HOW TO HIRE · PLUMBING & HEATING

How to hire an underfloor heating installer in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register applies, but electric underfloor heating is electrical work under the Building Regulations. The checks, floor finishes and the quote.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring an underfloor heating installer in five steps

  1. Electric or wet?Electric mats cost less to fit; wet systems cost more and run cheaper.
  2. Who wires it?A registered electrician for any new circuit, certified.
  3. Check the floor finishTiles suit it best; thick carpet and some wood limit output.
  4. Ask for the heat outputEnough to heat the room on its own if it is the only heat.
  5. Agree the screed timeHow long before the heating is turned up.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No licence or register applies to underfloor heating installers in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, so anyone may offer underfloor heating. For underfloor heating, two legal lines remain: gas work belongs to a Gas Safe registered engineer, and new fittings must meet your nation's water fittings rules.

Ask whether any part of the underfloor heating touches gas, and if it does, who on the team is on the Gas Safe Register.

Electrical work and the Building Regulations

If the underfloor heating needs a new electrical supply, that is electrical work under the Building Regulations in England and Wales. Work in a bathroom or shower room is notifiable, and so in Wales is work in a kitchen or outdoors: it needs an electrician on a competent person scheme, or building control.

Search the electrician on the Registered Competent Person Electrical register and ask for the certificate for the underfloor heating wiring. electricalcompetentperson.co.uk →

Gas Safe Register for anything on gas

Plumbers need no register, but gas does: under the 1998 Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations, and Northern Ireland's 2004 Regulations, only a Gas Safe registered engineer may be paid to work on a gas appliance or pipework. If the underfloor heating connection reaches a gas boiler, hob or supply, that part is theirs.

Check the engineer's licence by text to 85080, or on 0800 408 5500, before the gas part of the underfloor heating connection starts. gassaferegister.co.uk →

Zero-rated heating controls

HMRC's Notice 708/6 lists controls for central heating and hot water among energy-saving materials; supplied and installed on their own in a home they are zero-rated until 31 March 2027.

Ask how the underfloor heating thermostats are charged for VAT. gov.uk →

VAT

Underfloor heating is standard-rated at 20%; qualifying heating controls fitted in a home are zero-rated until 31 March 2027. A trader whose taxable turnover passes £90,000 must register, charge it and show it as a separate line; one below that threshold adds none.

Ask for the underfloor heating thermostats on their own line with their rate, and for the VAT number. gov.uk →

“Electric or wet underfloor heating — which suits this room?”

A good answer: A reasoned answer about the room, floor height and running costs.

“Who connects the electric underfloor heating, and what certificate will I get?”

A good answer: A registered electrician and an electrical certificate.

“What heat output will the system give?”

A good answer: A figure per room, enough if it is the only heat.

“Will my floor finish work with underfloor heating?”

A good answer: A check on tog rating for carpet and the maker's limit for wood.

“Is insulation board included?”

A good answer: Yes, so the heat goes up, not down.

“How long must the screed cure?”

A good answer: A stated time before the heating is turned up.

Getting the quote right

  • System type and area covered
  • Insulation, mats or pipes, manifold and controls
  • Electrical work and certificate, or excluded
  • Screed and floor finish — included or not
  • Who actually attends — the installer, the screeder and the electrician, employed or subcontracted
  • The VAT number, with VAT at 20% shown apart from any zero-rated controls

Walk away if

  • Wires electric mats without a certificate
  • No insulation under the system
  • No heat output figure
  • Turns the heating up fully on new screed
LOW
£40
TYPICAL
£120
HIGH
£190

What an underfloor heating installer costs: £40–£190 per m²

Underfloor heating is priced per square metre fitted; the system type, insulation, screed and controls set it. Underfloor Heating price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Underfloor heating installers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. DesignOutput and layout per room.
  2. InsulateBoards laid to push heat upwards.
  3. LayPipes or mats laid to the layout and tested.
  4. ConnectManifold or wiring connected, thermostats fitted.
  5. CommissionSystem tested and the warm-up explained.

Manifold
The hub that sends water to each loop of a wet system.
Screed
The sand and cement layer over the pipes.
Tog rating
How much a carpet insulates; too high blocks the heat.
Electric mat
A mat of heating cable under tiles.
Loop
One circuit of pipe in a wet system.
Zone
An area controlled by its own thermostat.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the layout drawingWhere the pipes or mats run — so nobody drills into them later.
Keep the certificatesElectrical certificate for electric systems; commissioning record for wet.
Warm up slowlyFollow the screed curing schedule.
Review the visitA few lines on the underfloor heating help the next household choose. If there is a problem, the make-it-right step sends it to the underfloor heating installer before your review appears.

STEP 1Go back to the underfloor heating installerSay what is wrong with the underfloor heating and what you want done about it. Under section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 the underfloor heating had to be carried out with reasonable care and skill; if it was not, you can ask the underfloor heating installer to put it right at their own cost (section 55) or for money off (section 56).
STEP 2Use the make-it-right stepIf you rate the underfloor heating under four stars, Locufy asks whether to send the problem to the underfloor heating installer first, and we follow it through before your review goes up.
STEP 3Trading Standards, through the helplinesTrading Standards is reached through a helpline, not directly: Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, and Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland can log a complaint about the underfloor heating installer and pass it on.
STEP 4Small claims, if money is owedAn unpaid refund or repair bill from the underfloor heating goes to small claims: £10,000 is the limit in England and Wales, £5,000 in Scotland using simple procedure, and £5,000 in Northern Ireland — all designed to be used without a solicitor.

Hiring an underfloor heating installer: questions people ask

No register applies. A new electrical circuit must meet the Building Regulations; in a bathroom in England and Wales it is notifiable.

An electrical certificate from the registered electrician who connects it.

Yes, if the carpet and underlay tog rating is low enough.

£40–£190 per m², about £120 typical. The underfloor heating price guide explains the range; your town in the search box above shows installers who cover it.

Yes, it runs at low flow temperatures.

A day for an electric mat in one room, several days for a wet system before screeding.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in plumbing & heating

How to hire: Central Heating InstallationHow to hire: Heat Pump InstallationHow to hire: Radiator InstallationHow to hire: Bathroom PlumbingHow to hire: Air Source Heat PumpHow to hire: Pipework InstallationHow to hire: Boiler InstallationHow to hire: Power FlushingAll 701 hiring guides →

Underfloor heating installers near you

Underfloor heating installers in LondonUnderfloor heating installers in ManchesterUnderfloor heating installers in BirminghamUnderfloor heating installers in GlasgowUnderfloor heating installers in BelfastAll underfloor heating installers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, regulation 5 — notice to the water undertaker
  2. Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, regulation 6 — contractor's certificate
  3. Water Supply (Water Fittings) (Scotland) Byelaws Extension Order 2024
  4. Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009
  5. Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 3
  6. Registered Competent Person Electrical register
  7. gov.uk — Approved Document P: electrical safety in dwellings (England)
  8. gov.uk — VAT on energy-saving materials and heating equipment (Notice 708/6)
  9. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  10. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue (England)
  11. Buildings and construction (VAT Notice 708) — 2.1 Construction services: work to an existing building is normally standard-rated
  12. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  13. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register