ECO4 Flex referral route

Do this first

Your safe boundary

Use only an official council, devolved-administration or supplier channel; qualified scheme participants must verify the property and install any measure.

ECO4 Flex can still support a referral check on 13 August 2026, but ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026 and local participation varies.

No verified cost range is available for this page.

Safety warnings

Warning

Owner permission is required

Do not authorise property work as a tenant when owner or landlord permission is required. Obtain written permission before the application or installation proceeds.

Permission and applicant roles differ by scheme. ECO work in rented homes requires the relevant owner or landlord permission. BUS is property-owner and installer led; the landlord must inform affected tenants, but tenant notification is not grant approval.

Do now

Identify the legal owner, landlord, management company and authorised scheme applicant.
Obtain and retain the required written permission or consent.
Check lease, tenancy, lender, planning and Building Regulations requirements separately where relevant.

Do not

Do not let a tenant claim ownership or sign an owner declaration.
Do not treat access, notification or informal agreement as the scheme's required consent.
Do not treat landlord permission as funding or technical approval.

Get help

Ask the landlord, social landlord or management company for the correct written consent route.
Ask the scheme administrator or installer which party must apply and sign.
Use housing or legal advice if authority to carry out the work is disputed.

Warning

Check every required credential

Verify the business and person on each required official register for the exact measure and task. Scheme participation does not replace trade-specific competence.

ECO measures generally use the scheme's TrustMark route, while BUS installations require an MCS-certified installer for the relevant technology and approved consumer-code membership. Gas, electrical, asbestos, refrigerant, structural and other regulated work may require additional credentials.

Do now

Check the official register entry, expiry, business identity and scope for the proposed measure.
Confirm who is responsible for assessment, design, installation, certification, warranty and complaints.
Check every stricter trade-specific credential before work starts.

Do not

Do not accept a logo, badge, lead-generator page or verbal claim as register verification.
Do not call an installer Ofgem-approved.
Do not treat TrustMark, MCS, grant approval or one trade credential as authority for unrelated regulated work.

Get help

Verify ECO and scheme requirements through Ofgem and the official TrustMark route.
Verify BUS technology scope through the official MCS and scheme route.
Use the relevant regulator, Building Control or official trade register for additional work categories.

Caution

Eligibility is not approval

This is not an approval or a promise of funding, free work or installation. The scheme, supplier or administrator must complete its checks.

Eligibility can still depend on assessment, measure suitability, supplier selection, budget, evidence, owner consent and current rules. A contribution may be requested where the scheme allows it, and the user may decline an offer.

Do now

Treat the result as an initial screen only.
Obtain the written offer, itemised costs, conditions and responsible organisation before agreeing.
Check that approval and any voucher have actually been issued before relying on funding.

Do not

Do not say guaranteed approval, guaranteed grant, guaranteed free installation or guaranteed funding.
Do not treat eligibility, referral, assessment, quote or consent as an award.
Do not hide a contribution, exclusion, expiry or rejection risk.

Get help

Ask the scheme administrator, supplier or installer for written case status.
Use independent advice where contract terms or requested contributions are unclear.
Do not proceed on an unsupported verbal promise.

Caution

Scheme rules can change

Scheme rules, dates, values and availability can change. Recheck the linked official source before relying on this result.

A dated statement is valid only for its recorded scope and review window. A consultation, announcement or residual web page is not proof that an application route is open. Once review_by passes, quarantine the claim until it is rechecked.

Do now

Check the official scheme administrator or government source and its update date.
Confirm the property, applicant, measure, jurisdiction and application date match the current rule.
Use the earliest review date from every policy record referenced by the page.

Do not

Do not publish a policy claim after review_by without a fresh official-source review.
Do not present a proposal, consultation or future announcement as a current entitlement.
Do not infer budget availability or an open application route from a scheme name alone.

Get help

Use the current GOV.UK or Ofgem scheme page for the relevant programme.
Ask the scheme administrator, obligated supplier or installer to confirm case-specific status in writing.
Suppress the claim if current status cannot be verified.

