Vaillant vs Worcester Bosch Boilers

The battle for supremacy in the UK boiler market pits two industry giants against each other, Vaillant going against Worcester Bosch. It is, therefore, unsurprising that your search for a new boiler has dragged you into the Vaillant vs. Worcester Bosch debate.

Over the years, both manufacturers have built themselves a credible reputation for producing high quality, energy-efficient, and reliable boilers, making it hard to tell straight away which of the two is better.

In this article, we will take a deep dive and compare the key aspects of these two boilers. To better compare the two boilers, we will throw the two giants into the ring and let them battle it out. Whoever comes on top after several rounds will be deemed to be the victor.

And so, may the battle begin.

History and Reputation

Vaillant History

Considered a revolutionary in the boiler market, Vaillant has been credited with several inventions over the years. In fact, if it weren’t for them designing the first-ever modern-day central heating system back in 1924, you would probably be using stoves or fireplaces to heat the individual rooms in your home.

The company was established way back in 1874 by a German named Johann Vaillant and made entry into the UK market around the 1970s. Although the company uses German engineering and designs, all its boilers are manufactured in the UK. This means you won’t have to worry about spare parts as they are readily available.

Vaillant won the 2020 Which? Best Buy Award, breaking Worcester Bosch’s 10-year dominance of the award. The coveted award indicates a company’s stellar boiler reliability, build quality, recommendation, and customer ratings.  The Noise Abatement Society has also given the manufacturer’s entire boiler range the Quiet Mark Accreditation on account of their quite running boilers.

Worcester Bosch History

Worcester Bosch was formerly known as Worcester before it was acquired by Robert Bosch and became part of the Bosch Group in 1992. The company was first established in 1962 in Worcester by Cecil Duckworth.

The Worcester Bosch gas boilers are assembled at the company’s headquarters at Wardon, Worcester. On the other hand, the manufacturer’s oil boilers are assembled at the company’s other production plant at Clay Cross, Derbyshire.

Assembled? Yeah. Worcester does assemble the boilers rather than manufacture them. Many of the components utilised within Worcester Bosch Boilers are manufactured overseas by third-party companies. No need to panic, though. Worcester Bosch boiler spare parts are available in Wolseley and Plumbase stores across the country.

In its 60 years of operation in the UK boiler market, Worcester Bosch has built itself an excellent reputation due to its boilers’ reliability, value for money, and efficiency. As a result, the company was awarded the Which? Best Buy Award for ten years straight between 2009 and 2019.

In 2020, Worcester Bosch was ranked among the top 10 highly recommended domestic brands in the YouGov Brand Index. The Build Magazine, in their 2020 Home and Garden Awards, named Worcester Bosh as the UK’s Best Domestic Boiler Manufacturer.

The reputation of Worcester Bosch is indeed impressive that it even caught the royal eye. The company was awarded the Royal Warrant by Her Majesty the Queen to supply heating to the Royal Family at the Sandringham Estate.

The results show that even though both manufacturers have a rich history and a solid reputation, Worcester manages to pull ahead of Vaillant thanks to the Royal Warrant. And so, round one goes to Worcester Bosch.

Boiler Range

Vaillant Boiler Range

Vaillant manufactures a wide range of boilers, including combi, conventional, and system boilers. The manufacturer currently has ten domestic boiler models available for purchase in the UK market. These boiler models include:

• Vaillant ecoTEC exclusive with Green iQ combi boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEC plus combi boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEC plus combination store boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEc pro combi boiler
• Vaillant ecoFIT pure combi boiler
• Vaillant ecoFIT pure system boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEC exclusive with Green iQ system boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEC plus system boiler
• Vaillant ecoFIT pure regular boiler
• Vaillant ecoTEC plus regular

Worcester Bosch Boiler Range

The fact that Worcester Bosch has won even the trust of Her Majesty the Queen speaks volumes for its products. The manufacturer currently has 11 domestic boiler models presently available in the market. This range of products consists of heat only (conventional), system, and combi boilers. Also of importance is the fact some of these boilers are gas-fueled while some are oil-fueled. The Worcester Bosch boiler products include:

