Comet leave family without heat or hot water for 10 days.

disgustedwithcomet

Hi, I'm new on here but just wanted to post a warning about the after care service offered by Comet.

Rather than start anew, I copy & paste an email I've remitted to them which pretty much explains what's happened - the only thing I've omitted from this copy & paste are job numbers & address etc.

All I can say is if you're thinking of buying from Comet then be very very careful.

On 27th December we bought a variety of goods from your store.

These included a gas hob which was installed & fitted by yourselves in the New Year.

Over the next few days we occasionally smelt gas around the hob & attempted to report it to Comet on Monday 10th January. However 'excessively high volume of telephone enquiries' at Comets end meant we didnt get through until this morning, Tuesday 11th.

We advised the situation, Comet advised that we must ring Transco & not them. If Transco reported the hob/connection faulty then we should phone Comet back.

Transco had an engineer to us within 35 minutes of speaking with them. He confirmed a gas leak to be emanating from the hob but couldn't clarify whether or not it was the hob itself or if it was the connection that had not been fitted correctly. He advised there was no accesible isolation switch on the hob & that he would therefore need to cap the meter outside - this he did.

Capping the meter means we now have no gas - which means we have no hot water (for showers etc), no heating & no hob facilities.

We rang Comet back to advise.

I have spoken with several people now at Comet, the most recent being Patrick & later his manager Sherie Allard. Both say that the very earliest they can get an engineer to either uninstall or reinstall the unit - and therefore allow us to have heating, hot water etc is in 10 days time, Thursday 20th January - somewhere between 8.00 in the morning & 6.00 pm at night.

I have explained & reiterated that this means we will have no hot water for personal hygiene, no heating (temperatures during the day currentl circa 6C & on a night in the minuses) & limited cooking facilities. they remain adamant that the best they can do is get someone to us in 10 days time.

They have said they can deliver a replacement hob to us on Thursday of this week - but that they have no one to install or uninstall it at that time. They have also suggested we could arrange our own engineer - but this seems very much like trying to wash their hands of responsibility.

This is a hob provided by & installed by comet. The work done is described by Transco as being 'Immediately Dangerous'. Comet though say 'we are very busy at the moment. 10 days time is the best we can do. I appreciate it may be inconvenient not to be able to have a shower for 10 days or to have heat for 10 days but thats the way it is.'

Just as an aside, the receipt from Comet was stapled by them to a leaflet which includes the following statement:-

'Extra Help
If you're having trouble getting your new product set up or it isn't working properly, don't worry, Call us on 0844 800 95 95 for help. We're great at repairing things.....'

Frankly this is a disgraceful example of customer service

:mad:

dmg24

If you arrange your own engineer are they willing to refund the cost of their installation? If so, why not do this?

fluffnutter

I find it really odd that merely not having a gas hob attached to the gas hob nozzle bit means that your entire gas supply has to be cut off. Get a second opinion.

zppp

fluffnutter wrote: »

I find it really odd that merely not having a gas hob attached to the gas hob nozzle bit means that your entire gas supply has to be cut off. Get a second opinion.

I agree, common sense would be for Transco to have disconnected the nozzle from the hob, after isolating the gas, and place some kind of restrictor on the nozzle. The reason being that I think they should have checked to make sure there was no other fault with the gas, and where there isn't reconnect the gas until Comet come out.

fluffnutter

zppp wrote: »

I agree, common sense would be for Transco to have disconnected the nozzle from the hob, after isolating the gas, and place some kind of restrictor on the nozzle. The reason being that I think they should have checked to make sure there was no other fault with the gas, and where there isn't reconnect the gas until Comet come out.

Totally. Of course a gas outlet can be capped. Or you'd always have to have an appliance connected! Sounds like Transco went for the easiest and quickest option quite frankly.

fluffnutter

I have heard that Transco (and British Gas before this aspect of power supplying was privatised) are very heavy-handed about gas 'leaks' and are wont to disconnect people at the slightest opportunity. It might be an urban myth, who knows? Whilst I'm not advocating p1ssing about with gas, it would seem that this might well be an example of that.

dmg24

fluffnutter wrote: »

I have heard that Transco (and British Gas before this aspect of power supplying was privatised) are very heavy-handed about gas 'leaks' and are wont to disconnect people at the slightest opportunity. It might be an urban myth, who knows? Whilst I'm not advocating p1ssing about with gas, it would seem that this might well be an example of that.

