a new boiler - who can i believe?

Legacy_user

Hi,

I have had my boiler serviced by British Gas. They've put a "at risk" notice on it but I can still use it. They tell me to replace it this year. I have heard that they are expensive so I should shop around for quotes. However - is the boiler really at risk? How do I know whether the quote I get is valed?

My issues are-

How legal is the "at risk" notice?
If I ask anyone who has an interest in selling me a boiler, won't they tell me to change mine?
How can I tell if the quote includes bells and whistles (the boiler equivalent of)?

Jason

misterbarlow

if they have said you can still use it, then its safe to use...
any boiler that is old or has a poor efficiency rating will probably be advised to change..
they want you to stump up thousands for a new one... in the long run you WILL be better off but its the initial outlay that stings...

i think any of the big six will be around twice as much as a local plumber would charge to replace a boiler.....

macman

BG typically charge 40% more than a local independent RGI.
On what basis is at at risk?

southcoastrgi

if they have put a sticker on it saying AR then you shouldn't be using it & they should have switched it off & told you not to use it.

as MM asked what does the paperwork say is wrong with it ?

HappyMJ

southcoastrgi wrote: »

if they have put a sticker on it saying AR then you shouldn't be using it & they should have switched it off & told you not to use it.

as MM asked what does the paperwork say is wrong with it ?

I'm quite sure the engineer has to ask the user for permission to turn it off and if permission is refused a disclaimer should be presented to the user and signed. The "at risk" notice just means it could become dangerous in the future such as the recent changes requiring inspection hatches in walls/void spaces with flues that cannot be inspected. If it was dangerous there and then the engineer would have been compelled to disconnect it from the mains gas to prevent the user from switching it on after the engineer had left.

DUTR

misterbarlow wrote: »

if they have said you can still use it, then its safe to use...
any boiler that is old or has a poor efficiency rating will probably be advised to change..
they want you to stump up thousands for a new one... in the long run you WILL be better off but its the initial outlay that stings...

i think any of the big six will be around twice as much as a local plumber would charge to replace a boiler.....

Hopefully you will clarify how in the long run the OP will be better off?
In the time I have been in my house, I have noticed several neighbours go through 'modern' boilers every few years, if I replaced mine all I would gain I reckon is from not having the pilot on, when the boiler is running, I can't see it using any less gas than I'm using now, and I'm sure many of the posts here whining about gas bills the posters have modern efficient A rated boilers

southcoastrgi

HappyMJ wrote: »

I'm quite sure the engineer has to ask the user for permission to turn it off and if permission is refused a disclaimer should be presented to the user and signed. The "at risk" notice just means it could become dangerous in the future such as the recent changes requiring inspection hatches in walls/void spaces with flues that cannot be inspected. If it was dangerous there and then the engineer would have been compelled to disconnect it from the mains gas to prevent the user from switching it on after the engineer had left.

yes the engineer has to ask permission to turn off the boiler if it is AR & to disconnect the gas supply if it is ID (if it is ID & the customer refuses then national grid are informed & if they agree when they attend they will disconnect it & no amount of argueing will stop them), however paperwork would still be filled out that the OP would have been asked to sign & they would have been advised not to use it

ollski

How do you mean 'legal'?, the notice is to advise you there is a potential for a dangerous fault to occur in the future if not rectified. The engineer has passed responsibility for that potential back to you by advising you and leaving the decision to operate the appliance in your hands.
The main problem is that the 'at risk' category has been watered down so much over the years that it covers everything from a real potential threat to things like an inoperable boiler waiting for repair. The engineer should have advised you verbally of the issue, the notice is barely worth the paper it's written on. It should be called a cmb notice (cover my backside)

Mr_Ted

ollski wrote: »

How do you mean 'legal'?, the notice is to advise you there is a potential for a dangerous fault to occur in the future if not rectified. The engineer has passed responsibility for that potential back to you by advising you and leaving the decision to operate the appliance in your hands.
The main problem is that the 'at risk' category has been watered down so much over the years that it covers everything from a real potential threat to things like an inoperable boiler waiting for repair. The engineer should have advised you verbally of the issue, the notice is barely worth the paper it's written on. It should be called a cmb notice (cover my backside)

:rotfl:or a "LETS GET A QUOTE IN QUICK":rotfl:

Until we know from the OP what the "at risk" is for, it would seem its just coz its an old boiler?

In which case I'm "at risk" from my ol boiler, but shhhhhh dont tell her :rotfl: