How to Apply for a Free Boiler Grant Under ECO4
To apply for a free boiler grant, fill in the form below. We check your answers, ask for proof of a qualifying benefit or your council's LA Flex declaration, then arrange a home survey.
Start your application
Free to submit. Measures may be fully or partly funded after survey. Any contribution is confirmed in writing first.
Step 1 of 5
What documents do I need to apply?
You can start the form without them, but these speed things up. Evidence rules come from Ofgem's ECO4 delivery guidance.
- Your address and tenure: Full address and postcode, and whether you own the home or rent it privately.
- Proof of a qualifying benefit: A letter from DWP, Jobcentre Plus, HMRC or the Pension Service showing your name, the benefit and the address being improved. Ofgem needs it dated within the 12 months before the work is completed.
- Or your LA Flex paperwork: If you do not get a qualifying benefit, your council may need income evidence such as payslips, a P60, pension or benefit statements, or a GP or NHS letter for the health route.
- Household income, if you get Child Benefit: Child Benefit only counts below Ofgem's income limits, so have the claimant's gross annual income to hand.
- Your EPC rating: If you know it. ECO4 homes are usually rated D to G.
- Landlord permission: Written permission from your landlord if you rent privately.
- Your current boiler: The make and model if you can see them, roughly how old it is, and whether it still works.
No qualifying benefit? See how the LA Flex council route works.
Nothing is installed until you sign a written quote and contract. Applying is free, and ECO4 closes on 31 December 2026.
Not sure you qualify yet? Read who qualifies for a free boiler grant or use the ECO4 eligibility checklist first.
Who runs this site
ApplyFreeBoiler is run by Reliant Energy Solutions Ltd, a UK ECO4 installer. We check eligibility, survey the home and carry out the installation. We are not the government, Ofgem or an energy supplier, and there is no single government application form: Ofgem says you can contact any obligated supplier, or your council.
More about us: About Reliant Energy Solutions
What happens after you apply?
These are the steps between sending the form and a working boiler. A funded measure depends on the survey and on a supplier taking the job on, so you can stop at any step.
- 1
We review your answers and call you
We confirm your benefit or Flex route, whether you own or rent, and what heating you have now. There is no obligation to go ahead.
- 2
Your eligibility is evidenced
You send a benefit letter, or we ask for a DWP data-matching check. On the LA Flex route, your council checks your evidence and signs a declaration instead.
- 3
Home survey and retrofit assessment
A retrofit assessor visits to assess the home under PAS 2035, overseen by a retrofit coordinator. The survey decides which measures are suitable. Insulation may be needed before a new boiler.
- 4
Written quote and contract
You receive a written quote and a contract before work starts, even if you pay nothing. Read them, ask questions and only sign when you are happy.
- 5
Installation
The work goes ahead only once a supplier funds it. Any new boiler must be a condensing boiler, and gas work must be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
- 6
Handover
The installer shows you how to use the controls and leaves care information, certificates and guarantee details.
Your boiler type affects what can be funded. Read how ECO4 treats broken boilers.
Ofgem's ECO4 local authority guidance says a consumer should get a written quotation before work starts, and a contract even when they pay nothing. Check that yours covers:
- The business name, registration, VAT and TrustMark details
- An itemised description of the work and its cost, including anything you pay
- How long the work will take
- Any deposit or stage payments, and the guarantee you get
- Access needed to your home
- How to change the work, how to complain, and after-sales support
The same guidance says you should not be asked to pay the full cost upfront. If the survey finds the work cannot go ahead, the contract should be cancelled and any deposit refunded, and you can change your mind during the installation.
Can I apply if I rent my home?
Yes, with your landlord's written permission, and the qualifying benefit is yours, not the landlord's. Privately rented homes need an EPC of E to G, and Ofgem's guidance says boiler replacement is generally not eligible in them, so the survey usually looks at insulation or renewable heating instead.
Our guide to ECO4 for private tenants and landlord permission explains what to ask your landlord for. Social housing tenants should ask their landlord whether it is running an ECO4 project.
Scam risk is real around free boiler offers. Before sharing documents or agreeing to work:
- Check TrustMark registration for tradespeople.
- For gas boilers, check the Gas Safe Register.
- Confirm any funding claim against a named obligated supplier or participating local authority, not vague government approved wording alone.
- Never pay an upfront fee just to apply or to release a grant.
Read our guide: is the free boiler grant a scam?
Check credentials: TrustMark · Gas Safe Register. Never pay a fee just to apply.
Applying for a free boiler: FAQs
Last reviewed 2 October 2026 against Ofgem and GOV.UK guidance
Through an obligated energy supplier, a local authority (including LA Flex where offered), or an ECO4 installer like Reliant Energy Solutions Ltd, which runs ApplyFreeBoiler. There is no single Ofgem application form. Ofgem administers the supplier obligation; it does not run a household application portal.
No. ApplyFreeBoiler is run by Reliant Energy Solutions Ltd, an ECO4 installer. We are not the government, Ofgem or an energy supplier.
No. You should never pay a fee to submit an application. For installation work, Ofgem notes that you may be asked to contribute in some cases. Any contribution must be in a written quote and contract before work starts.
Ofgem allows a person's benefit status to be confirmed through a DWP data-matching check run by the Energy Saving Trust, instead of a letter. Suppliers and installers can arrange this check. You can also ask DWP, HMRC or the Pension Service for a new award letter.
Yes. Ofgem's guidance says inefficient heating systems, such as one with an old non-condensing boiler, can be upgraded to efficient heating whether or not they have broken down. A broken condensing boiler is different: it should be repaired if that is economic.
No. Eligibility checks and surveys inform whether a supplier will fund measures. Eligibility does not guarantee an installation.
Timelines vary with survey scheduling, funding decisions and installer availability. We do not publish fixed week ranges unless we have measured averages to share. ECO4 work must be completed before the scheme ends on 31 December 2026.
Ofgem administers the ECO scheme but does not approve installers for households. Check TrustMark registration and, for gas boilers, Gas Safe registration instead of an Ofgem approved marketing badge. Funding sits with obligated energy suppliers.
Prefer another route?
You can also apply via your local authority (including Flex where offered) or an obligated energy supplier. See GOV.UK Energy Company Obligation for official context. ApplyFreeBoiler is not the only path.
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