There is a significant overlap between installer and product accreditation under Green Deal and existing MCS schemes so establishing parity would avoid unnecessary duplication, according to heating giant Baxi.
Company spokesman Simon Osborne said: 'The idea of any extra financial burden for individual installers to be able to participate in the Green Deal is unacceptable.'

Responding to the Government consultation on the Green Deal, he added: 'In the finalised proposal, the Government must provide a cohesive strategy for integrating Green Deal with domestic and commercial RHI and Feed-in Tariffs, to maximise uptake.

'While uncertainties remain, there is a risk that end users will put off installing renewables until they know exactly what financial returns they can expect to see and actual payback periods. An extension to RHPP, in anticipation of domestic RHI and Green Deal, would at least provide 'early adopters' with some incentive in the interim. Installers who are ahead of the game and already trained and ready to install renewables deserve as much support as possible in the current economic climate.'

Mr Osbourne was encouraged that the inclusion of replacement boilers under Green Deal waspromising and may stimulate the market. However, the detail of how quickly a Green Deal plan can be put in to place when a customer was faced with a boiler breakdown in freezing conditions could undermine this measure, he said.

'As a further step, we would like to see the addition of cylinder replacements as an approved measure, providing a more holistic treatment of the complete heating system,' he added.

He concluded: 'For end users who are not on the mains gas network, we would like to see additional incentives, over and above the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) replacement for CERT and CESP, which assist low income families, those most likely to be in fuel poverty, in taking advantage of a full range of energy efficiency measures.'

Meanwhile, Tim Pollard, head of sustainability for Plumb Center, said: 'With around 1.2 million boiler replacements each year, it seems obvious that heating engineers should play a pivotal role in delivering emissions reductions as part of the Green Deal. The fact is that installers – in most cases SMEs - have a unique relationship of trust with householders and while heating systems remain at the heart of domestic comfort, they are perfectly placed to suggest wider energy efficiency measures that will be covered by the Green Deal.

'With an estimated 20 million homes that could potentially benefit from Green Deal measures, no-one should underestimate the value of leveraging existing skillsets and communications channels if the scheme is to be successful.

'Our customer base covers a diverse range of technologies that could potentially be included in the Green Deal and their expertise, both for assessing needs as well as installing products, will be critical.

'As far as boiler replacements are concerned, Plumb Center believes that timely access to a Green Deal Plan is crucial, as approximately 80 per cent of these replacements are prompted by boiler breakdown, where restoring heating is the primary concern.

'In order to maximise the uptake of low carbon technologies as part of the Green Deal, other schemes such as the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and Feed-in Tariffs will need to be effectively coordinated, giving end users a clear picture of the outlay and payback period as well as projected energy savings.'