- Ambient reports public access to boiler age data could enable proactive heating upgrades, especially for fuel-poor households.
- Utilising this data supports grid decarbonisation, lowering energy bills and creating warmer, more efficient homes.
- With 4 million boilers needing replacement, rapid action on heat pump installations is essential for net-zero.
Unlocking data to drive the UK’s clean heat transition with Ambient’s new report
Most homeowners only replace their boilers once they break down, locking them into gas heating for another 15 years. This delay hinders the country’s clean heating goals. However, Ambient’s latest report shows that a data-based solution may be the key to our transition problems.
The Gas Safe Register holds records of boiler installations across the UK since 2009. Managed by the Health and Safety Executive, it’s a taxpayer-funded, official registry of gas appliances. Yet, this valuable data isn’t publicly available. Ambient, a nonprofit focused on clean energy, believes it’s time to change that.
By opening access to boiler age data, the government and industry could pinpoint homes ready for a heating upgrade. With this information, they could reach out to homeowners before their boilers break down, offering options like heat pumps. This data could also help target fuel-poor households with old, inefficient boilers, ensuring limited funds go where they’re needed most.
Irene Omaswa, Founding Board Chair, Ambient, explained:
“We support the government’s plans to decarbonise the grid by 2030. Electrification of heat is necessary to fully realise their ambitions for energy security. In the long term, this will protect consumers; lowering energy bills for good and creating comfortable, warm homes. EPC data was previously made public to support national climate objectives and has massively increased innovation in the sector… Recognising the benefits of understanding boiler age at household level, Ambient believes that it is in the public interest to harness the Gas Safe Register data for the benefit of all. We look forward to working collaboratively with all stakeholders to make this happen.”
Ambient’s recent analysis estimates that nearly 4 million boilers will need replacement by 2027. With accessible data, these replacements could move the UK closer to its climate goals—one household at a time.
Ambient isn’t alone in this vision.
Adam Chapman, Founder, Heat Geek, commented:
“Working on solutions for failing boilers so homes don’t get locked in with gas for another 15 years is essential, and this information would be invaluable to help assist with that. Particularly as it will give homeowners more time to prepare their homes and understand their options well in advance so they aren’t forced into an undesirable result, but also for companies like ours to understand how to best approach and scale up to the challenge with maximum impact and accessibility.”
Katy King, Deputy Director, Sustainable Future Mission, Nesta, added:
“High quality, reliable, public data has the potential to accelerate the adoption of heat pumps to decarbonise homes. An open and accessible Gas Safe Register is crucial for timely and responsive local area energy planning, tailored heat pump marketing and enabling coordinated switching. Speeding up heat pump adoption is essential to reaching net zero. One in ten households need to install a heat pump during the life of this Parliament to meet the UK’s climate obligations. This would require a 12-fold increase in installations over five years when compared with the last five years.”
