the following information ready to complete the move-in form or to provide to our Customer Care team:

• Basic personal information: This includes your full name, supply address, email, contact number.

• Your supply start date: This will be the date that you completed buying your property or the date stated on your rental (tenancy) agreement. It is the date that you became responsible for heat charges at your property.

• Landlord: If you rent your home, we’ll also need contact details of your landlord who owns the property.

• Payment information: This is needed so we can set up your heat bill payments.

• A meter reading: We’ll confirm your starting meter reading.

If you’re moving home, please complete our moving out form and send it to us at least 14 days before you go so we can close your account in time. Alternatively, please call our Customer Care team who can complete this for you.

We’ll take a final meter reading on the day you move out and use that to produce your final bill. You’ll need to provide us with a forwarding address, in case we need to contact you after you’ve moved.

Your final bill will be sent within six weeks of your moving date. If there’s any credit on your account when it’s closed, we’ll refund this to you within 10 working days of issuing your final statement.

The way you pay depends on the way the heat meter is set up in your home. Your meter will be set up in one of two default payment settings: credit or pay-as-you go. You can change the payment setting of your meter depending on your preference. If you rent your property, the payment setting may be set by your landlord.

If you have a credit meter, we’ll send you a bill each month by email (unless you’ve requested paper bills), outlining the amount of heat and hot water you used in the past month and the charge for this. You’ll find all your bills stored online in your customer account and in the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app.

Here are the payment methods we accept:

By variable direct debit – the easiest way to pay your bill is by variable direct debit. This ensures your bills are paid on time. You can set up variable direct debit online via your customer account, through the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app, or by calling our Customer Care team.

Online – you can pay online through your customer account and via the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app using your debit or credit card.

If you’re a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) customer, you pay for your heat and hot water in advance by adding credit to your account. It’s like having a PAYG mobile contract. The meter will deduct payments each day to cover the fixed and usage charges for the heat used.

We’ve designed our PAYG option with your convenience in mind. It makes paying for your heating easy, flexible and transparent. Instead of receiving monthly bills, your in-home display shows your live credit balance, and gives an estimate of how long your credit will last for based on your heating and hot water usage pattern. You can also track your credit balance online and by using the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app.

Try to always keep your account in credit to avoid any temporary suspension to your heating and hot water supply. We provide £5 emergency credit that you can choose to activate if you run out of credit. This is paid back when you next top up.

If you’re a PAYG customer, these are the payment methods we accept:

Online – you can top up online through your customer account or via the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app using your debit or credit card.

Over the phone – you can call our Customer Care team on 0808 143 3633 and top up over the phone.

At a PayPoint outlet – you can top up in-person at any PayPoint outlet using your PayPoint payment barcode. This can be found in your app and at the top right corner of your welcome letter. You can find your local PayPoint outlet here.

Watch our how-to video below, where we provide more detail on the different top-up methods available and guide you through each topping up process:

This is a fixed amount that you pay each day. Most energy tariffs include a fixed charge, such as gas and electricity, and they are often known as a ‘standing charge’. On our heat networks, the fixed charge helps keep you connected to the wider network and your heating supply.

Your fixed charge covers important costs such as:

• Running the network day-to-day, including our energy centres where we generate heat for our customers
• Looking after and upgrading the network, including our kilometres of underground pipes that carry heat to customers
• Providing Customer Care and 24/7 emergency support
• Offering an all-inclusive maintenance service for all customers at no additional cost.

As with other utilities, the fixed charge is paid every day, even if you’re away from home and your usage is low.

For a more detailed look at what your fixed charge covers, take a moment to read our full blog here.

This is the cost for each kilowatt hour (kWh) of heating and hot water used in your home. It varies each month depending on how much heating and hot water is used.

The usage charge is measured by the heat meter in your home which sends the information to us so we can ensure you receive accurate bills. If for some reason we don’t receive an automatic meter reading, we may have to use an estimate based on previous bills and / or industry guidelines.

Yes. You’ll still be charged for any heating and hot water that your home uses.

A small amount of water will be used by your HIU (Heat Interface Unit) even if you’re not using your heating and hot water. This is because your HIU has a ‘keep warm’ functionality; this makes sure that, when you next need to use your hot water, you’ll have water from your kitchen tap available at the correct temperature in approximately 60 seconds. 

