British Gas - not allowed to leave old parts on site?

[Axel]

Ok, here's a story with a bit of slander - I recently did a 2 week course at a certain training company in NW London. The guys teaching were friendly and well experienced and knowledgeable in their field. BUT, all the other 12 trainees / candidates had been sent by companies (who were paying for their course) and the agenda seemed to be for everyone to pass, no matter what. I am shocked that a few of the trainees didn't have a clue what was going on, even though they had experience messing about with boilers etc (quite a few were going off to work on gas jobs in the middle of the course!!) and on the penultimate day of the course there was a 'mock' exam, to get us ready for the real exam on the last day. I would reckon that 70 % of the questions in the final exam were the same as in the mock the day before, and on most of the multiple choice question papers, most of the answers had been marked on the plastic sleeve with a blue dot, giving the right answer.

You would have to be lobotomised to fail that course. I am considering the safety / fraud aspects of this course and the provider and am tempted to notify authorities, but it sounds like they are all in bed together, including the British Standards mob...

 

[heatingman]

I've reported quite a few assesment centre's for slack proccedure's, (external verifier) Secret shopper type of scenarine definatly lost registration, known in trade as a soft touch (pay to pass) few years ago.

 

[nickso]

I've reported quite a few assesment centre's for slack proccedure's, (external verifier) Secret shopper type of scenarine definatly lost registration, known in trade as a soft touch (pay to pass) few years ago.

you would be a fool to believe any of these places are anything but a cash cow. its going to be difficult to fail someone who has paid you money to pass a course.

 

[Aulus]

What happened to the old micro switch?

He took it. Probably scaled up.

 

[Nige F]

You don't expect to get car parts back from garage when you get it repaired so why would you with the boiler?

A good mechanic will - and have done for years- show you the parts if you ask . A Bunch of Gas fitters will argue till the cows come home FFS

 

[Boilerman2]

We always ask the Customer if they want the part disposed of or do they want to keep it (usually for Hubby to play with later!! )

Great if they want us to dispose of as we will gain the scrap, I don't see this as theft, just another service ..and yes we do have a waste carriers licence!!

 

[jimhet]

Nothing would serve to improve workmanship more than the thought of an independent third party like LABC calling round to check/test boiler installations. A buider may have 40 years experience in the trade plus city and guild qualifications but it is still compulsory for him to pay a fee and notify LABC when doing even minor building works like forming a door opening or replacing the slates on the roof of a back addition with tiles vice/versa.[ niether which are life threatening] LABC will then call during works and on completion to check and if necessery test, yet the 2 trades in the construction industry [gas and electric] most likely to cause serious injury or worse are allowed to self certify thier own work. The idea was surely thought up at the mad hatters tea party.

 

[transam]

LABC ???? who are they

 

[Agile]

They are the people you are required to notify all your boiler installations to!

Tony

 

[transam]

They are the people you are required to notify all your boiler installations to!

Tony

They are ?? so it must stand foe Local authority Building Control than

I don't notify any boiler's to them , well not directly anyway !
Incidentally what is ARGI's postion on this corgi heat serve afair , do you know are they looking into it ????

 

[Agile]

I have paid my £50 to ARGI weeks ago but unable to see anything in the hidden areas. Even when I can I might find there is little in there anyway.

 

[nickso]

unable to see anything in the hidden areas. Even when I can I might find there is little in there anyway.

sounds like the CC.

 

[transam]

Nothing would serve to improve workmanship more than the thought

Have you any idea how big the back log of inspection's would be if local building control inspected every boiler , gas , unvented & electrical install carried out in the U.K , they would be overwhelmed the cost's involved would have to be met by the customer ??

If you want to do something about safety than make it a criminal offence for any person to employ or engage an un registered inataller !! knowingly or not . Any such scheme would generate it's own publicity in particular when they throw some o.a.p in prison for having there boiler serviced by some un reg person . Joe Public want's it all way's but never want's to pay for it .

 

[Agile]

Whilst you say that, I received a leaflet with the Council Tax or refuse collection pointing out that a lot of sales fall through because of a lack of a Building Regulation Certificate.

It was prompting householders to request a building Regulation Application form and make a submission now!

 

[jimhet]

Can't say I'm surprised at Transam's reluctence to the thought of LABC calling to inspect new boiler installations, nobody enjoys them calling but I doubt there's a single RGI on this forum that could hand on heart say they have never signed off an installation that was less than 100% correct, not to mention a few who have in thier time signed off work done by none RGIs. At present LABC manage to cope with visiting/checking almost any piddly building project, I'm sure that for a fee similar to the present RGI landlords test they would manage to cope with new boiler installations, after all there are plenty of experienced City and Guilds qualified heating fitters around that LABC could use and I doubt any would have a problem inspecting 30 or more installations per week.
The present system of Self Certification is no more reliable than the Self Certified mortgage application and look where that scheme took us.