newhome

Yes you can. From the government guidance: Flooring materials (except carpets and carpet tiles) https://www.gov.uk/guidance/goods-and-services-you-can-claim-for-under-the-vat-diy-scheme

Don’t most people put the tins, metal or not, in the standard rubbish bin that goes to landfill?

Blimey, it’s just as well self builders don’t need the money ?.

Sorry to hear this news. It’s a challenging time to get trades in to do anything. Maybe you could say where you are so that people who live locally might be able to suggest a plumber or spark. As far as insurance goes try Protek as I believe that they offer flexible cover rather than a one size fits all policy. https://www.protekselfbuild.co.uk

I waited 20 weeks in 2018 when they didn’t have the covid excuse so they are notoriously slow at the best of times. Using covid as an excuse attempts to legitimise how rubbish they are. It’s a bit rich from HMRC who fine people at the drop of a hat for being a day late.

Yes that's what I meant by home owners or more accurately owner occupiers rather than landlords.

I don't think that many people who are homeowners get gas boilers serviced either ....

Here you go https://les.mitsubishielectric.co.uk/homeowners/heating-service-and-maintenance

There is a sub forum beneath this one that contains a guide to the VAT reclaim process but it requires 10 posts to access it. In the meantime 1. Yes you can send a printout of your spreadsheet as long as it looks like the paper form 2. You can generally get away with this for small amounts as long as they have the company name and VAT number on the receipts (proof of payment is useful too) 3. No, you can only claim for things incorporated into the house or prep work such as clearing the site. Have a read here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/goods-and-services-you-can-claim-for-under-the-vat-diy-scheme

“It is expected that heating systems should be maintained in line with the manufacturer’s instructions.” So as most heat pumps will specify annual servicing an annual service is required for RHI (and possibly to maintain the warranty). If you have an UVC that needs servicing annually anyway. An ASHP service seems to be a fair bit more expensive than a gas boiler service.

No gas here hence I have limited options and run an electric boiler currently. If I had mains gas then I would have that in a heartbeat.

Yes but only if the claim is received within 3 months of completion.

You on the booze @joe90? I've read that post 3 times and can't see VAT mentioned ? Edit - it's in the post title!!! ?

That's my reason for looking at them too as there is no gas here. I have an electric boiler currently but manage to keep the bills down by running it once a day in the main (early hours of the morning). The UFH doesn't drop significantly in 24 hours so I find that ok. I sometimes need to put it on again if I want to take a bath in the evening as opposed to a shower but it generally only needs a half hour top up at that point. I am conscious that a boiler is a very different beast compared to an ASHP however that will be on over a much longer period.

It depends what arrangement you have with the plumber. If you want to use him for labour only then you would need to agree with him that you would provide all of the materials that you would order yourself and reclaim the VAT later. He might not be that keen to supply a list of materials for the job though. His labour would be zero rated. Or you could ask him to quote for supply & fit in which case the whole bill should be zero rated.

I’ve been considering an ASHP (I have 3 recent quotes) but having read your thread and numerous other similar threads on a heat pump forum I’m a bit put off by the potential for large running costs and the relative complexity. With your temperature at 19 degrees that’s probably the difference between feeling completely comfortable in a tee shirt vs needing to wear something a bit thicker when sitting around. IMO one of the best inventions known to (wo)man is the heated throw. Totally luxurious when it’s a bit chilly indoors in the months when the heating isn’t on, and also great in winter when you want a bit more warmth. Unfortunately my rescue dog who until 2 months ago hadn’t even been in a house has taken a great liking to mine and has claimed it as his own ??

Unless your builder has worked on several self builds he might not be aware of that. Adding a drive to an existing dwelling will attract standard VAT. In your case zero rating will apply. If he’s not sure direct him to VAT Notice 708 (see link) as per the screenshot posted. He may want proof from you in which case give him a copy of the planning permission. Builders can be hit with penalties if they don’t charge VAT at the correct rate so he may be cautious. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buildings-and-construction-vat-notice-708

We got quite a good service from Scotframe with a specific project manager to contact about everything but it was over 10 years ago now. It was when the bottom fell out of house prices and houses just weren't really being built. I imagine that they were short of work then. They probably have their eye on larger developments now.

I believe that they also look at the planning permission to decide CIL liability. If there are 2 houses with PP on the plot and the PP doesn’t state that it’s a phased development the second plot will lose the ability to gain a CIL exemption once you start regardless of whether the plot is sold to a self builder or built by another family member so if this is what you intend to do take care. Further details of this scenario here https://www.khub.net/web/planningadvisoryservicepas/forum/-/message_boards/message/122834640

Did your installers not do a heat demand summary? This is the first page of the summary I received from an MCS installer when I asked for a quote. It was produced using the MCS software. If it appears to be using much more electricity than you were led to believe I would contact the installers. Heat pumps are designed to be used pretty much constantly I believe but if you move to a variable tariff you could raise the temperature to higher than you need during the cheap hours so it does more work during the cheap rate and then set it back during the more expensive period. I’m on a flat rate tariff of 11.5p for heating and 12.59p for all other use with EDF. I don’t have a heat pump yet (still considering one) but am on all electric heating. I’ve never set the heating to 22 degrees though. I have it at 18 in the bedroom and between 18 and 20 in the living space.

Won’t you have amassed even more by then?

Welcome to the forum! Sorry to hear about your health issues but hopefully you are getting good treatment and the refurbishment will be a good distraction. Sounds like a good project and I hope that you can get some good advice on here when needed.

There is other evidence you can use (it’s noted in the claim form). Has to be within 3 months of the document you use as evidence however.

It will be on one of those ‘we install and you assign the RHI rights to us’ schemes I imagine. Zoot owns the property.

Yes, you can include invoices received up to the day you send the claim off. They've always been allowed before that is, unless HMRC has had a change of policy. In general stone worktops aren't DIY fitted though so if it's supply and fit they should be zero rated.