• Greenstar 8000 gas boiler
• Greenstar i gas boiler
• Greenstar Si Compact gas boiler
• Greenstar CDi Compact gas boiler
• Greenstar CDi Highflow gas boiler
• Greenstar Heatslave II oil boiler
• Greenstar 8000 Life gas boiler
• Greenstar 8000 Style gas boiler
• Greenstar i System gas boiler
• GB162 gas boiler

Although the two brands go toe-to-toe on this round, both having around the same number of models, Worcester Bosch manages to pipe Vaillant by one model. So, round two goes to Worcester Bosch.

Reliability

With both manufacturers having won the Which? The Best Buy award, which considers the brand’s reliability for its scoring system, suffices to say they both have reliable boilers. However, if we consider the number of awards won, Vaillant trails Worcester Bosch by a considerable distance.

From industry reviews, it is evident that Worcester Bosch takes the top position with a Which? brand score of 92%. Valliant follows closely with a brand score of 78%. Customers have given Worcester Bosch a rating of 4.7 out of 5 on Trust Pilot. Vaillant hasn’t been left behind either, managing to win itself 4.6 stars. So from the customer’s perspective, Worcester Bosch just manages to pull ahead of Vaillant.

However, for ease of service and repair, Vaillant manages to pull one over Worcester Bosch. Its higher rating shows it could be easier to maintain and repair from an engineer’s perspective. This win is attributed to Vaillant’s stainless steel heat exchangers, which are easy to maintain as opposed to the aluminium heat exchanger in Worcester boilers.

By winning the vote of the industry review sites and customers, Worcester Bosch manages to clutch a win in the reliability battle, edging out Vaillant’s heating engineer vote.

Boiler Warranty and Aftercare

It is universally accepted that the aftercare and maintenance of a boiler are as important as the installation. Therefore, you would want to go with a manufacturer who covers you should your boiler break down or develop faults down the line.  Moreover, you would like to associate yourself with a manufacturer that responds quickly to your warranty claim.

Valliant has more straightforward warranties as compared to Worcester Bosch. Their boilers typically come with a standard 5-year standard warranty. The warranty can be extended to 7 years if a Vaillant  Advance installer installs the boiler. The company can further extend the warranty to 10 years if you fit your boiler with a Boiler Protection Kit installed by a Vaillant Advance Installer.

Worcester Bosch, on the other hand, offers a superior 5-year warranty in the form of a no-quibble guarantee.  With this guarantee, if there is a fault or issue with your boiler, Worcester Bosch will repair or replace it as soon as possible. The warranty is extended to 10 years if the boiler is fitted with a Worcester System Filter installed by an accredited Worcester Installer.

Both brands enjoy an excellent reputation for responding quickly to customers with warranty issues. However, Worcester Bosch has more reactive customer support, usually sending an engineer to the customer’s property the next day.

Although this battle is closely fought, with both companies striving to provide excellent warranties and customer support, Worcester Bosch again manages to steal the limelight.

Point-Price Comparison and Value for Money

With the reputation of these brands as well as the reliability their boilers offer, it is inevitable you’ll have to fork out a reasonable sum to acquire either of their boilers. However, as installing a boiler is a significant investment that will serve you for several years, it is prudent to focus on what features you want your boiler to have rather than the price.

It is worth noting that the two boilers aren’t massively different in price. However, Vaillant boilers are slightly more expensive than Worcester Bosch boilers due to the stainless steel heat exchanger. However, the price is worth paying, given that you won’t have to pay maintenance costs regularly.

So price-wise, Worcester Bosch scores higher points for being slightly cheaper than Vaillant. However, Vaillant recoups its losses by beating Worcester Bosch to the value for money parameter. Therefore, declaring round 5 as a draw seems fair to both parties.

Final Verdict

Both Worcester Bosch and Vaillant enjoy an excellent reputation, and their products are highly rated in the UK market. They both boast of high reliability, value for money, and a wide range of boilers for your hot water needs. However, Worcester Bosch manages to edge Valliant in the battle for supremacy and emerges as the leader.