What is known — and what is not

What is known

Only the page's recorded observations, documents and stated scope are treated as known.

What remains uncertain

An income, health, debt or prepayment indicator cannot establish that the local route is open or that a supplier will proceed. [1][2]

Possible explanations

the household may fit a current authorised Flex route [1][2]
the local body may use another permitted criterion or evidence process [1][2]
the property, tenure, supplier capacity or assessment may prevent delivery [1][2]

Current status

ECO4 Flex remains within ECO4's extended obligation period to 31 December 2026; the extension does not add targets or guarantee that a participating body or supplier has capacity. [3][2]

What may justify a Flex check

Ofgem lists combined gross annual household income under £31,000 as one possible route. [1][2]
A severe or long-term cardiovascular, respiratory, mobility or immunosuppression condition adversely affected by a cold home is another possible route. [1]
Supplier Flex may cover persistent fuel debt or repeated inability to stay connected through a prepayment meter because of financial hardship. [1]
Other authorised criteria exist, so the listed indicators are not an exhaustive entitlement test. [1][2]

What a referral can lead to

A valid referral can pass a household to an obligated supplier; if the supplier proceeds, a retrofit assessment determines scheme and measure suitability. [1]

Flex applies to qualifying private domestic premises and uses route- and tenure-specific property bands; current Ofgem guidance excludes homes let by a social landlord from Flex. [2]

Referral route and next body

Find the current ECO4 Flex page or Statement of Intent on the official local-authority or devolved-administration website. [1][2]
Check whether self-referral is accepted and what income, health, debt, prepayment, tenure and property evidence is required. [1]
For Supplier Flex, contact the energy supplier through independently sourced details. [1]
Treat a declaration as pending until the obligated supplier confirms assessment, scope, funding and any contribution in writing. [1][2]

Protect evidence and verify contact

Do not send medical, income or bank evidence to an unverified caller or pay for a council declaration. [4]
Ask which council, devolved administration and obligated supplier are involved, then verify each independently. [1][4]
Do not let the closing date turn a referral, survey or verbal offer into a promise of work. [3][1]

Property, sale and letting relevance

Condition: a referral does not identify which fabric or heating measure suits the home; the retrofit assessment must do that. [1]
Sale: retain the declaration, assessment, permissions, installer details and completion evidence without presenting referral as completed work. [2]
Letting: private tenants need owner permission and social-housing tenants should use their provider's separate support route. [1][2]

Review triggers

Recheck when a local Statement of Intent, self-referral route, income or health criterion changes. [2]
Review by 5 September 2026 and immediately on any ECO4 closure or successor announcement. [3]

Evidence checkpoints

A combined gross annual household income under £31,000 is one current ECO4 Flex screening route. [1][2]
Evidence date: 2026-08-13
A qualifying long-term condition adversely affected by a cold home can support a current ECO4 Flex check. [1]
Evidence date: 2026-08-13
An ECO4 Flex referral is not an award and does not require a supplier to install measures. [1]
Evidence date: 2026-08-13
ECO4 Flex delivery remains subject to the ECO4 end date of 31 December 2026. [2]
Evidence date: 2026-08-13

Scope and safety review

ECO4 Flex operates through participating bodies in Great Britain and does not apply in Northern Ireland.

Jurisdiction: England, Wales, Scotland
Who this covers: household applicant or property owner
Tenure: owner-occupied, private rented, social rented
Reviewed: 2026-08-13

Sources

Energy Company Obligation: homeowners and tenantsOfgem. Accessed 2026-08-13.
ECO4 and GBIS Flex Local Authority Guidance version 3.0Ofgem. Accessed 2026-08-12.
Extending the ECO4 end date: government responseDepartment for Energy Security and Net Zero. Accessed 2026-08-13.
Avoid and report energy scamsOfgem. Accessed 2026-08-13.