British Gas Service (time taken 15 minutes)

[Genesis2k]

Hey all

ive just joined this forum on the advice of a friend. but anyway to the point...

just had my system boiler service by british gas today, it was installed a few years ago and i took out exteneded cover that they offer y'know breakdowns etc...

anyway i've been doing a city and guilds gas course since last october and i'm up for my final exams in april so i asked the guy if i could watch as i'm interested in doing a gas course, so he said sure no problem... so he started by taking the case off and explained to me that there wasn't much to a service, just to check for any leaks inside the boiler.. so he took the front cover off the case, got his little torch out and had a look.. told me what some of the stuff did "which i already knew" and said yep thats all fine, then did a gas rate and done... 15 minutes....

upon reading the manual for the boiler "which he never requested" i found out the servicing procedure and had a little look, and to say the least it went a bit more extensive then having a quick look with a torch...

just didn't feel like i was getting my £250 quids worth that i keep paying them every year

any advice

cheers

 

[kevplumb]

complain to bg

 

[Gasguru]

Do yourself a favour and put the money in a seperate "boiler breakdown account".

Your £250 gives you a "A yearly Safety and Maintenance Inspection" - ie not a service.

Unless you have a really rubbish boiler your wasting your money with these insurance schemes.

Check out the small print - any installation faults are not covered, sludge and scale are not normally covered.

Then you have all the wasted time from multiple visits by inept engineers (if they bother to turn up).

Wait till they try and sell you a Powerflush (their answer for any problem) or flog you a new boiler at a vastly inflated price.

 

[libby lou lou]

youv'e been mugged

 

[Genesis2k]

feels like i've been mugged =[

said on the letter they sent out a few days ago, en engineer will visit you on this date to carry out a service of your boiler bla bla bla

 

[JohnD]

There was a time when they used to take them apart, brush off the burners, poke about a bit, put it back together.

Sadly this used to cause more faults as a result of being interfered with and poked about, so now they mostly check the thing's burning right, and don't fiddle with it unless it goes wrong.

Mostly your'e paying for them to come out and bombard it with new parts when you have a breakdown. A fairly high price for peace of mind, but they are pretty good at coming out even when it's a bank holiday, when you might find it difficult to get someone to come and take responsibility for getting the bits and fixing it.

 

[Puppus]

I had my boiler inspected by British Gas 2 weeks ago, they were here just under an hour and did a thorough job. They took everything apart and checked and cleaned it all. They even checked another gas fire I have even though it ain't covered in the insurance.

 

[Steve]

We had cause to complain a few years ago. Fat BG man turned up, I was the only one home. Showed him to the kitchen, left him to it. 5 mins later, after a quick look inside and outside at the flu, he left. No paperwork, nothing, just said "yeah its fine". Mother was straight on the phone when she returned! No excuse for it, when people's safety depends on his workmanship. The boiler is 15 years old man, ya cant go round doing things like this!

Last year we had a diverter valve break down, it took them about 5 visits to eventually fix it. But at least it cost us nowt (theoretically)

 

[kevplumb]

I had my boiler inspected by British Gas 2 weeks ago, they were here just under an hour and did a thorough job. They took everything apart and checked and cleaned it all. They even checked another gas fire I have even though it ain't covered in the insurance.

that's a service

We had cause to complain a few years ago. Fat bg man turned up, I was the only one home. Showed him to the kitchen, left him to it. 5 mins later, after a quick look inside and outside at the flu, he left. No paperwork, nothing, just said "yeah its fine". Mother was straight on the phone when she returned! icon_lol.gif No excuse for it, when people's safety depends on his workmanship. The boiler is 15 years old man, ya cant go round doing things like this!

Last year we had a diverter valve break down, it took them about 5 visits to eventually fix it. But at least it cost us nowt (theoretically)

that's an yearly safety inspection

 

[Gasguru]

They even checked another gas fire I have even though it ain't covered in the insurance.

I should hope so, everyone working in the gas industry has an obligation to check ALL appliances in your home for safety. To what extent these additional checks are done to is dependent on the qaulifications of the engineer. ie someone fully registered on appliances has to do more checks than say a meter swapper.