If you are referring to National Grid, their role is to ensure that the gas connection is safe. If it is not, they cut it off. Their role is a safety one, not to look at individual equipment. If they were not heavy handed and as a result there was an incident, they would be liable.

fluffnutter

dmg24 wrote: »

If you are referring to National Grid, their role is to ensure that the gas connection is safe. If it is not, they cut it off. Their role is a safety one, not to look at individual equipment. If they were not heavy handed and as a result there was an incident, they would be liable.

Yes, apologies, National Grid not BG.

A reputable gas engineer could have made that connection perfectly safe without the need to cut off the entire gas supply.

disgustedwithcomet

Thanks for the comments & suggestions. I tend to think of Comet rather than Transco being the bad guys in this instance.

Comet have been paid, & have either delivered a faulty product or installed it incorrectly. Ths I reported to them and it was they who said they could do absolutley nothing until Transco had been out to assess the situation. It was comet who gave me Transco's number & demanded they be called in first.

Transco answered the phone call on the first ring (it had taken me 8 minutes to get to speak to someone at Comet).

Transco had an engineer at our house within 35 minutes of the call ending. Comet are quoting 10 days.

Transco confirm the gas leak is from the hob itself or the connecting pipework - but say they are forbidden from unscrewing or taking apart the hob/cooker to get at the problem. This makes sense - if only because the way things are panning out with comet I could see them saying 'oh no your warranty's invalid if anyone has messed with the installation'.

It's also worth pointing out that Transco have done this free of charge whereas Comet of course have been paid up front for product, delivery & installation.

I'm effectively in day 2 now without heat or hot water. The temperature in the house is about 15C. We're restricted as to the kind of meals we can have (eg try frying chips or boiling veg, rice or pasta, without a hob) & there will be a hygiene problem if we cant bath or shower (except in cold water).

Transco may have been heavy handed but as its Comet's policy to get them in first they must know what the likely outcome is. Transco responded immediately. Comet have bounced me from pillar to post and tried to wash their hands of responsibility. I have emailed 4 members of their senior management - all have ignored me. I have spoken with their 'help' line they have passed me to a local branch. I have spoken with the local branch, moved upline to the manager (she's not available righ now but I can get her to call back, there's a 4 hour maximum response policy for managers (to be fair she rang within an hour)) who told me it was in the hands of their transport section - who she cant put me in touch with & who say they havent an engineer for 10 days.

To my mind this is an emergency & rescheduling some appointments or even them hiring in a local contractor to fix their own mistake would be the logical response. They did suggest they refund the installation fee & we arrange our own competent engineer - but let me think that through, I pay someone to install something, they !!!! it up, and are willing to give me the money back to get someone in to do it properly. Put another way, they are happy to accept money for an advertised service but if the service doesnt go smoothly they will try & wriggle out of all responsibility, put the onus on the recipient, and wash their hands of the problem. Hmmm, no doubt that's a policy that works for them, but ethical? Responsible? Reasonable?

Sorry, I'm ranting, I'm cold, starting to smell & annoyed. Another 8 days to go - & that's providing Comet turn up when they say and actually do a good job - did I mention the gas engineer had to borrow some of my tools to get the installation done? Hmm, it wasn't the best of starts was it.

dmg24

Can we stop referring to Transco please? It is National Grid!

OP, it is not Comet that is leaving you without gas, it is you. There is absolutely nothing stopping you getting your own engineer out. You are being difficult to try to prove a point, which although valid is only making you suffer as a result. Accept the refund from Comet and use that to get an engineer out today.

disgustedwithcomet

Update.

Shortly after posting the above, I received a call from their head office. A very nice lady, advising they'd get smeone out today to assess the situation - not necesarilly to fix it, just to assess it & then see what can be done.

At least It's a step in the right direction.