British Gas tv ad

NOWSE

In the current British Gas tv advert for their heating breakdown service we are told that the scheme fee includes a service. This not true. They used to include an annual service but that stopped some years ago. Now their annual visit is for a "safety and maintenance inspection".
It is not unusual for British Gas to try to mislead us but this is blatant lies.

alanobrien

I have no doubt some smart legal type would argue that they were performing a service to the customer by doing the safety inspection.

This compares to viewer expectation where most would expect service to mean a physical service of the boiler.

Clarity of their message would be nice......

Astaroth

Generally TV ads dont need to have as much information in them (like clarification of the word service) however when you go to the point of sale (website or over the phone I assume) then exactly what is and isnt covered should be explained.

Darksun

If you believe the advert is misleading, contact the Advertising Standards Agency, and they will investigate.

NOWSE

Darksun wrote:

If you believe the advert is misleading, contact the Advertising Standards Agency, and they will investigate.

I tried to do this earlier today but they need a date and time that it has been aired so I'll need to keep a look out for it.

jinkssick

They will say anything, and now that they have lowered their prices down by £20 a month. It really states people power as they lost more than 1 million customers last year.

Their 'we are the best' scheme doesnt cut it. Cut it at all. Go to a cheaper provider.

trets77

if your dumb enough to have British gas as your provider then you deserve everything you get IMO.

there have been a whole host of stories about British gas engineers coming round for a annual service and condemming boilers that are perfectly fine( according to independant Corgi engineers that check them next). they of course in effect put a gun to your head in this situation by disconnecting the boiler and putting tape round it ( no hot water no heating). and quoting you a massively inflated price for a new one.

i use the local BoilerCare man who comes round and does a proper service every year and gives a large discount for being on his service books should anything go wrong between services. cost me around £28 a year for a service .

Paying a monthly charge to British Gas??? you need your head examining IMO

oldagetraveller

For anyone interested this is a reply I received from BG re the annual inspection/check.

Dearxxxxxxxxxx

Thank you for your enquiry regarding the Yearly Safety and Maintenance Inspection.

Please accept my apologies for this late response to your enquiry. Unfortunately, we have experienced major technical difficulties which have resulted in a large number of eContacts being held within our systems.

During the inspection, the service engineer will carry out the following:

1. Complete a boiler emission test to measure the safety and efficiency of your appliance.
2. Perform basic electrical safety checks.
3. Check the condition of the appliance and its operation.
4. Check the condition of the system, including ventilation, flue, pipework, radiators, controls and air grilles, where appropriate.
5. Talk you through a detailed checklist of the work done and leave you with a copy.

During the Yearly Safety and Maintenance Inspection, our service engineer will use a performance analyser on your boiler. This is a precision instrument that enables us to check the efficiency and safe operation of a wide range of gas central heating boilers. A low reading indicates that the boiler is working effectively, whilst a higher reading indicates that further investigation is required and in these circumstances, the engineer would strip down the boiler in order to clean and repair as required. The performance tester compliments other checks the engineer will make on the boiler and system.

I trust the above information is helpful and that my reply has answered your enquiry but if you require any further assistance, please contact me again at engineers@house.co.uk or call us on 0845 600%****00*.

> Kind regards
>
> Gillian Rowland
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> house.co.uk - the online home of British Gas and Scottish Gas
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*Calls may be monitored and/or recorded for quality assurance. We are open 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
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