Ultimately it comes down to the conscience of each individual; sadly a significant proportion of registered engineers don't give a toss about your safety or their own.

 

[Steve]

should a fan assisted gas oven be checked? I remember asking one BG guy and he said they dont need checking.

 

[Nige F]

Next time he comes..........give him a condom and say...there`s a plumber on diynot who says your fitters can`t fit one of these

 

[nickso]

I had my boiler inspected by British Gas 2 weeks ago, they were here just under an hour and did a thorough job. They took everything apart and checked and cleaned it all. They even checked another gas fire I have even though it ain't covered in the insurance.

that's a service

We had cause to complain a few years ago. Fat bg man turned up, I was the only one home. Showed him to the kitchen, left him to it. 5 mins later, after a quick look inside and outside at the flu, he left. No paperwork, nothing, just said "yeah its fine". Mother was straight on the phone when she returned! icon_lol.gif No excuse for it, when people's safety depends on his workmanship. The boiler is 15 years old man, ya cant go round doing things like this!

Last year we had a diverter valve break down, it took them about 5 visits to eventually fix it. But at least it cost us nowt (theoretically)

that's an yearly safety inspection

nothing has changed apart from the name of "service" to "yearly maintenance and safety inspection". it was done for legal reasons and that doesnt alter what the engineer should be doing on an inspection. he is under no obligation to check every gas appliance in the house other than visually.


the BG engineer should be inspecting your boiler to the manufacturers specs and the system to BG's service code. if you feel he hasnt then phone back and complain.

 

[nickso]

gasguru

Your £250 gives you a "A yearly Safety and Maintenance Inspection" - ie not a service.

it provides far more than that.

Unless you have a really rubbish boiler your wasting your money with these insurance schemes.

costly faults can happen to all boilers regardless of age and make.

Check out the small print - any installation faults are not covered, sludge and scale are not normally covered.

whats wrong with that?. if the customer has read the terms and conditions then why should that be a problem?. why should installation defects be covered? might even make them a little more pro-active about keeping their system in good shape.

Then you have all the wasted time from multiple visits by inept engineers (if they bother to turn up).

a huge brush tarring more than 5000 engineers

Wait till they try and sell you a Powerflush (their answer for any problem) or flog you a new boiler at a vastly inflated price.

if the system has poor water quality why shouldnt the customer be offered a powerflush? if its causing a problem elsewhere on the system then perhaps its part of the solution. do you prefer to wait until its time to clear blocked pipes? ive said it often on here.....the BG quote will often inlcude 3-5 years servicing at a reduced price and they have to cover their salesmans wages. its obviously going to be higher.....if you dont like the price dont buy it.

 

[Gasguru]

I never implied the £250 only entitled the homeowner to just an annual safety check.

Costly faults can happen to all systems, however for many heating systems out there the customer would still be better of putting money by for breakdowns.

In reality most customers probably don't read the small print and they would probably not understand the significance either.

Perhaps if BG in their advertising campaigns would explain this in further detail I would not have a problem with it. A significant proportion of faults are caused by poor installation and sludge/scale. I doubt BG would attract so many customers if they printed what proportion of repairs are not covered due to these reasons. To not explain the true cost implication of this small print is plainly unethical.

When I routinely come across engineers with the aptitude to repair and service boilers I may be persuaded that BG is not an inept organisation; until then I will tar them with the same brush. Incidently they use my local merchants - some of them are a right scruffy lot.


I have had numerous meetings (at the request of customers) with BG at both installer and management level. Some of the things they have told customers in my presence is extraordinary. On one occasion a manager tried to re-write the IUSP book to get out of the fact they had an At Risk (from installation date) boiler on cover and left a DFE AR in the bedroom.

I had another customer whereby a warm air heat exchanger had been replaced but the old gaskets and seals had been used causing spillage.

I have met very few BG engineers with sufficient knowledge to carry out the job by required manufacturer and industry procedures. I should also add that the same applies to many non BG installers. The fact remains however, that BG advertise and give the impression that customers are given a safe and quality service when the rest of the industry and an ever increasing number of their customers know this to be plainly not true.


I should add that these customers often have BG cover as a requirement of letting agents. Since Bg can't be trusted I carry out the LGSR's.