Boiler broken down in a rented home in Brussels: who repairs it and who pays, the tenant or the landlord?

Short answer: In Brussels, the landlord pays for age-related repairs and replacement of a faulty boiler, unless the tenant is at fault. The tenant pays for servicing, the periodic PEB check and damage caused by misuse or lack of maintenance. Ask a heating engineer to identify the cause. Notify the landlord in writing and keep the report before discussing who pays the bill.

Published on 24 October 2026 · Updated on 24 October 2026

The Brussels rule: age and wear = landlord, upkeep = tenant

A boiler failure caused by age or normal wear is the landlord's cost; servicing and the periodic check are the tenant's. Be.brussels gives exactly these examples: the tenant pays for 'servicing and the periodic check of the boiler', the landlord for 'replacing a faulty boiler'.

• Principle: the tenant carries out tenant-type repairs and upkeep during the lease, except what is caused by age and wear or force majeure. The landlord does all the other repairs needed for normal use of the home.
• Tenant fault: the tenant remains responsible for repairs that result from their own faulty behaviour, misuse or lack of upkeep.
• Mandatory list: the Brussels Government has published a list of the main repairs and upkeep for each party (decree of 23 November 2017, annex 3 'Heating'). The parties cannot depart from it, so a lease clause putting the whole boiler on the tenant does not change this split.
• Non-exhaustive list: a fault that is not on it is judged under these general principles.

This article leaves sanitary plumbing aside: for taps, toilet cisterns or the water heater, read leaking tap or toilet: who pays in Brussels.

Table: who pays depending on the heating fault

The landlord pays for replacements, the tenant for routine upkeep, unless one side is at fault. Annex 3 of the Brussels decree lists heating equipment line by line; the table below gives the essentials, plus the be.brussels examples. Ask the heating engineer to name the part involved and the cause found.

A line in the annex is only a starting point: age, force majeure and a defect already recorded in the move-in inventory can release the tenant wholly or in part.

Servicing and the PEB certificate: who handles it and why it matters

Brussels Environment says the tenant must arrange the periodic PEB check unless the lease names someone else, such as the owner or managing agent. Arranging the check and bearing its cost are separate questions: naming another organiser does not override the mandatory allocation of maintenance costs.

• Brussels intervals: every 2 years for gas; every year for oil or solid fuels. A check is also required after work on the combustion components or relocation of the boiler.
• Approved technician: the check must be carried out by a PEB boiler technician approved by Brussels Environment.
• Attestation: request the official PDF of the periodic check. Keep it with service invoices and the breakdown report. It concerns the appliance; it is not the home's PEB energy certificate.
• Non-compliance: without an authorised exemption, the owner must bring the appliance into compliance within 5 months and arrange a new check. This PEB compliance period is not permission to leave a home without heating for 5 months. If the tenant is alleged to be at fault, their contribution to the damage still needs to be established.

A missing attestation does not automatically make the tenant liable for every breakdown; an existing one does not establish the cause of a later failure either. More details: boiler servicing in Brussels: law, frequency, price.

No heating in winter: what to do, in what order

Tell the landlord immediately and in writing, even if the breakdown happens at a weekend: without prompt notice, the tenant risks bearing the aggravation of the damage (annex 1 of the decree). Keep evidence at every step.

1. Safety: if you suspect danger, leave and contact the emergency services from a safe place. If the cold threatens health, immediately seek a warm, safe place and assistance. Do not dismantle the boiler.
2. Record what you can see without dismantling anything: thermostat setting, error message or code. Photograph the display for the engineer.
3. Notify the landlord in writing (email or letter, with acknowledgement of receipt): date of the breakdown, error code, date of the last PEB check, photos, and a request for action.
4. Escalate with a formal notice if nothing moves (template below). Registered post preserves proof of the step.
5. Call-out costs: tell the landlord it is urgent and seek written agreement on who orders and pays; keep the quote and invoice without assuming reimbursement.
6. Temporary heaters: keep the receipts and tell the landlord, without assuming reimbursement.

