CoolDown Domestic Trial - Terms and Conditions

Last updated: 20 March 2026

1. Introduction

These Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) apply to participation in CoolDown (“the Trial”), provided by equiwatt as part of a Strategic Innovation Fund project funded by Ofgem.
By opting in to CoolDown, you agree to be bound by these Terms, equiwatt’s general Terms and Conditions, and equiwatt’s Privacy Policy.
Participation in CoolDown is separate from your electricity supply agreement. Taking part does not change your tariff or your energy supply contract.

2. Trial Structure

CoolDown will be delivered in phases:

  • Trial 1: Summer 2026 - up to 100 households in SP Electricity North West (SP ENW) areas.
  • Trial 2: Summer 2027 - subject to Ofgem approval this trial will involve up to 400 households in SP Electricity North West (SP ENW) and National Grid Electricity Distribution (NGED) areas.

We may update, pause or end the Trial if needed. If we make changes that affect you, we will communicate these clearly.

3. Eligibility

To be part of CoolDown, you must meet the following requirements:

  1. Be aged 18 years or over.
  2. Be a resident within the relevant electricity distribution network area.
  3. Have a working electricity smart meter (or agree to install required monitoring equipment if applicable).
  4. Consent to the collection of half-hourly smart meter readings.
  5. Complete the eligibility questions provided by equiwatt.
  6. Own and use a fixed or portable cooling system to cool your home.
  7. Continue to comply with these Terms and equiwatt’s general Terms.

Eligibility is based on your postcode and may be reviewed during the Trial. You agree that the information you provide to us is accurate and up to date. If details change, please let us know.

4. Moving Home

Eligibility for CoolDown is postcode-based. If you move home or your registered address changes to a postcode outside the eligible distribution network area:

  • You will no longer be able to take part in CoolDown.
  • You will stop earning CoolDown rewards from that point.

You may still be eligible to participate in other equiwatt events or programmes, subject to their own eligibility criteria and terms.

5. Cooling Equipment Requirements

To participate in CoolDown, you must own and actively use eligible cooling equipment to cool your home.

Eligible equipment includes:

  1. Whole-home central air conditioning.
  2. Heat pumps that provide cooling functionality.
  3. Fixed (wall-mounted) air conditioning units.
  4. Portable air conditioning units that vent hot air outside.

The following are not eligible for CoolDown:

  1. Air cooler electric fans, meaning devices that actively cool air (for example, evaporative air coolers).
  2. Devices that only circulate air such as: desk fans, pedestal fans, ceiling fans.

equiwatt will require you to confirm the type of cooling equipment you use during pre-screening or the Trial. If you no longer own or use eligible cooling equipment during the Trial, equiwatt reserves the right to remove you from CoolDown in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.

6. Events and Participation

We may offer up to 20 CoolDown events during the Trial.

Events may:

  1. Last 1 or 2 hours.
  2. Typically take place Monday to Friday between 6pm and 8pm.

Participation is voluntary but we encourage you to take part in as many events as possible. We’ll make reasonable efforts to notify you in advance of events. However, the number, timing and frequency of events may vary.

If you don’t participate in an event, we may ask for feedback through surveys.

The Trial is only measuring the energy saving response from air cooling devices. Therefore, during the Trial period event days, equiwatt will ensure that CoolDown events do not clash with other conflicting energy saving flexibility events.

7. Measurement and Rewards

Your participation is measured using smart meter data. Your energy use during an event is compared to your historical baseline (calculated using the average of the previous 10 non-event working days for that time period).

If you reduce your energy use below your forecast during the event window, you’ll earn rewards.

  • Rewards are issued as equiwatt app points.
  • 100 points = £1.
  • Minimum voucher redemption = 500 points (£5).

Points can be redeemed in the equiwatt Gift Store for retail or charity vouchers.

If we are unable to calculate your savings due to missing or incomplete smart meter data, rewards may not be payable for that event.

Points earned through CoolDown must be redeemed by the end of the project term. Instructions will be issued by equiwatt to redeem any outstanding points that have not been used for voucher redemption or fall below the minimum voucher threshold. The project term ends April 2028 subject to Ofgem approval. After this date, unused points may expire and their value in GBP will be returned to Ofgem.

8. Surveys and Research

A variety of surveys will be conducted as part of the research and will be emailed to participants, this includes:

  • Eligibility survey.
  • Trial start survey.
  • Short post-event surveys.
  • End of trial survey.

Some households may also be invited to take part in focus groups or interviews. Some surveys may have additional reward points attached, which will be communicated by email.

9. Removal from the Trial

We may remove you from CoolDown if:

  1. You withdraw consent for half-hourly smart meter readings.
  2. Your smart meter becomes disconnected for a continuous period of 30 days or more.
  3. You no longer use eligible cooling equipment.
  4. You move outside the eligible area.
  5. You stop being an equiwatt customer.
  6. You breach these Terms.

Removal from CoolDown does not automatically affect your ability to participate in other equiwatt programmes and continue to use the equiwatt app.

10. Data Sharing and Privacy

CoolDown domestic trials are delivered by equiwatt as part of a Strategic Innovation Fund project funded by Ofgem.

To administer surveys and analyse results, equiwatt will share the following information with project manager Guidehouse, including:

  1. Your name and email address.
  2. Household information.
  3. Half-hourly electricity consumption data.
  4. Baseline and participation data.

Data shared with Guidehouse will be governed by Guidehouse’s privacy policies. See the following link for more details https://guidehouse.com/privacy-policy.

We will also share anonymised, aggregated data with project partners for research and reporting purposes.

All personal data processed by equiwatt will be handled in accordance with equiwatt’s Privacy Policy. By participating in CoolDown, you agree to this use of your data.

11. Withdrawal

You may withdraw from CoolDown at any time by contacting equiwatt through the app or support email. Please allow up to 14 business days for your withdrawal to be processed.

12. Liability

You are responsible for ensuring that any cooling equipment you use in connection with CoolDown is operated safely, appropriately maintained, and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. Participation is entirely voluntary. You should not participate in a CoolDown event if doing so may create a risk to your equipment, property, or health.

Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes liability where it cannot legally be limited or excluded.

While we’ll always aim to run the Trial smoothly, we aren’t responsible for:

  • Delays or issues caused by smart meter data availability.
  • Communication failures outside our control.
  • Variations in the number or timing of events.
  • Not achieving expected levels of savings or rewards.

Our total liability in connection with CoolDown will not exceed the total value of rewards you have earned through the Trial.

13. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales.