If you’re MCS certified, you need cover on every domestic job you certify.
If you’re Flexi-Orb certified, it’s the same answer.
If you hold no certification at all, there is no requirement for you to have provide insurance backed guarantees— but because you aren’t with MCS or Flexiorb, you’re locked out of grant work, and your customer can’t get paid for the electricity they export.
Here’s where it can get confusing. Many installers think the Insurance Backed Guarantee depends on the installation. It doesn’t. It depends on your certification.
Doing grant work? You’ll need MCS and an approved financial protection product (insurance backed guarantee)
These grant schemes run through MCS. That means, no certification – no grant work.
- ECO4 — runs until 31 December 2026
- The Boiler Upgrade Scheme
- The Warm Homes Plan — takes over from ECO4 in January 2027
- Warm Homes: Local Grant — through councils in England, until 31 March 2028
- Home Energy Scotland — this one takes Flexi-Orb as well as MCS
And here’s the thing about MCS right now: there are two versions of it running side by side. Which one you’re on changes what cover you need.
MCS as it works today
You have to belong to a Consumer Code — RECC or HIES. Both of them tell their members to provide an Insurance Backed Guarantee on domestic work.
MCS from 2027 — the redeveloped scheme
On the new scheme you don’t need to go through a Consumer Code any more. But you will need to provide an MCS approved financial protection product on every domestic job.
Most firms will move across during 2026, but everyone has to be on it by 31 March 2027.
| The cover you must give your customer | Current scheme | Redeveloped scheme |
|---|---|---|
| Where you buy it | Through a consumer code approved IBG Provider | Direct from an MCS approved product provider |
| Shortest cover allowed | 2 years | 6 years |
| Your customer can claim if you… | Cease trading subject to the policy terms and conditions | Cease trading, retire, refuse to fix a real fault, or get the design wrong subject to the policy terms and conditions |
| Most your customer pays towards a claim | Varies by policy | £250 |
You don’t have to wait for your move-over date, either. The approved products are on sale now, and MCS says using one already counts as compliant on the old scheme. Sort it once and it’s done.
Only working for homeowners who pay their own way?
There’s no law that says a solar or heat pump installer has to be MCS certified, or provide Insurance Backed Guarantees.
Do, if you’re working only in the able-to-pay market, you don’t have to have either, which sounds like a saving.
But here’s what your customer loses: the Smart Export Guarantee
Solar panels generally make more electricity than a house can use. The surplus goes back into the grid.
The Smart Export Guarantee is the government-backed scheme that makes energy suppliers pay your customer for that surplus. It started in January 2020, and it’s run by Ofgem. Money back on the bill, based on real meter readings, for years.
However, three things have to be true for your customer to claim it:
- The installation has to be certified,
- They need a smart meter that records what they export, and
- The system has to be within the size limits — up to 5MW for solar or wind, up to 50kW for micro CHP.
That first one is the bit that lands on you. The certificate belongs to the installation, not to you, and only a certified installer can raise it. Your customer then hands that certificate to their energy supplier to claim.
MCS certified work qualifies. Flexi-Orb also lists the Smart Export Guarantee among the incentives its certification opens up.
No certificate means your customers aren’t eligible for the smart export guarantee.
What about Flexi-Orb?
Flexi-Orb is an alternative to MCS — for some work. It’s worth knowing exactly where it takes you and where it stops.
Flexi-Orb works for:
- Solar panels, batteries and EV charge points
- Getting your customer onto the Smart Export Guarantee
- Home Energy Scotland grants and loans
Flexi-Orb won’t get you:
- Heat pump work — that scheme isn’t open to installers yet
- ECO4, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme or the Warm Homes Plan
In terms of Insurance Backed Guarantees, Flexi-Orb asks for at least two years on workmanship, cover if you retire or wind the company up voluntarily, a policy that passes to the next owner, and an excess no higher than £250.
One to watch: Flexi-Orb has said it’s reviewing which policies it will keep accepting, now that the new MCS products offer more cover. If you’re on a bare two-year policy, don’t assume it stays acceptable.
What to check before you buy
Whichever route you’re on, the checks are the same.
- Is the provider on your scheme’s list? MCS approved if you’re MCS, Flexi-Orb recognised if you’re Flexi-Orb. Not every provider is on both.
- Are they FCA authorised? Look them up on the Financial Services Register. Takes a minute.
- Does it cover what you fit? Approved for solar doesn’t mean approved for heat pumps.
- Does it run six years or more? Anything shorter and you’ll be replacing it before March 2027if you’re MCS.
Why installers use HomePro
We’re on all three lists — MCS approved, Flexi-Orb recognised and RECC. So if you switch schemes, or hold more than one, your cover doesn’t have to move with you.
Between them we cover solar panels, batteries, biomass, air, ground and water source heat pumps, solar heating and solar assisted heat pumps.
HomePro has been authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority since 1999 (FCA reference 304449).
When you register an insurance backed guarantee, your customer gets invited to leave a review. That lands on your own HomePro profile. So the cover you’re already paying for starts working for you.
Questions installers ask us
Is an Insurance Backed Guarantee a legal requirement?
No. No law says you must have one. Your certification does. MCS and Flexi-Orb both ask for it on domestic work. If you hold no certification, nobody asks — but you can’t do grant work and your customer can’t claim the Smart Export Guarantee.
Do I need one on jobs the homeowner pays for themselves?
If you’re certified, yes. It applies to every domestic job you certify, whoever pays. Only an uncertified does not need to provide Insurance Backed Guarantees.
Is Flexi-Orb an alternative to MCS?
For solar panels, batteries and EV charge points, yes. It gets your customer onto the Smart Export Guarantee and it’s accepted for Home Energy Scotland. It won’t cover heat pump work — that scheme isn’t open yet — and it won’t get you ECO4, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme or the Warm Homes Plan.
How long does the insurance backed guarantee need to be for?
Two years is the minimum today, on both MCS and Flexi-Orb. On the MCS redeveloped scheme it’s six years. Every MCS installer has to be on that scheme by 31 March 2027.
What’s the difference between an Insurance Backed Guarantee and an MCS approved financial protection product?
An Insurance Backed Guarantee backs your own guarantee and normally only pays out if your company ceased trading subject to the policy terms and conditions. The MCS approved product goes further — six years minimum, a £250 cap on what your customer pays, and claims allowed if you cease trading, retire, refuse to fix a fault, or got the design wrong ubject to the policy terms and conditions.
Can I still buy an insurance backed guarantee through the MCS Installation Database?
No. That stopped on 16 December 2024. Buy from a provider, then declare who it was when you raise the certificate.
Will your cover still be good in 2027? Most policies written before 2026 won’t be. Tell us which scheme you’re on and we’ll tell you where you stand.
Check my cover or call 0800 131 0123, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
Disclaimer: This post is for general information only. It is not financial, legal or insurance advice. While we take care to make sure the information is accurate, scheme rules, legal requirements and third-party details can change without notice — always check the latest position with the relevant scheme or official body before acting on anything here. HomePro accepts no liability for any loss arising from errors or omissions in, or reliance on, the information in this article. Insurance Backed Guarantees are subject to the terms, conditions and limitations of the individual policy.