To help you minimise how much heat you use while you’re away, you can lower your thermostat by 3˚C. This is more efficient than turning your heating off entirely and uses less energy to get your rooms up to normal temperature when you’re back.

While you’re away, you’ll also be charged the daily fixed charge which helps keep your home connected to our heat network.

Across our heat networks, we’re committed to providing our customers with fair tariffs that are transparently set. We review our costs every year, and no more than once every six months, to make sure we can continue to deliver the reliable heating and hot water that you expect from us.

If we change our tariffs, we will provide you with at least 31 days’ written notice beforehand and an explanation of what will change and why.

As the regulator for heat networks, Ofgem makes sure that tariffs are fair. If they have any concerns about tariffs in the market, they can step in. They also require all tariffs to be set in line with their pricing guidance.

We understand your circumstances can change, which could impact your ability to pay for your heating and hot water. If you’re experiencing payment difficulties, please contact our Customer Care team.

We’re here to help and will work with you to find an affordable solution.

Please don’t delay – failure to make payments might result in your heat being suspended, which could incur additional costs to reconnect your supply.

Please visit our Help and Support page for more information on independent support organisations who specialise in helping customers with debt.

The heat meter measures the amount of heating and hot water you use. We use this to calculate your heating bills correctly.

It also helps us to predict the overall usage on site and see the trends and peaks, which in turn helps us to manage the heat network in a smarter way.

A kilowatt hour (kWh) is a unit of measurement for how much energy is being used. A kilowatt hour doesn’t mean the number of kilowatts used per hour. It’s a unit of measurement that equals the amount of energy that would be used if a 1,000 watt (or 1 kilowatt) appliance ran for one hour.

So, if you switched on a 100 watt light bulb, it would take 10 hours to use up 1 kWh of energy.

Your bill will include a start date reading and an end date reading, and show you how many kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy you used in your home between these two dates.

Your annual heating and hot water costs not only depend on how much heating and hot water your household uses, but also on the size of your home and, importantly, the energy efficiency of your home. Homes that are more energy efficient typically use less energy compared to a home of a similar size that is less energy efficient.

Heating and hot water costs on heat networks are all-inclusive. There are no additional repair or annual servicing charges like you would have on an individual heating system, like a gas boiler.

We understand that you may wish to see how your heating and hot water costs compare with another type of heating, such as a gas boiler. Heat Trust has developed a Heat Cost Calculator that allows you to compare your annual heating and hot water costs to a similar sized property with a gas boiler.

You can access the Heat Cost Calculator here: calculator.heattrust.org.

We ensure that our heat networks provide sufficient heat to meet the desired temperatures for each home connected to the network. If your water temperature is only lukewarm, please contact our Customer Care team as soon as you can.

Yes, you can control the temperature of your heating using the thermostat and programmer of your home’s central heating system. Use the thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs) on your radiators to control the temperature in different rooms. Please note that we’re not responsible for the central heating system (radiators, underfloor heating, TRVs and taps etc.) in your home.

Your in-home display (IHD) will show your near real-time heat consumption as well as your historical consumption over previous days, weeks and months. You can also check your usage through the ‘My Vattenfall UK’ app and online through your customer account. If you are on a credit meter, your monthly bill will also include your consumption for the previous month.

Watch our how-to video for a run through of how your IHD works and how it can help you manage your heating and hot water usage and spending:

If you’re a pay-as-you-go customer, watch our extra how-to video below to discover the extra features your IHD has to support pay-as-you-go customers:

Our all-inclusive maintenance service is available to all our customers, providing simple, expert support at no additional cost. If there is an problem with your heating and hot water, and the issue is on our network (from our energy centre up to and including your home’s HIU), we’ll send an engineer to help.

Our engineers know the heat network best, so they can get the problem fixed and your heating and hot water up and running again quickly.

If it’s an emergency, we’ll be onsite within 4 hours, often sooner. Otherwise, our engineers will be with you within the timeframes set out in our Guaranteed Standards of Service.

Keep in mind that our all-inclusive service only covers the equipment we’re responsible for – our energy centres, up to and including the HIU in your home. Anything inside your home beyond your HIU, such as radiators, showers and taps, is yours to look after.

You can get in touch with us in several ways. For more details please see our Contact us page.

To give you the best service we can, we always try to tailor our service to suit individual needs. We also understand that your circumstances can change over time. If you need extra support or have special requirements, you may be eligible for Extra Care.

For more information, please see Extra Care for Vattenfall Heat customers.