Warning re 24/7 Home Rescue

rolybrom

24/7 are the biggest crooks going. I wouldn't recommend them to my worst enemy after the trouble I had with them. I'm surprised they are still in business. I did my best to bring them to the attention of the trading standards!!!! Have a look at my review of them. Probably page 200 by now as I left them about 5 years ago!!!

Clairenblaze

Avoid, Avoid, Avoid.
Absolutely awful company.
I was covered a few years ago and my boiler broke down. The engineer came out and said it wasn’t a huge problem. I asked him if he thought I would be covered and he said “absolutely” but he would have to order the part in. 

The following day I received a phone call from 24/7 saying that having looked at the engineers report they had decided the the boiler was “beyond economical repair” and therefore not covered. 

Having 3 small children at home and it being winter I had no choice but to pay out another £300 (on top of the initial £50 call out fee) so they would come and repair it.
After the second engineer arrived (different from the first one) and fixed the boiler I asked him what the problem was and if, in his opinion, it was “beyond economical repair” his exact words were “no way, it would have cost peanuts to replace what was needed”.
I argued with 24/7 for months about this as they wouldn’t cancel my cover. My argument was that my boiler was never going to be covered if they had already decided it was going to be “beyond economical repair” being over 7 years old so what was the point in continuing to pay. Obviously they didn’t back down and I was left hugely out of pocket and still had to pay another 8 months of premiums even though I new the boiler would never be covered. 

Disgusting company. They are cheap for a reason and that reason is they are con artists.

PhylPho

That this outfit is still in business -says all there is to say about the shocking state of the UK's consumer protection.

24/7 should not be considered AT ALL. By anyone.

And, to be honest, nor should any of the other insurance companies/breakdown service firms operating nationally. Best thing -- always -- is to locate a good local heating engineer: I know, it isn't easy, but asking around friends and family can yield dividends -- and becoming a customer of theirs is commonsense.

Our central heating boiler finally died after just 14 years (we don't consider that to be a long time, but apparently, it is, the way these things are designed and manufactured  nowadays) and we had it removed and replaced by a Bosch Worcester (or Worcester Bosch, I can never remember which order those names are in) for £1,200 all-in by a local heating engineer who worked non-stop all day and did a perfect job, cleaning everything up after him and even sorting out some errant pipework resulting from the lousy standard of construction of our once upon a time new-build property. Had we kept forking out on a 'service contract' to any of the operators like the misnamed serial misrepresenter Corgi, or the appalling British Gas (which we asked to quote, and came along with an offer of £1,500 including (get this!) "£300 discount" available for a Limited Time Only!!!, then we would, over the years, have paid a huge chunk of money that could otherwise have gone to the boiler replacement. Now we have a 3-year manufacturer warranty and a luvvly engineer who's honest, diligent, and readily available, and no, we don't believe we're unique.

We just think a paranoia has developed over central heating costs and servicing and breakdowns that has allowed operators like 24/7 to move in and exploit customers' fears and customer goodwill and customer wallets when, in truth, there was never a genuine need to sign up to any company like them in the first place. Foolishly, we were British Gas customers for 5 years paying around £22 a month. We cancelled 9 years ago so if you do the math, you can see how much we "saved" towards the cost of last year's inevitable boiler replacement. So can you. So can anyone.

PhylPho

animel71 said:

After nearly two years, I was successful in my court claim against 247 Home Rescue. They tried to settle out of court and made a couple of payments prior to the court date, I ended up receiving all money claimed originally. At the case I was awarded £140 in court costs. I was unable to claim any compensation or interest on the initial amount(although you can claim for this online when you submit your claim), and we never received any travel expenses for having to travel to Manchester. They submitted their paperwork late and didn't make sense.

Judge suggested we contacted an ombudsman if we want compensation !? or for others to hear about 247.

Such a pity you weren't told in advance that to recoup your costs, you MUST have them itemised on a sheet of paper which you MUST hand to the District Judge at the conclusion of the Court hearing. It all needs to occur pretty much at the same time. Incidentally, you could have charged £19.50p an hour (current rate, may well have been less when you went to Court) as Litigant In Person for the research time you had to undertake in dealing with 24/7. Here's updated info:

https://www.moneyclaimsuk.co.uk/legislation/litigants-in-person-costs-and-expenses-act.pdf

Well done, though, for showing that outfits like this can be named and shamed and put through the wringer at County Court by District Judges who aren't stupid and, to the chagrin of outfits like 24/7, are well aware of whatever scams are unfolding nationally. Absent meaningful Trading Standards protection in this country, the more people who drag rogue businesses into Court to face fundamentally hostile Judges, the better. A debt of gratitude is owed you. (Shame about the costs!)

