BG HomeCare boiler service plans

esmerelda98

kmmr wrote: »

To give another perspective - I have BG 200 on my old flat (which I rent out now, but used to live there) and have just added it to my new place. Plus OH has it on his rental flat, and another friend has it. All have had generally good experiences.

BG have some annoying features (such as the 6 hour callout window) and some less than brilliant engineers, but for the most part I have found it to be a good insurance policy. So long as you remember it is insurance, so there is a chance you won't use it.

For my old flat, there is a very dodgy boiler, but they covered it, and over the last few years have spent thousands keeping it going, including a complete new heat exchanger. Which was about 1month after I had signed up for it (about 3 weeks after they signed it off as ok, so they had to really do the work). I estimate they have been out about 10 times in 2 years, replaced the heat exchanger, the fan, and lots of other small parts that I can happily not care about. It's great as a person with zero boiler knowledge, as I have even called them out to re-pressurise it, or restart the pilot light with no charge.

Now the place is tenanted it's just as good, as I can just tell the tenant to call BG. You just have to ignore the first comment 'ideally you should replace the boiler, but...' I have told my tenants to use my old approach of looking a bit sad and desperate and they will give up the attempt to sell a new one and see what they can do.

On the flip side, in my new place, with a new boiler, I had a small fault (microswitch), which involved two callouts (£160), a cheap part (£13), plus a £50 collection fee. Which comes to more than the annual BG fee. So I have decided to sign up this boiler to BG also.

I am sure i will post in anger when it goes wrong, and probably have in the past when I was annoyed waiting and/or cold and miserable but overall I am happy to pay for the peace of mind. So far it's been worth it, but I am sure there are times when it wouldn't be.

You talk of a very dodgy boiler and 10 callouts in 2 years. Whilst I am sure these engineers push new boilers more than they really should, there comes a point at which you have to seriously consider whether they have a point. Personally, I think your tenants are silly (naive?) to go along with your scheme. I'd much rather have to shell out for a new boiler than have a dead body on my conscience. It sounds to me like it's only a matter of time before you have to replace the boiler anyway, so maybe you should stop putting it off?

jackieb

I've had BG Homecare for over 5 years. Never had any problems.

C_Mababejive

The only thing that really matters is quality of the engineer who does the work,his qualifications,knowledge,experience and manner of dealing with customers. Do not assume that GSR means a guarantee or mark of excellence. It is merely a stamp to say someone has got a bit of paper. I would wager that the level of skill and competence in the gas industry is actually going downhill and not up..!

If the op is concerned,then get a one off service from someone recommended or trusted. Put the money you would have paid on contract fees in an account or a jam jar in case you need it.

Cardew

C_Mababejive wrote: »

The only thing that really matters is quality of the engineer who does the work,his qualifications,knowledge,experience and manner of dealing with customers. Do not assume that GSR means a guarantee or mark of excellence. It is merely a stamp to say someone has got a bit of paper. I would wager that the level of skill and competence in the gas industry is actually going downhill and not up..!

If the op is concerned,then get a one off service from someone recommended or trusted. Put the money you would have paid on contract fees in an account or a jam jar in case you need it.

I believe the problem with the newer condensing boilers is that the 'gas fitter' type problems are few and far between, but the boilers are stuffed full of electronics and when they go wrong there is no option but to replace the Printed Circuit Board(PCB) at the cost of £xhundred.

C_Mababejive

Cardew wrote: »

I believe the problem with the newer condensing boilers is that the 'gas fitter' type problems are few and far between, but the boilers are stuffed full of electronics and when they go wrong there is no option but to replace the Printed Circuit Board(PCB) at the cost of £xhundred.

Indeed..you have to have a broad engineering capability and an engineering state of mind. i.e you need to be comfortable with engineering concepts and principles.

Modern condensing boilers often have mini premixed burners,the sort of things,in larger forms ,that are used to power larger commercial and industrial plant. Control systems are more complex as are external controls.

Modern boilers are a good mix of gas engineering,electrical & electronic knowledge and a bit of software/it capability built in..in varying proportions depending on make and model.

Slowly creeping into the market we have boilers which can be remote administered by manuf via the internet,micro CHP generation etc etc.

I dont think the industry is breeding the right grade of engineer to deal with all this stuff,hence the duff jobs that get done in peoples homes.

GSR isnt good enough,its just a ticket to ride...

AndysDad

jackieb wrote: »

I've had BG Homecare for over 5 years. Never had any problems.

With British Gas or your boiler ?.....If its the latter then wait until you do and then you will find out what they are like.:rotfl:

ab7167

I have the Southern Electric version, HomeShield, I think it is called? Never any problems with them, they service the boiler and check our cooker every year. This year, they serviced it on Friday (6th November) - apparently no problems!, it then failed on the Saturday (7th November), leaving us without heating and hot water. I phoned them to see if they could fix it, as we have a 2 year old and a baby on the way - they were there within 4 hours on a Saturday to diagnose a dodgy motherboard. They put a temporary fix in to keep it going until they are come to fit the new one this Friday - at a cost of zero. It would have been £350 if we hadn't had the insurance. Boiler is a Potterton, about 6 years old. I'm not sure we've even paid them £350 in premiums yet!

Very impressed with their service - one time they were supposed to service it, they didn't turn up because there had been an emergency somewhere else, but they never phoned to tell me they weren't coming. I phoned and complained, they fitted me in on a Saturday so I didn't have to have another day off work and refunded me 1 months cover as an apology.

And the guys who come are always polite and take their shoes off. Which sounds petty, but is important!