Rusty radiators - Can I sign up for boiler/heating insurance now and claim?

spaceraiders

I have 3 radiators, all have a little bit of a rust patch at the bottom and two are leaking a few drips every hour. I'm scared they'll crack and leak badly. I think I need to get them replaced which will cost a few £100s. I don't have central heating insurance which I think would have covered this. Is this kind of thing normally covered?

I was reading the MSE article on this and read:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/boiler-insurance
" Is there a ‘no claims’ period?

Almost all plans include an initial no-claims period, which typically lasts thirty days. To be fair, that’s not unreasonable - otherwise people would simply sign up to plans on the day the boiler breaks down. "

Does this mean I can sign up to central heating insurance tomorrow, wait 30 days then claim the radiators on the insurance? The above quote seems to make out that you can do that. Surely they ask you about current problems or check when you sign up?

To be clear: I will be honest about my situation if signing up for insurance and I am not asking how to game the system.

looby-loo_2

wear and tear?

dacouch

Insurance is for unforeseen things not events that have already happened eg you already have a leaking radiator.

If you take cover out and then put a claim in it can be classed as fraud, if you take cover out and put a claim in then whe they come out to look at the damage they will realise the damage is old and refuse the claim as they will realise is occured before you took cover out.

In addition these policies do not cover "Wear and Tear" your radiators rusting away is just wear and is classed as the type of repair a reasonable home owner would carry out.

So save your money and pay for the repairs / new radiators yourself

Poppy9

CH cover with BG does cover wear and tear on radiators but it will cost you a couple of hundred pounds a year. In Wickes radiators cost from £20. If you buy the same size etc. it's quite a quick job for a plumber but is within the capabilities of a decent DIYer.

spaceraiders

dacouch wrote: »

Insurance is for unforeseen things not events that have already happened eg you already have a leaking radiator.

If you take cover out and then put a claim in it can be classed as fraud, if you take cover out and put a claim in then whe they come out to look at the damage they will realise the damage is old and refuse the claim as they will realise is occured before you took cover out.

Just to reiterate, I have no intention of commiting fraud. I read the MSE article and was asking for clarifications.

By the way, why is there a 30-days no claim period? What's the rational behind it?

In addition these policies do not cover "Wear and Tear" your radiators rusting away is just wear and is classed as the type of repair a reasonable home owner would carry out.

So save your money and pay for the repairs / new radiators yourself

Would you recommend central heating cover at all for future problems? I'm confused what it would actually cover if not radiator problems like this.

shelly

spaceraiders wrote: »

By the way, why is there a 30-days no claim period? What's the rational behind it?

You have quoted the answer in your own OP. Its so that if my boiler dies on Monday, I take out a policy on Tuesday, I can't claim for the boiler on Wednesday.

spaceraiders

shelly wrote: »

You have quoted the answer in your own OP. Its so that if my boiler dies on Monday, I take out a policy on Tuesday, I can't claim for the boiler on Wednesday.

Yes, but if I was selling insurance policies, it still hurts me if people with broken boilers sign up and claim on day 30. I wouldn't offer a policy until the boiler had been inspected and was known to be working. If the boiler died the day after inspection, a claim would be fine as the boiler was already checked to be working so it couldn't have been the case the owner knew it would break (or was already broken). I still don't understand the rational behind it unless none of them carry out initial inspections, which seems a silly thing to not do.

shelly

spaceraiders wrote: »

Yes, but if I was selling insurance policies, it still hurts me if people with broken boilers sign up and claim on day 30. I wouldn't offer a policy until the boiler had been inspected and was known to be working. If the boiler died the day after inspection, a claim would be fine as the boiler was already checked to be working so it couldn't have been the case the owner knew it would break (or was already broken). I still don't understand the rational behind it unless none of them carry out initial inspections, which seems a silly thing to not do.

Maybe they don't offer you a policy until boiler is inspected I have no idea because we don't have that kind of insurance in place.(I was just using boiler to illustrate a point)

dacouch

Bump...interested in other peoples views

cajef

We moved into a property in December 2008, one of the first things we had to do was have the boiler replaced, the local company that did the work offer an annual service contract which covers parts and labour for the whole central heating system but it is subject to an inspection and any remedial work such as radiators that are in poor condition must be replaced prior to them offering a contract.