Poor Heating and Fuel Poverty
It is recommended that your home has an adequate fixed heating system capable of heating the habitable rooms (bedrooms, living room) to maintain ambient temperature adequately and efficiently to a minimum of 18oc when outside temperatures are -1oc.
The heating can be provided by any fuel type, but regard should be had for it's efficiency and affordability.
Heating appliances/ systems should be:
- Controllable by each occupier
- Safe and properly installed and maintained
- Appropriate for the construction, design and layout of the dwelling
- Able to maintain ambient temperature adequately and efficiently to a minimum of 18oc when outside temperatures are -1oc
If you think the heating is inadequate then the Local Authority may be able to carry out an HHSRS assessment to determine whether the lack of heating is causing a hazard to health.
It is the landlords responsibility to ensure the heating installation at the property is adequate.
Fuel Poverty
When a household needs to spend more than 10% of its income on fuel – or energy as it is often called – it is considered to be in fuel poverty. The number of households experiencing fuel poverty is rising at the moment for several reasons:
- The cost of energy keeps increasing, which means we need to spend more of our income on paying these bills
- Many of us live in draughty homes, from which lots of heat escapes, and rely on heating systems that are old and inefficient. And because we do not have much money to spare, it is difficult to make our homes more energy efficient, which would reduce our bills
- The general cost of living is rising and this is also putting pressure on our finances so we have less money to go around
An adequate heating system and good insulation can help with fuel poverty. Switching to a cheaper energy provider may also help cut costs. There are many comparison websites that can help you to decide.
The Local Authority sometimes has grants and loans available to help you or your landlord to upgrade heating or install energy efficiency measures. Please see our Financial Assistance section for more information. You can also get tips on energy efficiency from our Energy Efficiency pages.
From 1st April 2020 all rental properties should have an EPC with a rating of E or above, unless they are registered on an exemption register. Please see our Energy Performance Certificates page for more information.
The Energy Savings Trust also has information to help you search for grants and offers to make improvements to energy efficiency.