Heat network consumer and operator survey (2022)
Report on the experiences of heat network consumers and heat network operators, based on a survey from March to July 2022 and interviews from November 2022 to January 2023.
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Update: 24 August 2023 - Consumer tables
We have made a small correction to the way data is presented in the consumer tables, now retitled ‘Heat network consumer and operator survey (2022): ALL consumer tables’. The correction relates to heat source categorisation and the presentation of how respondents self-reported being on a heat network. It does not affect the main report findings.
We have also added a new table which provides a more granular breakdown of heat network consumers: ‘Heat network consumer and operator survey (2022): Heat network ONLY consumer tables’.
This research, undertaken through surveys and interviews, aimed to gain insight into the experiences of domestic consumers who receive their heat through a heat network, and comparing this to consumers not on a heat network. It covered topics such as:
- billing and costs
- consumer / operator characteristics
- customer service
- outages
- overall satisfaction
Key findings include:
- heat network consumers were more satisfied with their heating and hot water system than those not on a heat network
- drivers of satisfaction included perceived value for money. Heat network consumers tended to pay less (£600 per year) than non-heat network consumers (£960 per year)
- outages were more commonly experienced by those on a heat network than those not
- heat network operators had varying profiles and ways of engaging with their consumers depending on their business models
The paper also sought the views of heat network operators on topics such as consumer protection measures and future heat network expansions.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) commissioned Kantar to undertake this research in 2021:
- the survey ran from March to July 2022
- interviews from November 2022 to January 2023
To understand how the picture had changed over time, the data was compared to a 2017 survey of Heat Network Consumers.
This data informed the Heat networks regulation: consumer protection consultation impact assessment.
Updates to this page
Published 4 August 2023Last updated 24 August 2023 + show all updates
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We have made a small cosmetic correction to the way data is presented in the consumer tables, which does not affect the main report findings. We have also added a new table which provides a more granular breakdown of heat network consumers: 'Heat network consumer and operator survey (2022): Heat network ONLY consumer tables'.
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First published.