Heating and Hot Water: your rights explained
No heating or hot water is more than an inconvenience. It is a serious health hazard, especially in winter or for vulnerable people. Your landlord must act quickly. Find out what your rights are.
Get help with my complaintYour rights around heating and hot water
Lack of adequate heating is classed as 'excess cold', a Category 1 hazard under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). Category 1 hazards represent the most serious risks to health and safety.
Your landlord has a legal duty to ensure your home has adequate heating and hot water. Under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, they must keep your home fit to live in throughout your tenancy.
Awaab's Law Phase 2 applies strict investigation deadlines to seven more hazard types, including excess cold, from 30 November 2026. If your heating has been broken for any length of time, you should act now.
Legal deadlines
A complete loss of heating during cold weather is an emergency hazard, particularly if anyone in the household is elderly, very young, or has a health condition. Your landlord must investigate and begin repair within 24 hours, or provide alternative heated accommodation.
A complete loss of hot water is also treated as an emergency by most social landlords. It must be restored or emergency alternative provision made within 24 hours.
Key facts
What is your landlord's legal responsibility?
Under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, your landlord must keep the heating installation in good repair and working order. This includes the boiler, pipes, radiators, and any communal heating system. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 also requires your home to be habitable, and a home without heating in winter is not habitable.
What if I have a prepayment meter and cannot afford to top it up?
If your heating is off because you cannot afford to top up your prepayment meter, contact your energy supplier immediately. They have a duty of care for vulnerable customers and can arrange emergency credit. Also contact your landlord and your local council's housing team. This is a separate issue from a broken heating system, but urgent support is available.
What if it is a communal boiler serving my block?
Communal heating systems are your landlord's responsibility to maintain and repair. If your block's communal boiler fails, all residents are affected. Report the fault immediately and make a formal complaint if it is not fixed within the emergency timeframe. Your landlord may also be required to provide electric heaters in the interim.
What to do step by step
Keep a written record at every stage. Dates and written communications are your most important evidence.
Report immediately by phone and email
Call your landlord's emergency repairs line and follow up immediately with an email. State the date, that you have no heating or hot water, and who is in the household (especially if anyone is vulnerable). This triggers the 24-hour emergency clock.
Request interim provision if not fixed within 24 hours
If the repair cannot be completed within 24 hours, ask your landlord in writing to provide electric heaters or alternative accommodation in the interim. They have a duty to keep you safe.
Make a formal complaint if not acted on within 24 hours
If 24 hours have passed and your landlord has not responded or provided temporary heating, make a formal Stage 1 complaint immediately. Use TenantSafe to generate a correctly-referenced letter.
Keep a daily diary of the impact
Record each day without heating or hot water, any health effects, and any costs you have incurred (extra blankets, electric heaters, eating out because you cannot cook). This evidence supports a compensation claim.
Escalate to the Housing Ombudsman
After completing the Stage 1 and Stage 2 complaint process, refer to the Housing Ombudsman. Prolonged loss of heating, especially during winter, often results in findings of maladministration and compensation awards.
Get a formal complaint letter in minutes
TenantSafe produces a correctly-referenced complaint letter based on your specific situation, with the right legal references, the right deadlines and the right tone. It is free and takes less than 10 minutes.
Generate my free complaint letterCommon questions
Can my landlord charge me for boiler repairs?+
No. Your landlord cannot charge you for repairing the boiler or heating system unless the damage was caused by you. Normal maintenance and repair of the heating installation is entirely the landlord's responsibility and cost.
My landlord wants to replace the boiler but there is a delay of several weeks. Is this acceptable?+
It depends on the time of year and your circumstances. If you are without any heating during cold weather, several weeks is unlikely to be acceptable. Your landlord should provide temporary electric heaters or alternative accommodation. Make a formal complaint if they do not, and cite the emergency timeframes under Awaab's Law Phase 1 (in force now).
What if it is only one radiator that is not working?+
A single non-working radiator in one room may be treated as an urgent rather than emergency repair. However, if it is in a room where a vulnerable person lives (a baby, young child, elderly person, or someone with a respiratory condition) it should still be treated urgently. Report it in writing and ask for a repair date.
Can I get compensation for living without heating?+
Yes. The Housing Ombudsman regularly awards compensation for periods without adequate heating. The amount depends on the length of time, the season, and the impact on your household. Keep detailed records to support your claim.