Recent events, including the pandemic and the ongoing energy crisis, have had an impact on the UK boiler industry and its supply chain. Even during the summer, the supply of boilers has been challenging. This means that come winter, the supply of gas boilers is likely to face disruption, particularly as demand surges in the colder months.
In a recent survey conducted by Heatable, 62% of consumers fed back that they were “Just shopping around for quotes right now, no rush”. The concern is that these consumers may come unstuck.
As demand for gas boilers increases sharply in the colder months, Heatable expects boiler supply issues to become much more evident as winter approaches. This means that there is likely to be a shortage of stock and the availability of ranges and models will become sparse and more restricted.
What are manufacturers saying?
In recent communication, Worcester Bosch commented: “The supply of components, mainly pumps, continues to challenge the boiler industry. Longer lead times may be unavoidable during the busy winter period, however as a manufacturer we are doing everything in our power to overcome this.”
Why is the UK facing a supply issue?
Simply put, manufacturers cannot obtain the required components due to backlogs and production delays. There are well-known supply issues with several key boiler components including semiconductors (the chips inside the circuit boards), fans and pumps.
Winter has always been the busiest time of year for the UK domestic heating industry, so with a gas boiler shortage likely, this is going to have a compounding effect. A shortage of boilers means that prices could potentially increase, there may be limited options in terms of brands and models, and consumers may have to wait longer to have one installed.