Since 1 January 2026, according to Droits Quotidiens, every rented Brussels home must have a complete heating installation able to heat the whole home sufficiently. A gas connection or socket for your own appliances is not enough. A landlord who fails to carry out the required works risks a ban on letting.

Template letter: formal notice to the landlord

A formal notice is a written demand that the landlord perform their obligations within a stated time. Droits Quotidiens recommends one if the owner does not react to a failing heating system; be.brussels notes that a tenant must in any case have formally put the landlord on notice before relying on the exception of non-performance.

Template to adapt (registered post, copy by email):

[Name, address of the home, date]
Subject: formal notice – broken boiler

Dear Sir or Madam,
On [date] I told you that the boiler at [address] had broken down (error code: [code]). Since then the home has not been heated. Please find attached photos and the latest periodic PEB check attestation dated [date].
Under the legal split of repairs in Brussels, repairing or replacing a faulty boiler, where it does not result from a failing of the tenant, is your responsibility. I therefore ask you to have a professional attend and to tell me the date of the visit by [reasonable date, depending on urgency] at the latest.
Failing that, I reserve the right to enforce my rights, including before the justice of the peace.
Yours faithfully,
[Signature]

State a specific date suited to the urgency; this template does not set a guaranteed repair deadline. Do not judge the cause before the diagnosis: write 'breakdown' and let the professional establish whether it is age or something else.

Brussels, Flanders, Wallonia: what differs

Housing rules are regional: the property's location and, particularly in Flanders, the lease date matter. Do not apply a Flemish repair list to a Brussels home.

• Brussels: a mandatory government list allocates repairs and maintenance. The landlord bears age-related and non-tenant repairs; the tenant handles upkeep and damage caused by their fault.
• Flanders: Vlaanderen.be distinguishes leases made before 1 January 2019 from those made since that date. The landlord must keep the home habitable; some maintenance falls to the tenant. Check the applicable regime before allocating a particular repair.
• Wallonia: according to Droits Quotidiens, the tenant pays for minor upkeep, including boiler maintenance, tenant repairs and damage they cause. Age, normal wear and force majeure are not their responsibility; other repairs fall to the landlord.

The PEB check intervals in this article apply to Brussels, not Belgium as a whole.

If the landlord does not respond: what you can and cannot do

If the formal notice has no effect, first look for an agreement, then go to the justice of the peace, who is in principle competent for rental disputes. Do not suspend rent without legal advice.

• Amicably: be.brussels mentions mediation, conciliation and arbitration. First-line legal aid is free and open to all.
• Withholding rent: the exception of non-performance is a temporary defence to be handled with caution. Non-payment as a protest often leads to a court summons. If you withhold an amount, it cannot exceed your loss of enjoyment; be.brussels advises putting it in a third-party account and not stopping the rent entirely. Take advice first.
• Emergency costs: do not assume reimbursement. Seek written agreement on the work and who pays. Without agreement, get legal advice before ordering a major replacement or deducting an invoice from the rent.
• Non-compliant home: in Brussels, an owner who does not carry out required heating works risks a ban on letting (Droits Quotidiens). In Flanders, for category II or III defects the tenant can demand the works or ask for the lease to be dissolved, and the judge can reduce the rent (Vlaanderen.be).

For a heating call-out in Brussels, see our heating engineer in Brussels page or the heating hub of FUSE SERVICES.

• be.brussels : répartition des réparations entre le locataire et le bailleur (Code bruxellois du Logement, art. 223)
• Moniteur belge, 8 décembre 2017, pp. 108687-108696 : arrêté du 23 novembre 2017, annexe 1 (principes) et annexe 3 « Chauffage »
• Bruxelles Environnement : contrôle périodique PEB de la chaudière (fréquence, locataire ou propriétaire, attestation, non-conformité)
• Droits Quotidiens : puis-je louer un logement qui n'a pas de chauffage ? (Bruxelles, mise à jour 2 février 2026)
• be.brussels : résoudre les conflits locatifs (juge de paix, médiation, exception d'inexécution)
• Vlaanderen.be : onderhoud en herstellingen aan huurwoningen
• Droits Quotidiens : quelles réparations dois-je faire et payer si je suis locataire ? (Wallonie, mise à jour 27 juillet 2026)