Free Boiler for Tenants: Who Has to Fix It and What Grants Add

Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 makes your landlord keep the installations for space heating and heating water "in repair and proper working order". It covers most tenancies of under seven years, including council and housing association homes.

A few points from the law that renters often miss:

• Your contract cannot move the duty onto you. Section 11(4) says a tenant's promise to repair these installations has no effect. A clause saying "the tenant is responsible for the boiler" does not change who pays.
• Your landlord can ask to come in. They, or someone they authorise in writing, can inspect at reasonable times after giving you 24 hours' notice in writing. Letting the engineer in keeps the repair moving.
• Gas safety is checked every year. The Health and Safety Executive says a Gas Safe registered engineer must check gas appliances annually, and you get a copy of the record within 28 days (or before you move in, if you are new).

The duty is about repair. If the boiler can be fixed, the landlord can fix it. If it cannot, replacing it is the way they keep the heating "in proper working order".

Boiler grants for tenants will not replace the existing boiler in a private rental, but they can pay for a different, bigger heating job. That rule comes from article 14 of the ECO4 Order, and Ofgem's guidance for tenants and landlords says the same.

What your benefit can still pay for in a private let

Three things have to line up: a home rated E, F or G, a household that passes the benefit test on our ECO4 eligibility guide or is declared eligible through the LA Flex scheme, and a yes from your landlord. That yes is the one thing only you can ask for.

For a tenant, the jobs that fit are a first time central heating grant if you live with electric room heaters, an air source heat pump (unless it replaces the same kind of renewable system), or solid wall insulation, with other insulation added in the same visit. The landlord's side, from consent to which rentals qualify, is in our guide to boiler grants for landlords, which you can pass on.

Ofgem says a contribution may sometimes be asked for. With us, approved homes pay nothing for the funded work, and any extras are agreed in writing first.

Warm Homes: Local Grant (England)

The Local Grant is open to privately rented homes rated D to G where the household has a low income. It pays for insulation, solar panels and heat pumps, not gas boilers. Tenants are not expected to pay anything; your landlord signs a declaration, and pays at least half of the cost from their second funded rental onwards.

We help with the Local Grant form and documents. The income tests are on our Warm Homes: Local Grant page.

Heat pump grants need the owner

In England, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme puts £7,500 towards a heat pump, but the claim belongs to whoever owns the home. As a tenant you cannot make it yourself; if your landlord likes the idea, we help them with it.

Rent a cold home rated E, F or G?

Put the problem in writing, give access, and let the formal routes do the pushing. Steps 1 to 3 apply whoever your landlord is; step 4 is for private and housing association tenants.

• Report it in writing. A text or email is fine. Say what is broken, since when, and who in the home is affected (a baby, an older person or someone unwell).
• Keep a record. Save every message, note each call, and photograph the boiler's fault code or error light.
• Use the complaints process. Social landlords must have one. If it fails, the Housing Ombudsman can look at complaints about landlords who are members of its scheme.
• Know the council's powers (private and housing association homes). Under the Housing Act 2004, councils rate homes for hazards such as excess cold and can serve an improvement notice ordering the work. For the most serious (Category 1) hazards, the GOV.UK housing hazard guide says the council must act.

Fear of eviction stops many renters from complaining about a broken boiler their landlord won't fix. In England, from 1 May 2026 a private landlord can no longer evict you using a no-fault section 21 notice, even if your tenancy agreement says they can. They now need a legal reason.

A boiler fitted in a rented home stays with the home when you leave. It is part of the heating installation the landlord keeps in repair.

Grant checks start again at a new address. Your next home is looked at from scratch: its energy rating, how it is heated, and whether you rent it or own it.

FreeBoilerUpgrade.uk is the installer. We check your household and home, survey with your landlord's permission, and fit the work with a Gas Safe registered engineer, typically in 1 to 2 days on site once approved.

What the surveyor looks at in a rented home:

• How the home is heated now, and whether there is any wet central heating
• The wall type and loft, for insulation
• The current EPC rating, or what it is likely to be

Documents worth having ready:

• A photo of your tenancy agreement
• A text or email from your landlord saying yes to the work
• Your benefit award letter, or the council's letter saying your household is eligible
• The home's EPC rating, if your landlord or letting agent has given it to you

If a free boiler for tenants is not possible in your home, the survey shows what can be funded instead. How long it takes depends on your paperwork and the survey. We work across England and Scotland, including Manchester, Salford, Stockport and Oldham.