British Gas - "Homecare"

scunner

Hi

I've just won a small claim from the Ombudsman agaist British Gas and will be signing-up with another supplier very soon. I'd like to get shot of British Gas completely but have a "Homecare" policy with them. Although its good in that it covers the whole central heating system and includes an annual service, it still seems expensive to me at well over £30 / month.

Does anyone know of any similar products or services at a more reasonable price please?

Thanks

macman

Yes, just get a local recommended independent RGI to service your boiler annually (around £75?) and to come out should you need any other work. Put the £30 a month in a savings account to cover that. You will be quids in and receive much better service.

vickyc651

I too have the HomeCare 400 with British Gas which includes Central heating cover with an Annual Service, Plumbing and Drains cover and Home Electrical Cover. I pay around £29.80 per month. I can honestly say "No" they are not the cheapest....but, they are by far the best. I have been with 2 other big name contenders ( in the last 2 yr) but an average call out for repairs were 3-5 working days which I find unacceptable, and that was during summer months. If I done what Macman advises I can honestly say I would have been well out of pocket. Imagine calling a local plumber up over the Christmas period.....omg I would hate to see the call out charge alone.:rotfl:If you do decide to go elsewhere I would check the Terms and conditions are the same. Best of Luck.

marbella

I tend to agree with your comments regarding Homecare 400, I also have this and have my kitchen applicances covered. The week before christmas I had a leak in the water tank upstairs and the water was coming through the ceiling in the lounge. I had plumbers and electricians out to repair the leak going right up until christmas eve. They also arranged a de-humidifier for 2 weeks to help dry everything out. If that wasn't the end, both my ovens on the cooker broke down on christmas eve and the engineering was in the kitchen until 10.30pm and got them working. So all told this would have cost me a fortune if I had not been insured. But on the otherhand, I am paying £48 per month, so I would need to work out whether it would be cheaper as mentioned, putting this into a separate account just in case...

Fairzo

I also have the cover that includes kitchen appliances. Personally I think it's useful for the peace of mind that a callout isn't going to involve a plumber / engineer, a sharp intake of breath and a shake of the head. Had a replacement drum on the washing machine out of it this year.

macman

marbella wrote: »

I tend to agree with your comments regarding Homecare 400, I also have this and have my kitchen applicances covered. The week before christmas I had a leak in the water tank upstairs and the water was coming through the ceiling in the lounge. I had plumbers and electricians out to repair the leak going right up until christmas eve. They also arranged a de-humidifier for 2 weeks to help dry everything out. If that wasn't the end, both my ovens on the cooker broke down on christmas eve and the engineering was in the kitchen until 10.30pm and got them working. So all told this would have cost me a fortune if I had not been insured. But on the otherhand, I am paying £48 per month, so I would need to work out whether it would be cheaper as mentioned, putting this into a separate account just in case...

So you are happy to pay £576pa on the off chance that you need to use this service? Over the time you have had it, how often have you had to use it? And what would you have paid in call outs otherwise?

marbella

I have actually had this service for 5 years and in that time have had my central heating serviced every year, a couple of parts replaced in the boiler when it broke down in the winter, 2 radiator thermostats replaced, the leak which I mentioned above, the range ovens which needed a repair on xmas eve, problem with a leak in one of the toilet cisterns and a couple of other things that don't quite come to mind. So I don't know if I would be better off calling out the necessary people or just sticking with my contract.

macman

So over 5 years that policy has cost you aproaching £3,000! A boiler service costs maybe £75pa. My plumber charges about £40 call out and first hour, most of those jobs you mention (leak excepted) would be fixable in an hour.
A major problem like the leak would be fixable under an extension to a standard home insurance policy, that might add £30pa.

Fairzo

I don't see what the big deal is on this. There is no form of insurance where the consumer ends up in profit, or companies wouldn't offer it in the first place. It spreads risk, guarantees a rapid callout if necessary and avoids the possibility of work costing more than necessary (or if it does it's not out of my pocket).

odowdchr

macman wrote: »

So you are happy to pay £576pa on the off chance that you need to use this service? Over the time you have had it, how often have you had to use it? And what would you have paid in call outs otherwise?

It depends on the personal circumstances, boiler and how often it breaks down.
Mine's 15 yrs old and they wouldn't cover it as a new customer..but continue to do so because it's already on the system (just have the boiler cover)
I took the cover because of just the same type of thing...months of problems, call outs over Xmas a few years ago, days without heating, big bills from 2 local companies, neither of which could fix the problem properly.
At the time BG covered the boiler because it was working, then came out when it failed again.....spent literally hours diagnosing the various problems, got the right parts, stripped the thing and rebuilt it and we've never had a problem since.
I know i'm paying over the odds now...but compared to the huge cost of a new condenser i reckon i'm still in credit.

macman

£576 for more than a couple of years would exceed the cost of buying and installing a new boiler.