How to hire
Match the person to the job first. A heating engineer owns your boiler and the whole heating system: installation, servicing, repair, controls and radiators. Any work on gas, from a boiler swap to a cooker connection, must be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and working on gas appliances without registration is illegal [2] [6]. Oil boilers belong to an OFTEC technician and stoves to a HETAS-registered installer [8] [9]. If your job mixes trades, say a bathroom move with the boiler staying put, ask who does which part before anyone starts.
Check the registration before you book. Ask for the Gas Safe number, type it into the search on the Gas Safe Register site and check the name that comes back matches the business you are hiring [1]. When the engineer arrives, ask to see the Gas Safe ID card and check the back: it lists the appliances and fuels they are qualified for, so a boilers-only card does not cover your gas fire. A logo on a van proves nothing on its own. If the number does not match or the firm cannot give you one, find out why before anyone touches the boiler.
If you let property, the annual gas safety check is your core document. Landlords must have every gas appliance and flue checked once a year by a Gas Safe engineer and give tenants the written record [3]. A landlord certificate typically costs less than a full service [6]. Put the check in the diary for the same month each year and keep every record with the tenancy papers, since you will need them if anything goes wrong. Owner-occupiers face no such legal duty, but manufacturers usually require an annual service to keep the warranty valid [5].
Telford and Wrekin adds its own paperwork. A new boiler needs Building Regulations approval, which a Gas Safe installer normally handles by self-certifying the work and notifying the council, leaving you a compliance certificate that matters when you sell [10] [11]. If your installer cannot self-certify, the council's building control team inspects instead for a fee, so settle who notifies before work starts [12]. Listed homes need more care: works affecting a listed building's character, from flues to chimneys, need listed building consent first, and skipping it is a criminal offence [13]. In the Ironbridge Gorge, an Article 4 Direction pulls some everyday alterations back under planning control, so Gorge households should check with the council before agreeing a flue route [14].
Get two or three itemised written quotes on the same written scope, so you compare like with like [7]. Each quote should name the boiler make and model, the flue route, whether a system flush and filter are included, which controls come with it, the start date and how long the heating will be off, how mess and making-good are handled, and payment stages. A deposit for the boiler is normal, while full payment before completion is not. Treat an outlier far above or below the others as a question, not an answer, and ask what it leaves out.
For a new boiler, ask whether the quote assumes a straight swap or allows for pipework changes, moving the boiler, upgrading the flue or condensate route, and scaffolding if the flue is hard to reach [4]. Ask what system cleaning is included, since sludge left in old radiators shortens a new boiler's life, and confirm the magnetic filter and smart controls are itemised rather than assumed [4] [6]. Agree who registers the warranty and what commissioning paperwork you will receive, and do not pay the balance until you hold it.
A typical job runs first contact, visit, written scope, install, sign-off. At first contact send the boiler make and model, its age, any error code, and photos of the boiler, flue and controls, plus where an engineer can park near your street in Wellington, Dawley, Madeley, Lawley or the Gorge villages. The visit should confirm the flue route, the condensate run, whether controls and filters are included, and a start date with how long the heating stays off. Fix all of that in the written scope before anyone orders parts, and keep every version of it: the scope is what your quote, your certificates and any later dispute all refer back to.
On the day, expect the engineer to test before and after the work and to leave you the commissioning paperwork for the boiler with the warranty registration details [5]. File these with your house papers alongside the quote and invoice. You will need them at sale or re-let, and for any warranty claim. If anything feels rushed or the heating behaves oddly afterwards, call the firm back first with dates and symptoms written down.
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, rough Telford ranges run like this: a like-for-like combi swap usually costs £2,500 to £4,000 fitted, with installation labour around £1,000 to £2,000 of that total [4]. Moving the boiler or changing its type can push installation costs past £3,000 as pipework, flue and controls change with it [4]. Smart controls add around £150 and a magnetic filter around £60 to £160 plus fitting [4]. These figures come from a national cost guide updated in spring 2026, so treat them as brackets, not quotes.
A one-off gas boiler service typically costs £80 to £120, averaging around £100, and a landlord safety certificate runs £55 to £90 [5] [6]. A service with a power flush runs £350 to £650 where sludge has built up in older radiators, and a service with a filter fitted runs £140 to £250 [6]. System age and sludge load move these most: a clean young system takes the standard service, while a neglected one earns the flush and the filter.
Repairs average £120 to £750 depending on the fault and the part, with emergency call-outs typically £225 to £675 [5]. Timing and access move a repair most: an evening breakdown with parts to order costs more than a daytime fix from stock, and awkward access adds labour time. Boiler cover sits around £8 to £13 a month, or £180 to £300 a year with central heating included, and suits homes that would rather budget monthly than meet a sudden bill [5].
Access moves the price most: relocating the boiler, rerouting the flue, draining down an awkward system, and travel and parking across Telford all add time [4]. The age and sludge in the existing system, whether radiators need upgrading, and add-ons such as filters and controls move it further. Ask whether the quote includes a call-out fee and whether VAT sits on top, since guides and quotes do not always treat it the same way.
Firms in this round all offer quotes or quote forms but publish almost no example rates, so treat any single fixed price for a large job with no breakdown as a question, not an answer. Get the scope in writing before work starts: the exact boiler, flush, filter, controls and certificates included, and what changes the price if the engineer finds worse pipework than expected. Agree payment stages and keep every quote, invoice and certificate together [7].
Red flags
Touches a gas appliance but cannot give a Gas Safe number you can check yourself on the register [1].
Prices a new boiler without visiting or asking for photos of the boiler, flue and controls.
Gives one fixed price for a full install with no breakdown of boiler, labour, extras and VAT [7].
Asks for full payment in cash before starting, with no written quote or terms [7].
Finishes an install with no commissioning paperwork and no warranty registration [5].
Treats a failed landlord safety check as nothing to worry about instead of quoting the remedial work [3].
Will not put the scope, price and start date in writing before lifting a tool.
Cannot say who will notify building control of a new boiler or what compliance certificate you will receive [10].
Presses for a same-day decision with a discount that expires before you can compare quotes.