Has your boiler become old and inefficient? Are you looking to install a new boiler for your home but worried about the costs? Whether you’re upgrading an outdated boiler or installing a heating system for the first time, we’ll show you how to get a free boiler in 2024.
To decarbonise UK homes by 2050, the UK government offers various grants and schemes to help everyone upgrade their boilers, regardless of their financial situation. One of the most important and comprehensive programmes is the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4), now in its fourth phase. For those not eligible for ECO4 upgrades, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is another crucial government initiative, providing options to replace old boilers with biomass boilers or heat pumps.
In this guide, we'll cover everything you need to know about getting a free boiler in 2024.
The ECO4 scheme aims to help low-income and vulnerable households all over the UK combat fuel poverty and reduce their carbon emissions while significantly reducing their energy bills. It offers partial or full funding to eligible households for various energy-efficiency measures, with free boiler grants being one of its main focuses.
This scheme is not available to everyone, and to qualify for a free boiler grant under ECO4, you must prove that you genuinely need it. You must be receiving certain benefits, such as a child benefit or a universal benefit.
If you don’t have any of the needed benefits, you can still be eligible under the ECO4 Flex Scheme. This scheme does not have a fixed eligibility criteria and is mostly up to the energy companies to decide. But generally, you will be eligible if your household has a combined income of £31,000 or less or if a member of your household has a health condition that makes them vulnerable to cold weather.
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme in the UK aims to help households reduce energy consumption and lower heating costs through energy efficiency measures. To qualify for the ECO4 scheme, applicants must meet specific criteria:
Meeting these criteria can open up access to a range of energy efficiency measures funded by the ECO4 scheme, including insulation, heating system upgrades, and other improvements to reduce energy bills and enhance home comfort.
The ECO4 scheme adopts a fabric-first strategy, meaning your home must be adequately insulated before you can qualify for a free boiler grant. This approach ensures that your house retains heat efficiently, reducing energy consumption and costs. ECO4 offers comprehensive grants to insulate your entire home. This can include cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, underfloor insulation, and more.
However, ECO4 doesn’t stop at insulation. It follows a comprehensive 'whole-house' approach. Once your home is assessed and considered eligible, the scheme provides extensive grants for a range of energy efficiency improvements. These upgrades can include heating system upgrades, draught-proofing, solar panels and other measures to ensure your entire house operates as efficiently as possible.
By prioritising both insulation and a thorough assessment process, the ECO4 scheme aims to deliver substantial energy efficiency improvements, making your home more eco-friendly and cost-effective.
The ECO4 scheme has specific regulations and priorities, meaning you can’t qualify for any energy efficiency measures you choose. Instead, the scheme targets specific upgrades to maximise energy savings and efficiency. Below are some key regulations for heating upgrades under the ECO4 scheme:
Under ECO4, qualifying households can get various energy-efficiency measures. This includes free boilers, green heating systems such as heat pumps, and boiler repairs.
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Repairing Broken Boilers
Not every boiler needs replacement. Depending on your current boiler’s type and efficiency, it might be eligible for a free boiler repair under the ECO4 scheme. This includes diagnosing your boiler, cleaning it, and fixing or replacing faulty components such as valves, thermostats, and pumps. Repairing gas boilers is prioritised since they are more efficient than coal, oil, or LPG-fueled systems. If the boiler is over 10-12 years old or completely beyond repair, you will qualify for a free boiler replacement with a more energy-efficient option, such as a biomass boiler or another green heating system like a heat pump.
Upgrading to Green Heating Systems
The ECO4 scheme aims to create a greener planet and reduce carbon emissions. If you currently have a boiler with low energy efficiency and high carbon emissions, you might be eligible for a boiler replacement. The replacement boiler must be an A-rated gas boiler, such as a condensing gas boiler. All coal-fueled boilers are excluded from the ECO4 scheme because they emit a high amount of carbon dioxide and harm the planet, contrary to the ECO4’s ultimate goal of decarbonising UK homes.
You can also replace your inefficient boiler with a green heating system such as a biomass boiler or an air-source heat pump. Replacing your outdated boiler with a high-efficiency heating system can reduce your energy bills by 25-30%. This means you will not only upgrade your boiler at no cost but also save a significant amount in the long run and contribute to a greener planet.
First Time Central Heating
ECO4 is not just for upgrading existing outdated boilers. If your house has never had a central heating system, you are planning to buy a green high-efficiency heating system, you can be eligible for a free boiler or heat pump.
Applying for a free boiler under the ECO4 scheme with ByEco is simple and straightforward. Just complete our easy online form, and let our team of experts handle the rest. We’ve streamlined the process to make it as hassle-free as possible.
First, we conduct a thorough assessment to determine your eligibility. Once eligible, we evaluate your home to recommend the best boiler based on your house size, heating needs, and preferences. We then connect you with top-rated installers in your area to ensure optimal results. From start to finish, we oversee the entire application process to ensure everything runs smoothly and efficiently.
ByEco makes upgrading to a more energy-efficient boiler under the ECO4 scheme easy, ensuring you enjoy a warmer, more cost-effective home with minimal effort.
The other important government grant for boilers is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS). It is not as comprehensive as the ECO4 and only offers grant fundings for biomass boilers and air-source and ground-source heat pumps. Nevertheless, it’s a great option if you live in England or Wales and you are not eligible for the ECO4.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme offers grant funding of £7,500 for air-source heat pumps and ground-source heat pumps, and £5,000 for biomass boilers.
Unlike the ECO4 which has a ‘whole house’ approach, the BUS only offers grants for a single energy-efficiency measure, so if a household already had a biomass boiler or a heat pump installed under the BUS, it cannot qualify for another one under this same grant.
For a more detailed guide on the BUS, visit our blog on The UK Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
Rely on ByEco to make your upgrade to a more eco-friendly home as easy as possible. We will do a thorough assessment of your home to check your eligibility and we will determine all the free energy-efficiency measures you can receive to decarbonise your home to the fullest. Be it insulation, solar panels, boilers, or heat pumps, we provide you with full assistance, so you won’t hesitate to join the green movement and contribute to a more sustainable future.
How to Get a Free Boiler in 2024 Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) Eligibility Criteria for the ECO4 ECO4 Scheme: Insulation and Whole-House Approach Free Heating Upgrades with the ECO4 Scheme What Boilers does ECO4 Cover? How to Apply for the ECO4 Scheme Boiler Upgrade Scheme Make your home greener with ByEco
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