Octopus Energy has reported a sharp rise in interest in heat pumps, saying enquiries increased by more than half (58%) in October. In a release issued on 29 October 2026, the company said enquiries reached their highest level since March, when the war in Iran put energy prices in the spotlight and exposed Britain’s reliance on volatile fossil fuels.
The supplier linked the rise to uncertainty over the future of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) ahead of the Budget. It said this left households wondering whether they could miss out on support to make the switch, alongside fears of rising gas prices driven by the conflict in Iran.
01Grant applications at a record level
Government figures published on the same day as the release showed heat pump grant applications reached a record high of over 9,700 in September, up 30% on August, with vouchers more than doubling year on year. The notes accompanying the release cite DESNZ statistics showing that applications rose from 4,089 in September 2025 to 9,738 in September 2026, an increase of 138% year on year.
Octopus said the Government has since confirmed that BUS funding will remain at £400 million. The company said this would allow hundreds of thousands of British families to get their hands on a heat pump. It added that heat pumps are central to the Government’s ambition to reduce reliance on volatile fossil fuel markets.
02Running costs compared with gas
Octopus also pointed to its Boiler Beater dashboard. The company said the dashboard shows 99% of its Cosy heat pumps are cheaper to run than a gas boiler, typically reducing bills by 25% compared with a gas boiler. It said the dashboard draws on data streamed from thousands of Octopus heat pumps across the UK, covering October 2026.
For households weighing up a change of heating system, our guide to planning the order of a house renovation looks at how to sequence larger projects. It is also worth checking for common loft insulation mistakes before the colder months.
03What Octopus said
Greg Jackson, Founder and Chief Executive of Octopus Energy, said: “The BUS grant works. It’s a bit like the Barbra Streisand effect; publicity about threats to heat pumps has driven interest higher than ever.”
He added: “With so many stories in the media and online, people have looked into heat pumps and seen just how attractive they can be.”
He also said: “We look forward to working with government to reduce the barriers and make it easier for even more people to switch away from gas to efficient electric heating.”
The release noted that the figures followed the company’s launch of the Cosy Cooler. Octopus describes it as a smart, shredder-sized cooling unit that turns an Octopus Cosy heat pump into an air conditioning system, helping customers keep their homes cool when temperatures rise.
Details and image via Octopus Energy.
