gas boiler not working after running out of credit

concerned43

My elderly mother has a pre-payment meter with British Gas and because of this hot weather has not has the heating on for a couple of months now but uses gas to heat the water. As she has not used heating for a while she has not had to top up her credit on her meter for a while but today she had no hot water and when she checked the meter she discovered she had run out of credit! fair enough she bought £10 worth and put it in the meter.... however the boiler did not fire up and she called me in.
I looked at the boiler and saw it flashing an error so phoned the local council (council house tenant) - now this is where it gets weird.
i was told that because she had run up of gas credit the boiler closes off and can only be put back on by one of their contractors and that they will charge my mum £60 call out charge!!
i have never heard of this and know that lots of people run out of credit but once they put credit in their meters than the gas fires up!
Can anyone shed some light on this?

ziggyman99

The boiler has locked out because its tried to fire with no gas. Let me know the make and model and i'll tell you how to clear it. I presume she's tried turning it off and on again?

concerned43

Thanks - I have tried to reset is several times using the reset button and have also turned it off and on. It fires up for a minute or so then dies. The make is iIdeal isar HE24.

Barneysmom

Try holding in the reset button for a few seconds to give it chance to reset then try starting it again.

There's a picture halfway down this page of which button is the reset...

http://www.wholesaleheating.co.uk/acatalog/Ideal/Ideal_Isar_HE_Users_Guide.htm

concerned43

Barneysmom wrote: »

Try holding in the reset button for a few seconds to give it chance to reset then try starting it again.

There's a picture halfway down this page of which button is the reset...

http://www.wholesaleheating.co.uk/acatalog/Ideal/Ideal_Isar_HE_Users_Guide.htm

Tried that but still not working

ziggyman99

What fault code do you have? Is it a LF?
Check the gas meter. If it says "call help" she has probably knocked it and triggered the anti-tamper mechanism.

spiro

You say your mum put £10 on the meter, if there has been no credit for a while there may be - standing charges to pay, emergency credit to repay.

ziggyman99

concerned43 wrote: »

Thanks - I have tried to reset is several times using the reset button and have also turned it off and on. It fires up for a minute or so then dies. The make is iIdeal isar HE24.

Ah missed that. What is the fault code when it dies?

concerned43

Thanks again for all your help - went over to mum's this morning (after all your advice) and put the card back into the meter, It then switched on when I pressed the 'A' button and it switched the gas back on! Mum obviously did not put the card in properly!! feel a right idiot!!!!

spiro

concerned43 wrote: »

Thanks again for all your help - went over to mum's this morning (after all your advice) and put the card back into the meter, It then switched on when I pressed the 'A' button and it switched the gas back on! Mum obviously did not put the card in properly!! feel a right idiot!!!!

I think that when the gas has run out completely just putting the card in does not work you have to 'switch it back on', this is to avoid issues with people topping up the meter when there is no gas nut they have left say the oven on.