New house, condemned boiler!

vic_ter

Hello

I've just bought a house and moved in.

I knew the boiler was switched off and that I would have to get it reconnected as the previous owner hadn't been living in the house for a time.

However, when the gas engineer came out to do this he condemned the boiler. He's a friend and he knows I won't be using him to buy a new boiler, so I'm pretty sure it's for real.. he's also Corgi registered.

I'm a little miffed about this, I had asked a number of times to make sure the boiler was OK. The previous owner had recently had it inspected by a Corgi registered engineer, that appears on various paperwork I received when I bought the house.

My engineer friend disputes that, he reckons it hasn't been opened in a while due to the amount of dust and that there's a good chance of carbon monoxide poisoning if he connected it (something about a yellow flame, he's sending a report).

Anyway, I've complained to Corgi who will be sending out an inspector but they only seem to be able to force an engineer to correct any shoddy work they've done. The engineer only inspected (or not) the boiler.. as far as I know he didn't install or service it and it's only the inspection that's shoddy (as far as I know).

Does anyone know if anyone is at fault here, the estate agent, the seller, the gas company who did the inspection? I now have to buy and fit a new boiler, can I get one of the parties involved to meet the cost?

My solicitor has told me I can't do a thing as the seller had the boiler inspected but I would've thought that a contract has been broken , i.e. I agreed to buy a house for let's say £100k but have actually bought a house for £99k (assuming a new boiler costs £1k).

Any advice greatfully recieved, all parties appear to be trying to duck and avoid blame while I spend a week or so in a bloody cold house waiting for a Corgi inspector!

Thanks for your time in reading this and to anyone who replies.

poppysarah

Did you have it checked out? No, then it's basically tough. Even if it was working when it was last looked at, then it could have broken anyway.

You could try another gas repair man for a second opinion. But a new boiler although it costs money will be mroe efficient and cost less to run.

Even if you do a basic survey that will say "get a corgi in, get an electrician in to check the wiring, get a damp specialist in to look at damp" etc

dander

It seems to me that if the previous owner gave you written assurences that it had been checked and in actual fact it hadn't, then either he has forged the documents or been ripped off by the person who performed the inspection. Either way you'd have to find a way of proving one or the other before you could do anything.

I think your solicitor is really the best person you can ask for advice on something like this and if he/she says nothing can be done, then that's probably the case.

If you do believe a contract has been broken, then really your only option is to sue, which could cost you more than getting the boiler repaired.

Remember a condemned boiler doesn't mean it definitely has to be replaced, it simply means that in its current condition, it's too dangerous to use. Repair may well be an option.

olly300

I suggest you pay for your boiler to be repaired or to get a new boiler whatever is cheaper.

Like Poppysarah said an inspection only proves that the item is safe it doesn't guarantee an item will breakdown or stop working after it has been inspected.

Unfortunately it is up to the buyer of the property to establish whether things in a property are in good working order.

Premier_2

vic_ter wrote: »

...Does anyone know if anyone is at fault here, the estate agent, the seller, the gas company who did the inspection? ...

Yes ... you are!

Whenever you buy used goods you always are taking a risk. If it was so important to you that you knew the boiler was ok, you should have commissioned your own inspection of it to satisfy yourself of it's condition before you went ahead with the purchase.

Caveat emptor!

clutton_2

if your solicitor says there is nothing you can do (caveat emptor in all things to do with conveyancing) - why on earth would you think someone on an internet forum would know any better ?

cats!

I think the situation is different under Scottish law with regards to problems with boilers and heating after exchange/completion. But under English law it is buyer beware.

It is a hard lesson, particularly if the seller had confirmed that the boiler was working (as far as they were aware)! If you ever purchase again always insist on your own independant service/check-up before exchange of contracts.

vic_ter

Thanks for the advice, particularly Dander by pointing out that a condemned boiler might be repairable.. I must admit I was assuming the worst.

Since posting, I've contacted Corgi whose position is quite interesting. Apparently an inspection is only valid for 24 hours, so even if I had had my own inspection carried out it would've been meaningless. Long before completing I asked my estate agent whether I should have my own inspection done, but they assured me it was pointless as the seller had already done so. It seems it would've been pointless, but not for that reason. Of course it was only a conversation, I have no proof and even if I did it was only advice.. it was, of course, my decision.

I will be persuing this with Corgi because they're not planning to take any action against the Corgi registered company who did the inspection, which baffles me.. I would've expected Corgi to pursue a company which OK'ed a boiler that 2 months later (the boiler was switched off during this period, which can be proven) was condemned due to problems with carbon monoxide.

Clutton.. I'm not sure you really understand these forums. My solicitor was recommended by the mortgage company, I used them because they were free. I don't know if they're any good, I'm a nurse.. how would I know? My estate agent gave me bad advice, I double checked the company who carried out the inspection were Corgi registered but that means nothing because they can say whatever they like with apparent impunity.

So, given all of that why should I trust my solicitor.. or at the very least, wouldn't it make sense to get a second opinion? (since posting I've talked to another solicitor, who confirmed what the first one said). On a forum I can get lots of second opinions and they're all free and are generally impartial; true I don't know who the people posting are, but overall I get a general idea of where I stand and I might get lucky and find someone who KNOWS what to do because it happened to them.

I know it's not likely, but then again it's already happened. A while ago my washing machine broke, I got a plumber out who quoted a ridiculous amount of money to fix it. I posted on a forum and got a wonderful reply from a retired plumber telling me exactly how to fix it.. and it worked.

Anyway, I haven't quite finished talking to Corgi/solicitor/estate agent but it looks like I'll end up paying for the repair/replacement and no one can be held to account. What's more worrying, if all this is true, is that there is nothing I could've done to avoid it or indeed nothing anyone else can do when buying a house.. if it happens you're just unlucky.

One other idea just occured to me.. I got a HIP pack, which contains some useless details on how many energy saving lightbulbs were in the house (all of which the previous owner took with them, obviously) but it also includes information about the boiler. I think it got an average rating, which is amusing considering it would almost certainly kill me if it were switched on. Anyway I wonder where I stand on that one...

eco-friendly_2

Very poor! a minumum of £2k should be held back by sellers solicitors on every property sale for a SEVEN DAY period, to enable claims to be made.


That would sort out some of these dishonest people!

kaya

sounds like your friend is confused, it's dusty inside the casing and sooty around the burners so he condemmed it?? sounds like he should work for british gas

david29dpo

I too have had a run in with a inspection body (not corgi) Worse than useless but i persisted and got them stuck off. I certainly got the impression they were more interested losing the annual fee from the inspector than helping the customers.