Potentially misleading boiler marketing over the use of hydrogen removed after Sky News investigation
A Sky News investigation into potentially misleading and confusing boiler marketing involving the use of hydrogen in home heating has prompted several companies to remove statements about the gas from their websites.
It comes as the chief executive of the UK’s independent climate change committee told Sky News that “no one should be installing a gas boiler thinking that hydrogen is a sure thing” or a way of futureproofing their home.
Hydrogen, which burns without emitting carbon dioxide, is likely to play a significant role in decarbonising heavy industry and hitting net zero targets, but the government has said its potential use in residential properties won’t be decided until 2026.
Despite this uncertainty, Sky News has found several companies making confusing and potentially misleading claims about hydrogen as part of the sales process for standard gas boilers.
The website for online retailer Boiler Central contained a video in which an adviser says: “With the push towards a greener future, most new boilers are now having the hydrogen ready compatibility built into them, helping not only future-proof your investment of a new boiler, but ensuring your energy bills and carbon footprint remain as low as possible.”
But boilers that could in theory accept a blend of up to 23% hydrogen are not new, in fact this capability has been required by law since 1996.
Conversely, boilers that are ready to burn 100% hydrogen aren’t available to buy yet.
In addition, hydrogen can also be more expensive than gas, with a recent assessment by energy analysts Cornwall Insight suggesting it could be up to 70% more expensive to run a home on 100% hydrogen fuel.
And although hydrogen burns cleanly, it can be carbon intensive to make, depending on the production technique.
A recent report by the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee said that although there are plans in place to expand clean or “green” hydrogen production it noted that “currently in the UK, hydrogen is overwhelmingly produced from fossil-fuel intensive processes – so called ‘grey hydrogen'”.
Boiler Central’s director James Elston denied misleading customers but accepted the company’s content could have been clearer.
In an interview he told Sky News that Boiler Central had made changes to its website.
He said: “What we’ve looked at is just tidying up some of the generalisations.
“We’re saying a new boiler is more efficient than an old, it can save you money and it can save you on your carbon footprint.
“Those are all true, true statements.
“Linking it directly to hydrogen is where we’ve separated… where we’ve changed the content.
Boiler Central is not alone.
Read more:
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UK ‘at risk of falling behind’ in race to become green hydrogen global leader
The future of energy may lie with hydrogen, but the journey to get there won’t be easy
Manufacturer Worcester Bosch’s website claimed that hydrogen “is what the government will be introducing into the UK gas grid” and “the UK will, eventually, switch from natural gas to 100% hydrogen”.
In response to questions from Sky News the company removed the statements from the website and said in a written response: “Ensuring our customers have all the information they need to make home heating related purchase decisions with confidence is paramount.
“Worcester Bosch continues to review and adapt product related communications to reflect industry updates on an ongoing basis.
“We are looking to change the wording on this particular web page to reflect your observations.”
Separately, an investigation by media platform openDemocracy and shared exclusively with Sky News recorded British Gas boiler sales advisers making potentially misleading and confusing claims.
One said: “We do sell gas boilers that are hydrogen ready, so when we do make the switch to hydrogen… you will not have to purchase a new boiler, so you have your future covered there.”
Another said that a hydrogen ready boiler would be cheaper to run “because the cost of hydrogen itself is deemed to be a lot cheaper compared to natural gas”.
They added “all the country will be hydrogen eventually”.
British gas owner Centrica told Sky News: “The journey to net zero is complex and accurate information is really important to us.
“Our training and support is designed to ensure consistency and accuracy across our advisors.
“This is a fast-moving subject and our teams do a great job – we’ve listened to the couple of calls in which our advisers were asked very specific and detailed questions about hydrogen, and some elements of the conversation went beyond the training.
“This is isolated and we will give these guys some more support on the role hydrogen will play in net zero – which will be needed to help the UK hit emission targets.”
Chief executive of the UK’s independent climate change committee Chris Stark told Sky News: “The… big question is whether you start to use [hydrogen], particularly in homes, and we just don’t have the evidence to support that yet.
