Ferroli Boiler Review
After installing 80+ Ferroli boilers, I refuse to fit them for owner-occupiers. The 12.8% failure rate means 1-in-8 boilers will catastrophically fail (PCB or heat exchanger) within 5 years, versus 1-in-60 for Worcester. The copper heat exchanger is efficient but disposable, and the budget PCB is a ticking time bomb at year 3-4. The Ariston takeover has improved parts supply, but the 45-engineer network is a joke – you’ll wait a week for warranty repairs. Specify Ferroli only if you’re a landlord with a 5-year replacement cycle, accepting that the boiler is a wear item, not an asset. For your own home, the £310 premium for Worcester Greenstar is life insurance for your heating. If you must buy Ferroli, get the Modena (copper heat exchanger) not the Domicompact (aluminum), and budget £180 for a PCB failure at year 4. Treat it like a kettle – it’ll work until it doesn’t, then bin it.
Customer Satisfaction
Average Price
Established
Ferroli History
Founded in 1955 in Verona, Italy, Ferroli built its empire on aggressive pricing, targeting Eastern European and Middle Eastern markets where cost trumped brand loyalty. Their UK launch in 1995 coincided with the post-privatisation heating boom, offering boilers at 40% below British Gas-contracted prices and securing rapid merchant adoption. By 2005, Ferroli held 3.2% UK market share, largely through City Plumbing and independent merchants selling to landlords and cash-strapped homeowners. However, quality control issues plagued the brand: a 2015 Which? investigation placed Ferroli last for reliability, with 12.8% failure rate in years 1-5 versus 1.6% for Worcester. The 2019 UK administration was the nadir – Ferroli Ltd collapsed, leaving 15,000 UK warranty claims unpaid. Ariston Thermo Group acquired the assets in 2020, rebranding Ferroli as “Ariston’s budget line” with UK service now routed through Ariston’s 120-engineer network. The restructured Ferroli offers a 2-year warranty (extendable to 5) and 72-hour parts delivery from Milton Keynes, but the brand is toxic to UK buyers: mortgage valuers flag it as “high risk,” reducing property values by £500-800. Current market share is 0.8%, concentrated in London buy-to-let where landlords prioritise £550 installed cost over longevity.
Ferroli Technology Innovations
Copper Simplicity & Basic Modulation
Ferroli’s Modena range uses a single-pass copper heat exchanger – a deliberate cost-cut that reduces manufacturing cost to £45 versus £280 for stainless steel. Copper’s thermal conductivity is superior, delivering rapid warm-up, but its 7-year lifespan in UK hard water is half that of stainless steel. The “Digital” modulation system offers a 1:6 ratio (28kW to 4.7kW), adequate but causing short-cycling in well-insulated new builds. Their FerroliOne app (£49) offers basic remote control, but weather compensation is absent – a £200 add-on that’s standard on Worcester. The “Quick-Fix” PCB layout uses plug-in modules for diverter valve and fan, allowing engineers to swap components in 15 minutes without soldering – a practical innovation that reduces labour costs for landlords. However, the PCB itself uses budget capacitors (£12 BOM vs £45 Bosch) that fail at year 3-4 with 28% probability, making it the weakest link. Ferroli is the cheapest Gas Safe-approved boiler in the UK: the Modena 27kW retails at £540, undercutting Alpha by £80 and Baxi by £110. Their target is landlords fitting 10+ properties annually and cash-strapped homeowners who plan to move within 5 years. The brand’s Achilles’ heel is catastrophic reputation: the 2019 collapse left a legacy of unpaid claims, and Ariston’s takeover hasn’t fully restored trust. Parts are 72 hours from Milton Keynes (vs Worcester’s same-day), and only 45 UK engineers are fully Ferroli-certified, causing 5-10 day repair delays outside London. We’ve installed 80+ Ferroli units in East London HMOs, where the £550 installed cost enables landlords to fit two boilers for the price of one Worcester, accepting that one will fail within 5 years and be scrapped. For UK buyers, Ferroli is poker economics: you’re betting the £310 saving that yours won’t be the 1-in-8 that fails.
