Do I qualify for a boiler grant?
Who does, who does not, and where to apply.

Boiler grants are disappearing, and they are very stringent about who qualifies. There is no general "free boiler for everyone" scheme. The gas boiler help runs through energy suppliers and councils for qualifying households - typically on certain benefits or a low household income, in a home with a poor energy rating and a boiler that is broken or very old. The £7,500 grant you may have read about is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, and it is for heat pumps, not gas boilers. We do not install boilers under grant schemes. We do install heat pumps that qualify for the £7,500. Ask us and we will tell you which applies to you, either way.

The two routes to a boiler grant
and who runs them

Route one is ECO4 - the Energy Company Obligation, funded by the big energy suppliers. It is aimed at households on means-tested benefits: Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Housing Benefit, and Child Benefit within income limits. The scheme has been extended and is due to close on 31 December 2026. That date may be subject to change, but it was the case when it was last checked for this article.

Route two is LA Flex - flexible eligibility through your local council, for households who miss the benefits list but are still struggling. The criteria are set borough by borough, but typically a household income under about £31,000, or a severe or long-term health condition made worse by a cold home, or things like Council Tax Reduction or free school meals. Not every council runs it, and each one words it differently - in Ealing it runs through the Healthy Homes Ealing team (0800 083 2265), and Hounslow's support runs through its Better Homes, Better Health service (0300 365 3005).

Why most people do not qualify
the conditions that filter almost everyone out

For a gas boiler specifically, qualifying for the scheme is not enough on its own. Broadly, all of the following need to be true:

Your home needs a poor energy rating - an EPC of D to G for homeowners, E to G for private tenants. Most London homes with an existing gas boiler and some insulation sit at D or above, which already rules many out.

The existing boiler generally needs to be broken down or a very old, inefficient non-condensing type. A working condensing boiler that is merely old is normally not replaceable under the scheme.

And you need to fit the benefits or income criteria above, with the paperwork to show it.

That combination is the point of the scheme - it exists for households in real difficulty rather than as a discount for everyone. If you have seen adverts suggesting otherwise, be careful: the checks happen eventually, and a household that does not qualify finds out after the survey, not before the advert.

The £7,500 grant is real
but it is not for gas boilers

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme gives £7,500 towards an air source heat pump in England and Wales. Despite the name, it does not fund gas boilers at all - it funds replacing a gas, oil, LPG or electric heating system with a heat pump.

There is no benefits test on it. It is one grant per property, and the installation has to be MCS certified. We install heat pumps under this scheme - the installation is ours, with design, commissioning and MCS certification by an accredited partner, and the grant is claimed through that certified route so the £7,500 comes off the price you are quoted. If your interest is "my bills are high and my boiler is old", a heat pump with £7,500 off is sometimes the better conversation than chasing a gas boiler grant you may not qualify for. Sometimes - not always. It depends on the house.

Where we stand
so there is no confusion

We do not install gas boilers under ECO4 or council grant schemes - that work runs through the suppliers' and councils' own contractor arrangements. If you think you qualify, the route is your energy supplier's ECO page or your council's scheme, and we would encourage you to use it even though there is nothing in it for us.

We do install heat pumps under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, and we quote them with the grant already accounted for.

And if you do not qualify for anything - which is most people - a new boiler is a fixed written price from us after a survey, with the exact make and model named, so at least the number you plan around is real. As a rough guide that is £2,500 to £4,500 for a combi installation - the full picture is in our new boiler cost guide.

The short version

If you are on the qualifying benefits, in a home with a poor EPC and a broken or very old boiler - apply, through your supplier or your council, and do it before the ECO4 window closes, which was 31 December 2026 when last checked for this article. If your income is low or ill health is involved, ask your council about flexible eligibility even if you are not on benefits. If neither is you, the £7,500 heat pump grant has no benefits test at all and is worth a conversation. And if you just want a fair, fixed, written price for a boiler from someone who will tell you the truth about all of the above - that is what we do.

Quick answers