“No one should be installing a gas boiler now thinking that hydrogen is a sure thing and that this is a way of future proofing.”
Consumer affairs publication Which? recently published this advice: “The viability of hydrogen for home heating hasn’t yet been proven. Trials have been proposed by government and gas companies to see if it works at a community level, but it’s been difficult to get local consent for live experiments in real communities.
“Consumers are yet to find out what hydrogen fuel would cost and what sort of infrastructural changes would be needed to pipe it into people’s homes.
“Because of uncertainty around the role of hydrogen for heating, it’s not recommendable to buy a gas boiler on the rationale that it will ‘become’ a hydrogen boiler, or to forego other low-carbon heating technologies solely on the basis that hydrogen is around the corner.”
Sky News shared the material described in this article with the Competition and Markets Authority.
The watchdog’s director of consumer protection Sabrina Basran highlighted the organisation’s recent report describing its “concerns that people could be duped into handing over their hard-earned money when businesses market boilers as being able to use hydrogen”.
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She said: “While we can’t comment on individual firms, these claims may be misleading and risk greenwashing consumers into thinking these products are more environmentally friendly than they are. Any business marketing or selling boilers as ‘hydrogen-blend’ or ‘hydrogen-ready’ should ensure they are treating shoppers fairly and complying with consumer protection law.
“This includes not giving a deceptive impression of the environmental benefits of their products, using accurate descriptions to be clear that boilers cannot run on hydrogen now, and ensuring they provide the information needed to make informed decisions.
“We’ll be publishing new guidance to help businesses meet their legal obligations when marketing products in the green heating and insulation sector, as well as considering whether further action, such as enforcement, is necessary.”
Business
Post Office Capture scandal: Sir Alan Bates calls for those responsible for wrongful convictions to be ‘brought to account’
Sir Alan Bates has called for those responsible for the wrongful convictions of sub postmasters in the Capture IT scandal to be “brought to account”.
It comes after Sky News unearthed a report showing Post Office lawyers knew of faults in the software nearly three decades ago.
The documents, found in a garage by a retired computer expert, describe the Capture system as “an accident waiting to happen”.
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Post Office: The lost ‘Capture’ files
Sir Alan said the Sky News investigation showed “yet another failure of government oversight; another failure of the Post Office board to ensure [the] Post Office recruited senior people competent of bringing in IT systems” and management that was “out of touch with what was going on within its organisation”.
The unearthed Capture report was commissioned by the defence team for sub postmistress Patricia Owen and served on the Post Office in 1998 at her trial.
It described the software as “quite capable of producing absurd gibberish” and concluded “reasonable doubt” existed as to “whether any criminal offence” had taken place.
Ms Owen was found guilty of stealing from her branch and given a suspended prison sentence.
She died in 2003 and her family had always believed the computer expert, who was due to give evidence on the report, “never turned up”.
Patricia Owen (right) was convicted in 1998 of stealing from her post office branch. She died in 2003
Adrian Montagu reached out after seeing a Sky News report earlier this year and said he was actually stood down by the defending barrister with “no reason given”.
The barrister said he had no recollection of the case.
Victims and their lawyers hope the newly found “damning” expert report, which may never have been seen by a jury, could help overturn Capture convictions.
Read more: Post Office scandal redress must not only be fair – it must be fast
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What is the Capture scandal?
‘These people have to be brought to account’
Sir Alan, the leading campaigner for victims of the Horizon Post Office scandal, said while “no programme is bug free, why [was the] Post Office allowed to transfer the financial risk from these bugs on to a third party ie the sub postmaster, and why did its lawyers continue with prosecutions seemingly knowing of these system bugs?”
He continued: “Whether it was incompetence or corporate malice, these people have to be brought to account for their actions, be it for Capture or Horizon.”
More than 100 victims have come forward
More than 100 victims, including those who were not convicted but who were affected by the faulty software, have so far come forward.