JGB1955

I've owned a house for over 43 years...I have NEVER taken out an extended warranty on any appliance and the ONLY central heating cover we ever had was with British Gas... I have to say, they did turn up on TWO different Christmas Days to fix the boiler!  I like to be warm, so that would be the only appliance I would want to insure.  Our new boiler is serviced annually by the neighbour who fitted it 3 or 4 years ago.  I KNOW he would come round and fix it on Christmas Day if necessary.  Cost?  £6 per month.

PhylPho

royalmike said:

As a gas service engineer with nearly 40 years experience ex British Gas before it was privatised and several manufactures, not at all surprised by this thread, after just returning from living in North America for 13 years, did keep my Gas safe up to date though.
Did some contract work for B,Gas couldn't believe the pay was less than 20 years ago, absolutely no desire to provide good customer service just to sell little old ladys new boilers that they did not need.

So left BG and now doing contract work for an outsourcing company that do work for more than 20 different insurance company which all have no qualified staff themselves.
Pay is better but again there not at all focused on customer service keep suggesting to me that maybe the boiler is uneconomical to repair although I refuse to play that game.
Boilers not working because they require parts, if it was my customer would get the parts and have them back up and running the same day.
But no they have to get permission from insurance company that all have different terms and conditions so customer can be without heating for days or weeks and then said insurance company will try to refuse claim.
Advice would be find a good local independent gas safe engineer and stick with them put the insurance money in a savings account for when you need a major repair of new appliance.

A welcome post. In an age when cynicism is understandable, it's  to be expected that many people will think everyone -is-in-it-for-what-they-can-get-out-of-it. And particularly where heating servicing and repair is concerned. Our own experience shows this isn't true. We used to have a British Gas engineer who serviced our boiler and was as honest and straightforward as could be; grappled with failing boiler parts and an inferior product (Glow-Worm, not recommended to anyone: keep well clear) and never nagged us into getting a replacement (though he could have done). But we went our separate ways and dealt with an engineer like you, an independent, honest, dependable, and entiely independent of outfits like British Gas, Corgi, and 24/7.

Reassuringly, there are good folks like you around. Thanks for the reminder, then! (And the advice about sticking the insurance money into a savings pot. We didn't, and were fortunately able to pay outright for our new boiler and its installation. Even so, we were comforted by the thought that we had, genuinely, saved many hundreds of £s over the years, by not paying for the dubious services of companies like 24/7, Corgi and British Gas. (BG really dropped in our opinion when it deliberately lied about a £300 limited time discount" on a new boiler installation. We asked it to verify and explain the figure. It couldn't. It had invented it, and then pretended to reduce it from an entirely fictional cost. What annoyed most of all was that British Gas would think us so incredibly stupid that we'd willingly believe anything they said. That didn't work out too well for 'em

nottinghammed

scd3scd4 said:

GarethSutherland said:

Was thinking about buying cover with 24/7 Home Rescue, but now having second thoughts! Is there anyone out there who had a good experience with them? :think:

They are cheaper for a reason. However you will pay it all back in the long term.
Go read the negative reviews on TP. 

I think I got scam/advert missold by 24/7 Home Rescue as well.
I got the 'My 24|7 Plan' for £19.85/month + https://www.247homerescue.co.uk/faqs/introducing-the-cp12-gas-safety-certificate/
Advertised as No charges for parts & No charges for labour.
https://247homerescue.co.uk/wp-content/themes/homerescue-co-uk/pdf/boiler_cover.pdf
"11. CLAIMS COVERED INCLUDE
a) Breakdown that results in a loss of heating and hot water including a fault with the valves, internal thermostatic controls (located within the boiler) and /or expansion tank
b) Breakdown of the central heating system
c) Heat exchanger
d) Manufacturer-fitted components
e) Interconnecting pipework
f) Pump, motorised valves, feed and expansion tank
g) Parts, labour and call-out charges "
===================================================================================
They issued the CP12 Gas Safety Certificate as PASS, 2 days later (1/3/20) by email from teamfnol@247homerescue.co.uk
-Outcome of gas installation pipework visual inspection Pass Is the protective Equipotential bonding satisfactory? Pass
-Outcome of gas supply pipework visual inspection Pass
-Outcome of gas tightness test? Pass
-Is the Emergency Control Valve access satisfactory? Pass
*Comments: Lgsr

