Does no-one repair gas fires any more?!

DVardysShadow

rustyboy21 wrote: »

When a gas engineer calls out to do a repair, they usually have to switch the gas off at the mains to do so to regulations.

They then have to then go through the house re instating all the other appliances, ie Boiler,cooker,wallheaters etc.

It is silly,but it is true. You can guarantee that once you switch the gas off, something is not going to relight. Then you get the house owner saying, you were the last one touching the gas, you have done something to it,it's your fault. In my 20 years in the fire industry I have had it done to me so many times it isn't funny anymore. I have had cases when I have said I am not going to send an engineer back out as there must be a fault with the boiler for example, then you next have a call from Corgi( now gas safe) saying they are going to do a call to the house to check it. You then get told you have to sort it out by the authorities. It is all on the house owners side, it's not fair.

This is why you cannot get an engineer out to do small jobs on old appliances. Engineers would love to do 20 5 minute jobs a day at £50, Than a big Job lasting all day at £300, but this stupid rule puts them off doing it.

Hope that explains it better

Come off it. While what you say is probably true, this is a case of crafty householders and a timid regulatory body. You have not established that:

According to gas regs, if an engineer repairs a gas appliance or replaces it in your home, they then become responsible for all the gas appliances in your home. Stupid but true.

keystone

DVardysShadow wrote: »

You have not established that:

Don't think he can. Its a game of consequences - turn the gas off to do your work then turn in on again and you should verify that all other appliances are working correctly. Its the same as electrics and water.

Cheers

DVardysShadow

keystone wrote: »

Don't think he can. Its a game of consequences - turn the gas off to do your work then turn in on again and you should verify that all other appliances are working correctly. Its the same as electrics and water.

Cheers

And if you are really canny, check that the appliances work before turning them off - will take the wind right out of the sails of anyone trying to pull a fast one

Owain_Moneysaver

amcluesent wrote: »

The Gas Safe Register web site had pictures of those registered. I must admit to avoiding "yoofs" looking unshaven and with baseball caps

What is it about gas fitters? I look at the gas safe register and think I've wandered into the crimewatch website.

rustyboy21

keystone wrote: »

So in that scenario whats different about the plumber who has to turn the water of or the electrican who has to turn the volts off?

The answer is nothing and it will affect most trades to one extent oir another.

Its a so simple rule - you touched it last you are responsible for it WHATEVER it is. Noone would undertake any work under your "new age problem".

Tradesmen don't get paid for the privelege of abrogating responsibility for what they do. Get paid for it - you are reponsible for it. Simples.

Cheers

But with your scenario, no one would touch any product which needs repairing.

The problem is that joe public think that everyone is out to shaft them. If something goes wrong it's not their fault. Classic example, I had new aerials fitted to my chimney stack last year. The guys were working 15 foot away from where the comunal down pipe for the roof was situated. After they left I got an irate neighbour knocking on my door to say the downpipe was damaged by the engineers ( they didn't go anywhere near it !) The uproar and hassle got so bad that I ended up paying for a new downpipe to keep the peace.

Gas engineers in my experiance have a hell of a time with joe public
demanding that they are at fault when something goes wrong. Fact for you... at present I am awaiting payment for a £3000 fireplace I fitted 2 months ago, but due to the mid feathers in the chimney being faulty,although it passed a smoke test the previous day, I was not able to comission the fire. The flue is fitted to the customers house and has been there sincethe house was built , but I am at fault and have to repair it free of charge. I cannot get in the house to get my goods back and the owner is refusing to answer the phone to me to arrange a meeting. They are sitting there with a lovely new fireplace for christmas and I am £3k out of pocket. The annoying thing is that the guy is a consultant at the local neuro dept of the hospital. I am considering going in to the clinic and making a holy fuss to get my money.

It annoys me that joe public are prepared to buy second hand goods off the internet and expect them to be perfect, legal to fit and be fitted for a pittance. No one should be able to buy gas appliances from the internet or the DIY sheds, with the possibilty of them being fitted by an unqualified person, or a retired engineer who thinks they can do anything. I have seen with my own eyes a gas cooker fitted by a husband of a woman, who refused my installation charge and said she would get an engineer to fit it, fitted with a piece of garden hose and 2 jubilee clips ! I have stopped selling supply only due to this now

If you have a problem with water, you get wet, electric and you would blow all the fuses, gas and you die or blow the house up !

Simples

rustyboy21

ps
Gas safe and corgi are as bad as each other. I have had 2 customers report me to gas safe over faulty installations, when everything was signed by them as ok, only for gas safe to find out they were electric fires ! They wanted to stop paying the finance, so I was dragged into the argument, so they could stall the payments

gas4you

DVardysShadow wrote: »

Could you explain this more, please? It sounds too stupid to be true, but if it is true, it needs changing.

Nearly right but not quite.

Once a gas engineer has attended the property he is deemed to have been the last man working on the gas so is responsible for the gas at that property.

He is not responsible for any other appliances breaking down or going wrong in that property.

He doesn't even have to carry out a tightness test when attending or doing a service, according to the regs, but most of us do as we want to know that the installation is safe, as if the unthinkable happened we would 'have been the last one there'.

It maybe that some of those called do not have the gas fire ticket, so cannot work on them, just because you are Gas Safe registered does not mean you can automatically work on all gas appliances.

The thermocouples on the Valor are not a standard universal one, but most stockists carry them.

I repair and look after several gas fires, as no doubt do the other engineers who post on here, but at present I find that I am also guilty of not returning calls as fast as I would normally, due to me working extremely long hours and 7 day weeks at present.

If a customer doesn't explain clearly in his message that they have a complete breakdown, then it can be around 5 days before I call them back. Breakdowns are called back asap.

I am also having to prioritise calls, with the elderly, disabled or those with babies/young children getting priority.

Sadly I, and no doubt other engineers, are not superman