Homecare 400 contract and Gas supplier

Yorkie1

(Reposted here in correct forum!)

Mum has a Homecare 400 contract, and has her gas supplied by B Gas.

Setting aside the question of whether she should continue the H400 contract, is the existence and/or cost of the H400 contract dependent on the property also being supplied by B Gas?

I am minded to suggest she switches gas supplier to another supplier in order to save money, but Dad was always adamant that they couldn't switch because of the H400 contract. Dad has now passed away and Mum is more open to investigating this option.

CashStrapped

Nope, nothing to fear.

A Homecare contract is independent from your utility supplier.

I had a homecare contract for a number of years whilst being with SSE and EDF......that was before I saw the light and cancelled homecare completely.

It is unfortunate that the British Gas brand relies on a certain section of the population (primerily the elderly) who stick with them as customers because of brand loyalty from the pre-privatisation days.

They think that British gas is still BRITISH gas and feel worried and too disloyal to move elsewhere. Usually at the cost of substantial savings in utility costs.

Never underestimate the power of Brand recognition!

Regarding Homecare:

An alternative would be to cancel the policy and then set up a standing order of an equivalent amount to a savings account. That way, if something goes wrong, you have your own pot of money to effect a repair using a local qualified boiler technician. If nothing goes wrong, you end up having a nice large pot which would cover the whole system, or allow you to replace the boiler if it does finally pack up.

If that is a step too far for your parents, at least ring up Homecare and threaten to leave. They may look at reducing the cost of the Homecare contract for the same cover level.

Robin9

I can confirm there is no requirement to have BG as your supplier.

In support of Homecare - I set up Homecare for my 95 yo MIL after her heating failed on a Friday afternoon. Wouldn't ring her plumber because he would be collecting the kids from school; wouldn't ring on Sat or Sun because its his time; wouldn't ring Monday as he would be busy getting ready; wouldn't leave a message on his phone (it's a generation thing); it was Thursday when he came.

With Homecare she now rings me regardless - I ring Homecare and have a same day response (once an hour response). She stays warm and I have peace of mind. She has her heating llowance which goes towards the cost.

CashStrapped

Just wait until they decide your MILs boiler is too old for them to bother and they try to find an excuse to condem it.

They left my parents without heating just before winter claiming there was a fault with the boiler (this was just after a "service"). Heavily suggesting a new boiler was the only option. Even their area manager agreed (so it was not just one engineer).

Got a local plumber to check it. Not only had the services not been carried out to even a basic standard (simple bits not replaced) over the years, but there was nothing wrong with the thing!

I can see you find it more convenient, but it is a bit of a weak argument.

Your MIL would not ring a plumber but will ring you, only for you to ring Homecare? So that makes homecare more convenient than a local plumber.....for you?

Many local heating engineer have an emergency response.

It is the brand thing again.British Gas vs your "dodgy" local plumber.

Meanwhile some Homecare contracts can be £30 a month! Thats a whole new boiler after 3-4 years!

Each to their own though.

Yorkie1

Thanks all, you've confirmed my thoughts exactly.

Dad died recently so I'm going through all of these matters with Mum. You're right about brand loyalty etc. Dad refused to move off the standard tariff with B Gas :eek: and refused to leave B Gas because of this misunderstanding about the Homecare.

I've now got Mum onto a lower fixed tariff with BG but am encouraging her to think of switching to Scottish Power's far lower fixed tariff - she'd save nearly £300 against BG standard tariff, and £250 against the BG fixed. Shocking.

As for the Homecare, for myself I agree about whether to keep it on. But they've used it quite a few times over the years and had prompt responses. She's happy with the peace of mind (replacement boiler comments acknowledged!) but one step at a time ... !

CashStrapped

Scottish power is one of the "big six" that does have good tariffs at the moment. They usually bring a new cheaper tariff out towards the end of each month (this may not carry on forever obviously). SP allow you to hop onto another of their own tariffs without any penalty.

I am with scottish power, and have tariff hopped nearly every month since I joined them.

While I have had no issues at all with SP, their online service and tariff hops have worked perfectly for me, many people have had major issues with them. Their ratings are very low at the moment due to all the problems. I have not experience any but many people have.

Ovo have competitive tariffs at the moment and do not have penalties for leaving but they are a bit more restrictive when hopping onto other OVO tariffs. They have a very good customer service record at the moment.

Swings and roundabouts I guess....as long as you get the gas and electricity !