Regards,

Home Response 360

Tel: 03453192 247

(I assume Lgsr is "Landlord Gas Safety Record"); There were no mention of any repair / advisory on the day of inspection@28/2/2020 or on the email dated 1/3/20) but,

suddenly on 2/3/20, I got an email from technical@247homerescue.co.uk as below:

===============================================================

Dear Customer, 
Having reviewed events transpired regarding a recent visit to your property, we write in confirmation that the attending Engineer has identified certain defects on your appliance during the completion of your Boiler Service. As per the Terms and Conditions issued upon initiation of your agreement; during a service, should the attending Engineer determine any problems, you will duly be provided with an advisory note which will specify the remedial work deemed necessary.
Please be forewarned that as Remedial work is classed as outside of the terms of your agreement, you would therefore be obligated to cover any costs which coincide with a repair. 
We shall highlight that you are not compelled to heed the advice put to you. However; failure to do so may affect any subsequent future claims. 
In your specific case; we have diagnosed a fault with your (  Gas Valve   ). Should you be so inclined, we can dispatch an engineer to replace the (   Gas Valve    ) for a fixed fee of £261.75     including VAT. This repair includes all parts and labour.

Should you wish to proceed, please call 01254928554 and ask to be transferred to our Remedial department.

Kind regards,
24|7 Home Rescue. 

This disclaimer applies to all emails sent 247 Home Rescue a trading name of 247 Home Assist LTD.
PLEASE NOTE THAT WE DO NOT ACCEPT SERVICE OF PROCEEDINGS BY EMAIL

 

 24|7 Home Rescue 

A: 3 Petre Court, Petre Road, Clayton-le-Moors, Lancashire, BB5 5HY

W: www.247homerescue.co.uk

T: 01254 35 55 35

 

maggieaitken

I have just cancelled a contract with this lot and the reason is that when trying to book the boiler service - which is a part of the annual agreement - and because there is an online request for the client to call to arrange this, I was told of the need to pay upfront for that service - either 60 or 40 with reducing monthly payments to balance out over a year.  This is not noted in any of their online publicity, though apparently on page 5 para 8 (or something very similar) in terms and conditions - which dont open withn the online version, or not on mine anyway, it is!  As this is a major determinant when taking out a contract of this sort, it ought to be stated upfront and lack of this is sharp practice, to say the last - and placing this within the always hefty terms and conditions is just not acceptable.  And, as opposed to what I was told by their representative, it is not Industry standard.  Bloody cheek!  Tempted to go to Ombudsman about this!

wizk1

maggieaitken said:

I have just cancelled a contract with this lot and the reason is that when trying to book the boiler service - which is a part of the annual agreement - and because there is an online request for the client to call to arrange this, I was told of the need to pay upfront for that service - either 60 or 40 with reducing monthly payments to balance out over a year.  This is not noted in any of their online publicity, though apparently on page 5 para 8 (or something very similar) in terms and conditions - which dont open withn the online version, or not on mine anyway, it is!  As this is a major determinant when taking out a contract of this sort, it ought to be stated upfront and lack of this is sharp practice, to say the last - and placing this within the always hefty terms and conditions is just not acceptable.  And, as opposed to what I was told by their representative, it is not Industry standard.  Bloody cheek!  Tempted to go to Ombudsman about this!

What ombudsman? They're not regulated by any regulatory body because they controversially don't define themselves as an insurer. They clearly capitalise on this.

midnight_bazaar

Wish I noted the contents of this thread more seriously before I took out not just 1 but 2 policies with these people.

I have boiler breakdown and initially had a free 2 months Home emergency breakdown cover that I continued after the 2 months expired as they forget to tell you we will direct debit after the 2 months if you don't tell us to cancel or specifically state you want home emergency.

Anyway, before I joined them I specifically told them I had a very old boiler that's been regularly served and repaired (its a Glowworm) will they cover me or will each call out be saying get a new boiler and was assured they would cover me. Turns out my boiler needed  a call out an engineer visited (after I paid my excess -thats supposed to include parts not just a call out) re-started the boiler but said it needs a new gas valve and then the Sales teams called saying its an old boiler blah blah, parts are obsolete we do fantastic deals on a new boiler by paying into some stay warm plan its a contract for 10 years whereby you've easily paid £3000. The fact is parts are available for the boiler but they use the excuse they only use manufacturers parts not generic. 

Ive been offered a new Ideal Logic boiler, but just dont like the hard sell of this company. Even the engineers are not that knowledgeable on older boilers when I took plan out I said I didn't just want a qualified gas engineers but one withe experience of older boilers who been servicing and repairing boilers for over 5 years but think its part of the hard sell. 

I will see what other options they offer eg the parts that are not obsolete, or a better new boiler alternative.