Capture was used in 2,500 branches between 1992 and 1999, just before Horizon was introduced – which saw hundreds wrongfully convicted.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the body responsible for investigating potential miscarriages of justice, is currently looking at a number of Capture convictions.
A CCRC spokesperson told Sky News: “We have received applications regarding 29 convictions which pre-date Horizon.
25 of these applications are being actively investigated by case review managers, and two more recent applications are in the preparatory stage and will be assigned to case review managers before the end of June.
“We have issued notices under s.17 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 to Post Office Ltd requiring them to produce all material relating to the applications received.
“To date, POL have provided some material in relation to 17 of the cases and confirmed that they hold no material in relation to another 5. The CCRC is awaiting a response from POL in relation to 6 cases.”
A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade said: “Postmasters negatively affected by Capture endured immeasurable suffering. We continue to listen to those who have been sharing their stories on the Capture system, and have taken their thoughts on board when designing the Capture Redress Scheme.”
Ministers are considering a commitment to cut soaring industrial energy prices for British companies to the same level enjoyed by competitors in France and Germany as part of its industrial strategy.
Sky News understands proposals to make energy prices more competitive are at the heart of final discussions between the Department for Business and Trade and the Treasury ahead of the publication of its industrial strategy on Monday.
Industrial electricity prices in the UK are the highest in the G7 and 46% above the median for the 32 member states of the International Energy Agency, which account for 75% of global demand.
Industrial electricity prices by country
In 2023, British businesses paid £258 per megawatt-hour for electricity compared to £178 in France and £177 in Germany, according to IEA data. Matching those prices will require a reduction of around 27% at a cost of several billion pounds.
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Earlier this month, automotive giant Nissan said UK energy prices make its Sunderland plant its most expensive in the world.
Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds is understood to be sympathetic to business concerns, and chancellor Rachel Reeves told the CBI’s annual dinner the issue of energy prices “is a question we know we need to answer”.
Extending relief
While around 350 companies in energy-intensive industries, including steel, ceramics and cement, enjoy some relief from prices through the energy supercharger scheme, which refunds 60% of network charges and is expected to rise to 90%, there is currently no support for manufacturers.
Sky News understands ministers are considering introducing a similar scheme to support the 200,000 manufacturing businesses in the UK.
Cutting network costs entirely could save more than 20% from electricity prices.
Explainer: Why are UK industrial electricity prices so high?
The mechanism for delivering support is expected to require consultation before being introduced to ensure only businesses for whom energy is a central cost would benefit. This could be based on the proportion of outgoings spent on energy bills.
It is not clear how the scheme would be funded, but the existing industrial supercharger is paid for by a levy on energy suppliers that is ultimately passed on to customers.
A central demand
Bringing down prices, particularly for electricity, has been the central demand of business and industry groups, with Make UK warning high prices are rendering businesses uncompetitive and risk “deindustrialising” the UK.
The primary driver of high electricity costs in the UK is wholesale gas, which both underpins the grid and sets the price in the market, even in periods when renewables provide the majority of supply.
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Why are costs so high?
Wholesale prices account for around 39% of bills, with operating costs and network charges – the cost of using and maintaining the grid – making up another 25%, and VAT 20%.
Business groups, including the manufacturers group Make UK, have called for a reduction in those additional charges, as well as the so-called policy costs that make up the final 16% of bills.
UK industrial electricity prices
These are made up of levies and charges introduced by successive governments to encourage and underwrite the construction of renewable sources of power.
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Make UK estimate that shifting policy costs into general taxation would cost around £3.8bn, but pay for itself over time in increased growth.
Government sources confirmed that energy prices are a central issue that the industrial strategy will address, but said no final policy decisions have been agreed.
The industrial strategy, which is delayed from its scheduled publication earlier this month, will set out the government’s plans to support eight sectors identified as having high-growth potential, including advanced manufacturing, life sciences, defence and creative industries.
