Warm Homes Plan 2026: 0% solar and battery loans explained

Since the loans were announced, “Warm Homes Plan”, “0% solar finance” and “government grant for solar panels” have become some of the most searched questions in home energy. The answers online vary, and some pages written earlier in the year still say the loans start in 2027. Here’s what’s actually on offer, taken from GOV.UK.

Can I get 0% finance for solar, and for how long?

This is what most people really want to know. Under the Warm Homes Loan Scheme, the government pays part of the interest, so lenders can offer rates up to 5 percentage points lower than a regular loan, and some offer 0%. Some lenders also let you spread the cost over up to 30 years.

The rate and the term are set by the lender you choose, along with its credit and affordability checks. So when you compare lenders, check two things: whether the loan is 0%, and whether that 0% runs for the whole term you want. GOV.UK’s advice is to compare the total amount you’ll repay, including any fees, not just the headline rate.

What is the Warm Homes Plan?

The government published it in January 2026. It commits £15 billion of public money to upgrading up to 5 million homes by 2030. It isn’t one scheme you apply for. It sits over several:

• Free upgrades for lower-income homes, through councils (the Warm Homes: Local Grant in England).
• Low and zero interest loans for every homeowner, whatever their income: the Warm Homes Loan Scheme.
• Upgrades for social housing and new protections for renters.

Is there a government grant for solar panels?

For most households, no: the help for solar is the loan, plus 0% VAT. The one grant that can pay for solar is the Warm Homes: Local Grant, and it’s for England only. To qualify, your home must be privately owned, have an EPC of D, E, F or G, and your household income must usually be £36,000 a year or less. You can still qualify above that if you live in certain postcode areas or someone in the home gets certain benefits. Your council arranges a survey and pays for the agreed work, which can include insulation, a heat pump or solar panels. You apply on GOV.UK, not through an installer.

Searching “warm home grant”? You may be thinking of the Warm Home Discount. That’s different: £150 off your winter electricity bill for eligible households, not money towards panels.

What is the Warm Homes Loan Scheme?

A loan from a bank or other lender for the upgrade, with the government paying part of the interest. GOV.UK says the scheme takes up to 5 percentage points off the rate of a regular loan, some loans are interest free, and some lenders give you up to 30 years to repay.

The government’s own example: borrowing £10,000 at 8% over seven years costs around £155 a month with a loan available today. Through the scheme, the same borrower could save up to £285 a year on repayments.

How much can you borrow?

These are the largest loans the scheme supports for each improvement. Lenders set their own limits within them.

From the GOV.UK Warm Homes Loan Scheme factsheet, 27 October 2026. You can borrow for more than one improvement, so solar panels and a battery together can be covered.

Who qualifies?

• You own the home, with or without a mortgage. Landlords who own the property can apply too.
• It’s in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
• It’s residential, not a business property.
• You pass the lender’s checks. GOV.UK doesn’t list an income limit, but every lender runs its normal credit and affordability checks and may add its own rules.

What can the loan pay for?

Solar panels, battery storage, air and ground source heat pumps, heat network connections, home wind turbines and micro hydro. The work must be done by an MCS-certified installer (heat network connections excepted), and you can’t fit it yourself. EV chargers and gas boilers aren’t covered. Air to air heat pumps, which most people call air conditioning, are on the list but only once MCS certification for them is available.

Which lenders offer Warm Homes loans?

The first ten, as listed on GOV.UK:

• HomeServe Finance (partnering with E.ON)
• Hometree Finance
• Propensio
• Secure Trust Bank
• Selina Finance
• South Manchester Credit Union, for people in Central and South Manchester
• Sunsave
• Tandem Bank
• The Money Co-op
• thisbank

More lenders are expected to join. Some only lend through their own partner installers; others let you choose any MCS-certified installer. Ask the lender which it is before you get quotes. A genuine product will say it’s funded through the Warm Homes Loan Scheme.

How to apply

1. Check for a grant first if you’re on a lower income: free beats any loan.
2. Get quotes from MCS-certified installers and decide what suits your home.
3. Choose a lender and compare total repayments, not just the rate.
4. Apply to the lender, not the government. You can go direct, through your installer or retailer, or through your mortgage provider.
5. Keep your paperwork: the quote, finance agreement, invoice, proof of payment and MCS certificate.

Your installation might be picked at random for an audit by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero or by MCS. That doesn’t mean anything is wrong. A genuine auditor gives at least 48 hours’ notice and can show ID. If you’re unsure about a caller, GOV.UK lists a Warm Homes Counter Fraud contact on its scheme page.

Can you combine it with other help?

Yes, with one rule: you can’t use a Warm Homes loan and other government funding to pay for the same improvement. Solar panels and batteries are also 0% VAT until 31 March 2027, so the price you’re lending against is already VAT free. For heat pumps, the loan can sit alongside the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales (£7,500 towards an air or ground source heat pump, plus £1,500 until March 2027 for homes on oil or LPG without mains gas), or Home Energy Scotland grants.

Where Eco2u NW fits in

We’re an MCS-certified installer (certificate NAP-82979), so our solar and battery installs meet the scheme’s installer rule. You apply to the lender yourself, and we handle the rest: we design the system on a video call, give you a written quote for your application, and register the install with MCS so you get the certificate lenders and auditors ask for.

Thinking about solar and a battery? See our solar and battery installations, or, if you already have panels, adding a battery to existing solar.