How to hire
Match the firm to the job first. A home installer fits wall-mounted split systems for single rooms, multi-splits for several rooms from one outdoor unit, and ducted systems hidden in ceilings for larger homes, while a servicing specialist keeps existing kit efficient and within warranty. Portable units need no installer at all. When you first enquire, say which rooms you want cooled or heated, which outside walls could carry the condenser, and whether you also want heating from the same unit.
Check F-Gas certification before you book. Anyone who installs, services or decommissions equipment containing fluorinated gas must hold the right individual certificate, and the company itself must hold company certification, with enforcement powers behind the law [2] [3]. REFCOM runs the country's largest F-Gas register of companies and engineers [1]. Ask for the firm's REFCOM company number, then check the number on the REFCOM website rather than taking a logo or a line on a quote at face value [1].
Check the company record as well. Type the business name into the Companies House register and confirm the number, status and address match the quote you receive [4]. A live record with several years behind it tells you who stands behind the van, while a missing record means you should slow down and ask why. Keep the company number on your quote next to the F-Gas number, so both checks sit on one page [4].
Telford itself shapes the job. The borough's conservation areas include Wellington and the Severn Gorge, and inside one you can need permission for work that would otherwise pass without it, so check the council's guidance or its pre-application advice service before fixing a unit position [9]. The Severn Gorge is also a World Heritage Site with an Article 4 direction giving the council further control over minor changes, which matters most around Ironbridge [9]. The town mixes older centres around Dawley and Wellington with newer estates, since the new town grew by joining the market town and former townships to new development areas, so access, parking and pipework routes vary street by street and a proper survey earns its keep [11]. Wherever you are in the borough, tell the firm how a van reaches the house and where the outdoor unit can stand.
Agree where the outdoor unit will sit before you sign. Most home systems fall within permitted development, but the unit must meet the national limits on size, position and noise, and listed buildings and protected areas face stricter rules, so check with Telford and Wrekin Council where any doubt applies [7]. Think about noise at neighbouring windows, hot air over paths and fences, and how an engineer will reach the unit for its yearly service. A good installer surveys the spot rather than pricing blind.
Fitting a fixed system is notifiable building work, which sounds grander than it is. It means the installer either notifies building control before starting or belongs to a competent-person scheme and self-certifies, notifying the council on your behalf and issuing a compliance certificate for your files [10]. The same applies to a new electrical circuit or consumer unit fitted for the system [10]. When comparing firms, note who handles this notification and keep the certificate with the commissioning record, since a future buyer may ask for it [10].
Get two or three itemised written quotes on the same scope, separating equipment, labour and VAT so you compare like with like. Each quote should name the unit maker and model, the room sizes it is sized for, the pipework run, the electrical work and condensate drain, the commissioning step, the warranty terms with who honours them, the start date and the payment stages. A deposit for equipment is normal, while full payment before completion is not. Treat an outlier far above or below the rest as a question rather than a bargain.
A typical job runs in this order. You send the room list with photos of the indoor walls, the outdoor space and the fuse box, and the firm replies with questions or a survey date. The survey fixes the unit sizes, the pipework route and the outdoor position, and the written quote follows on that scope. You compare the like-for-like quotes, run the F-Gas and company checks, and agree the price, dates and warranty. On install day the team fits, wires, commissions and demonstrates the system, and you pay the balance once the paperwork is in your hands.
At the end, collect the paperwork before you pay the balance: the itemised invoice, the commissioning record for the system, the warranty documents registered in your name, and the manuals for the indoor and outdoor units. Run the system through heating and cooling while the engineer is still there, and agree how snagging works in the first weeks. If anything goes wrong afterwards, Citizens Advice sets out your consumer options and template letters for putting it right [8]. Where the firm self-certified the work under a competent-person scheme, the compliance certificate sits with this pile, since a future buyer may ask for it [10].
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, rough Telford ranges run like this: a wall-mounted split for one room typically means a unit cost of £620–£890 with installation of £960–£1,380 on top, averaging around £750 for the unit plus £1,150 to fit it [5]. A ducted ceiling system for the same size runs higher, with the unit around £830–£1,190 and installation around £1,460–£2,100 [5]. Portable units need no fitting and cost far less, at roughly £300–£420 for the common size [5].
Servicing is the smaller yearly bill: a one-off service runs £70–£120 per unit, with monthly maintenance cover from around £40 a month [6]. A weekday call-out sits around £130–£180 including the first hour, rising at weekends, with refrigerant charged on top where the system needs it [6]. If parts fail, bills climb fast: leaks from around £300 and a new compressor past £1,000, at which point replacing the unit can make more sense [6].
The pipework run moves the install price most: a condenser straight outside the indoor unit costs least, while runs across lofts or floors, new electrical spurs and isolators, and awkward access all add labour [5]. More rooms mean more indoor units on one or more outdoor units. Telford usually sits below London and South East prices, where labour rates run highest [5] [6].
A multi-split for several rooms from one outdoor unit is priced per indoor unit plus the shared outdoor unit, so each extra room adds equipment and pipework rather than a whole new system. What moves the figure is the length and route of the pipework, whether the electrics need a new circuit or consumer unit, how easily engineers and ladders reach both units, the maker chosen and the length of cover behind it, and extras such as smart controls or condensate pumps [5]. Servicing plans and call-outs follow the same logic: more units and harder access mean higher bills [6].
Ask whether each quote includes VAT and the electrical extras, since published ranges may exclude one or both [5]. Firms in this round publish almost no example rates beyond free surveys and guide prices, so treat any single fixed price for a multi-room job with no breakdown as a question, not an answer. Get the scope in writing before work starts: the exact units, the pipework route, what changes the price if the survey finds worse access than expected, and the payment stages.
Red flags
Touches refrigerant with no F-Gas detail you can check on the REFCOM site [1].
Prices a multi-room system without visiting or asking for room sizes and photos of the board and outdoor space.
Gives one fixed price with no split between equipment, labour and VAT.
Asks for full payment in cash before starting, with no written quote or terms [8].
Sits the outdoor unit where noise and hot air hit a neighbour's window, with no discussion of siting [7].
Finishes with no commissioning record, warranty documents or manuals left behind.
Will not put the scope, price and start date in writing before starting.
Cannot name the unit maker and model on the quote, only a room size and a total.
Leaves warranty terms off the quote and says the maker covers everything when asked.