Britain has the highest industrial electricity prices in the G7, a cost businesses say makes it impossible to compete internationally and risks “deindustrialising” the UK.
Electricity prices are driven by wholesale fuel prices, particularly natural gas, but include taxes and “policy costs” that business groups, including Make UK and the CBI, want the government to cut.
Sky News understands the issue is a “live discussion” within government as ministers finalise the government’s industrial strategy, due to be published next week.
Money blog: Interest rate held – but Bank of England gave ‘small surprise’
So what are the options, and why are prices so high in the first place?
How much does UK business pay for electricity?
Industrial electricity prices in 2023 were 46% higher than the average of the 32 members of the International Energy Agency, a group that includes EU and G7 nations that, between them, account for 75% of global demand.
UK businesses paid an average of £258 per megawatt-hour, according to IEA data – higher than Italy (£218), France (£178) and Germany (£177), and more than four times the £65 paid on average in the USA.
While wholesale prices have been driven up in the last five years by external factors including post-pandemic demand and the Ukraine war, this is not a blip – UK prices have been consistently above the IEA average for decades.
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Britain’s big energy price problem
Why are prices so high?
The main determinant is exposure to wholesale gas markets. Gas underpins the UK grid, reliably filling the gaps renewables and nuclear sources cannot fill. Crucially, gas also sets the price in the electricity market even when it is not the primary source of energy.
The UK market uses a “marginal pricing system”, in which the price is set by the last, and thus most expensive, unit of power required to meet demand at any one time.
That means that while renewable sources, initially offered at a cheaper price, may provide the majority of power in a given period, the price for all sources is set by gas-fired power stations providing the balance of supply.
Industrial electricity bills are lower in markets that are less exposed to gas. In France, gas sets the price less than 10% of the time because its fleet of nuclear power stations underpin supply.
Industrial electricity prices by country
What makes up electricity bills?
The biggest single element of electricity prices is wholesale gas costs, which make up 39% of the bill, according to industrial supplier SEFE.
The next largest element is “network costs”, charges imposed for using, maintaining and expanding the grid, which account for 23%. Operating costs are 2%, with VAT adding a further 20%.
The remaining 16% of electricity bills is made up of “policy costs”, levies and payments introduced over the last two decades to subsidise the construction of renewable power capacity, primarily wind power.
Cost breakdown of UK industrial electricity prices
Increasing renewable supply and storage to reduce exposure has been the long-term solution favoured by successive governments. Sir Keir Starmer‘s administration has a target of shifting to a “clean power” grid by 2030 and achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, a target Kemi Badenoch describes as “impossible”.
Read more from Sky News:
Government considering slashing industrial energy prices
Bank of England holds rate
Warm Home Discount extended
Some energy-intensive industries (EII), such as chemicals, steel, and cement, already receive support, with a 60% relief on network charges and a reduction of around 10% from the British Industry Supercharger fund, which the government is considering increasing.
What does business want?
Business groups are calling for these policy costs to be lifted and shifted into general taxation, calculating that a 15% reduction in prices would give them a chance of competing more equitably.
Make UK say cutting policy costs would cut 15% from bills, and is also proposing a “contract for difference” for manufacturers’ electricity, a model borrowed from the renewables market.
Under the plan, the government would guarantee a “strike price” for electricity 10% lower than the wholesale price. When prices are higher, the taxpayer would refund business, and when they are lower, industry would pay back the difference.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Make UK estimate the cost to the exchequer of £3.8bn. They believe it will be cost-neutral courtesy of increased growth. The alternative, they say, is an uncompetitive manufacturing sector doomed to decline.
“We need to see the government remove those costs in the industrial strategy,” says Make UK chief executive Stephen Phipson.
“We believe it will be cost-neutral because of the benefit to the economy of retaining manufacturing in this country. If we don’t see it happen, we will risk deindustrialising the United Kingdom.”
A government spokesperson said: “Through our sprint to clean power, we will get off the rollercoaster of fossil fuel markets – protecting business and household finances with clean, homegrown energy that we control.”
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