Terms and Conditions for Heat Pump Plus Trial
These trial terms and conditions (Trial Terms) apply to you if you have joined our Heat Pump Plus trial (the Trial). They are supplemental to the Heat Pump Plus Terms.
About the Trial
The purpose of this Trial is to allow OVO to remotely control the temperature settings of compatible Air Source Heat Pumps in order to identify potential energy and cost savings for our customers. OVO’s partnered with Nesta – the UK’s social innovation agency (nesta.org.uk). Nesta’s aim is to find new ways to tackle society's big problems in education, the environment and health. Customers who participate in the Trial, including completing all required surveys and interviews, may receive a £100 shopping voucher from Nesta at the end of the Trial Period.
The Trial has an anticipated start date of 14 November 2024 and finish date 31 March 2025 (Trial Period) but this may be subject to change. Customers will be notified of any updates or changes.
How the Trial will work
To participate in the Trial you’ll need to have a compatible Vaillant aroTHERM 3 post 2016 or an aroTHERM Plus heat pump with a connected myVAILLANT Connect internet gateway and agree to OVO controlling the temperature of your heat pump remotely during the Trial Period (see below for dates).
So we can assess the effectiveness of the Trial, we’ll ask you for feedback on your experience throughout the Trial Period. For example, you’ll receive a detailed survey before and after the Trial, and then weekly short (less than five minutes completion time) questionnaires during the Trial. You may also be invited to participate in interviews about your experience.
Heat Pump Performance
By participating in the Trial, you acknowledge that OVO may make changes to your schedule that may impact your heat pump’s energy consumption and related metrics such as the SCOP value. During the Trial you’re still responsible for maintaining the good running condition of your Heat Pump in line with normal operating procedures such as servicing requirements. If at any point during the Trial you’re unhappy with the performance of your heat pump, you may withdraw from the Trial as detailed below.
Eligibility
Entry to the Trial is by invitation only. You can apply to join the Trial by completing the form linked from your OVO invitation email. You’ll need to have a compatible Heat Pump as mentioned above which is also connected to the internet via my VAILLANT. You’ll also need to be signed up to our Heat Pump Plus tariff and be an OVO customer.
How your data is used
To participate in the Trial, you’ll need to consent to OVO collecting and sharing the following data with NESTA:
- Name, email address, age, gender identity, and information about your household.
- Your contact information so that we can ask you to participate in interviews and complete surveys.
- Your OVO Energy account number. This will be used to link survey and interview data with your smart meter data and heat pump consumption data.
- If you participate in interviews, we may record the interview so that we can refer back to it during our analysis (we will ask your permission prior to recording). The recording will be transcribed to help with interview analysis.
- Your household and heat pump energy consumption, including the temperature of your home, and your heating schedules for analysis by OVO and Nesta.
Your consent will be obtained during the onboarding survey. Personal data will be handled in accordance with the Heat Pump Plus data sharing policy (see section 5 of the Heat Pump Plus Terms), OVO’s privacy policy (ovoenergy.com/privacy-policy) and NESTA’s privacy policy (nesta.org.uk/privacy-notice).
NESTA, working with OVO, will produce a publicly available report into the Trial’s performance after it has finished. As such, OVO may be unable to provide ongoing insight during the Trial period to specific customers. You will however be able to view your heat pump performance and energy consumption via your smart meter readings and your Vaillant devices during the Trial.
Withdrawing from the Trial
You can withdraw from the Trial at any time but you won’t receive the voucher unless you’ve completed all the required surveys and interview if requested. Please contact our Heat Pump support team to do this, you can call our heat pump support team on 0333 0341565 Mon-Fri (9am-5pm) or email [email protected]. If you decide to withdraw from the Trial, we will attempt to revert your schedule to the temperature settings present prior to the Trial. This process may take up to one week, during which time OVO’s settings may persist. During this time, you can always override any changes OVO makes manually. Leaving the Trial does not stop you being a Heat Pump Plus customer.
Where we can end the Trial
We reserve the right to end the Trial early at any time. If this happens we will notify you in advance. We also reserve the right to end your participation in the Trial if you’re in breach of any of these Terms, the Heat Pump Plus Terms or our Core Terms.
Changes to these Terms
We can make changes to the Trial and these Terms at any time. We’ll notify you of any changes in advance if, in our reasonable opinion, they may be detrimental to you. Any updated terms will be published on our website.
General
These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales if you live in England and Wales or by the laws of Scotland if you live in Scotland.