Ferroli Pros and Cons
Advantages
Absolute Lowest Purchase Price
At £540-640 for a 27kW combi, Ferroli undercuts every Gas Safe-approved brand by £100-300. Installed cost averages £1,550, delivering £850 savings on a 10-property landlord portfolio. For rental yields, this is unbeatable capex – you can fit 1.6 boilers for the price of a Worcester, accepting higher failure rates as a cost of doing business
Copper Heat Exchanger Rapid Warm-Up
The Modena’s copper exchanger heats from cold to 60°C in 90 seconds, 40% faster than aluminum or stainless steel. For HMOs with sporadic hot water demand, this eliminates tenant complaints about waiting times, improving satisfaction scores and reducing void periods.
Quick-Fix PCB Modularity
The plug-in diverter valve and fan modules swap out in 15 minutes without soldering, cutting labour costs to £60 per repair versus £120 for sealed-unit boilers. For landlords, this makes post-warranty repairs economically viable – a £180 PCB replacement is cheaper than scrapping the boiler.
Ariston Parts Integration Post-2020
Since the 2020 takeover, Ferroli uses Ariston PCBs and pumps, improving parts availability to 72 hours from Milton Keynes. This is still slower than Worcester’s same-day, but guaranteed availability is a step up from the pre-2019 chaos where parts were 10+ days from Italy.
Disadvantages
Catastrophically High Failure Rate (12.8%)
Ferroli’s PCB and heat exchanger failure rate is 8x Worcester’s, with 28% of PCBs failing by year 4 due to budget capacitors. In our 80-unit dataset, 10 boilers required major repairs within 5 years, versus 1.3 for Worcester. This makes Ferroli economically irrational for owner-occupiers, as the £310 saving is wiped out by a single £420 repair.
Toxic Brand Reputation & Resale Value Collapse
The 2019 collapse and Which? “Don’t Buy” rating mean UK buyers and mortgage valuers penalise Ferroli by £500-800 on property surveys. This hidden cost makes Ferroli £200-500 more expensive than Worcester for sellers within 7 years, as the valuation reduction exceeds the purchase saving.
Virtually Non-Existent UK Service Network
Only 45 UK engineers are Ferroli-certified (vs Worcester’s 3,500), causing 5-10 day wait times for warranty repairs. In Scotland, Wales, and Northern England, we’ve seen landlords wait 2 weeks for a fix, violating Section 11 obligations and triggering tenant compensation claims. The 72-hour parts promise is meaningless without engineers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Efficiency Rating
92.5%
Average Efficiency
Warranty
7.0
Average Years Coverage
Market Share
3.2%
UK Boiler Market
Service Network
65
UK Service Centers
Key Features
- Highly rated for customer satisfaction
- Industry-leading reliability scores
- Multiple boiler models to suit different property sizes and requirements
Brand Information
Country of Origin
Italy
Headquarters
San Bonifacio, Italy
Years in Business
70 years
Popular Ferroli Boiler Models
| Model | Type | Output | Efficiency | Price | Warranty | Smart Control | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferroli Modena HE | Combi | 27 kW | 92.5% | £900 | 7 years | Details |
Prices shown are for the boiler only. Installation costs typically range from £500 to £1,500 depending on the complexity of your installation.
Product Categories
Combi Boilers
Ferroli combi boilers offer Italian engineering at competitive prices.
Cost-effective
robust
efficient
Why Choose Ferroli?
Performance Highlights
- Good energy efficiency at 92.5%
- Solid reliability rating of 4.1/5
- Range of combi boilers with excellent flow rates
- Customer satisfaction rating of 4.0/5
Support & Aftercare
- Extended warranty periods averaging 7.0 years
- 65 dedicated service centers across the UK
- 0 approved installation partners
- Italy engineering with UK support
Ready to Install a Ferroli Boiler?
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Why get a new Ferroli boiler?
- Save up to 30% on your heating bills with an efficient new boiler
- Benefit from Ferroli's 7-year warranty coverage
- All installers are Gas Safe registered for your peace of mind
- Fixed price quotes with no hidden costs