Help needed after smart meter installation - boiler not working and energy company not helping

nspmartin

I'm at my wits end here. Hope some of you might be able to help me know what to do next. My gas and electricity company Bulb installed a smart meter at my house at the beginning of August, after they asked me to have it done. After the installation my boiler didn't work - the pilot light wouldn't turn on. The engineer doing the installation fled at the speed of light. I approached Bulb immediately to get them to pay for an engineer to investigate and fix whatever problem had been caused, but they said that I had to pay for the engineer and only if the report said the smart meter installation had definitely caused the problem would they pay for it. This seems pretty bad in itself - even if there were an underlying problem with the boiler, if it were unearthed by the installation of something I did because they asked, I think they should pay to fix it. But ever when we got someone to come and turn the boiler back on (they cleaned a couple of things), it didn't stay on after a couple of days. When the boiler was on the smart meter display stopped registering and gas, and when it went off again, the meter started registering gas again. Bulb won't help after multiple exchanges (phone and email) and I am banging my head against a brick wall. My boiler is old but was serviced in November and has been very reliable. I don't want to have to replace it now at short notice because of a smart meter installation that I only carried out because my energy company asked me to. I still have some time to wait before the 8 weeks necessary to approach the ombudsman are elapsed. And it's only because it happened in August that we are not well and truly screwed! Any advice appreciated.

JJ_Egan

This is Oil and LPG section .

< we got someone to come and turn the boiler back on (they cleaned a couple of things), it didn't stay on after a couple of days.>

Typical pilot light goes out as unit is old/ thermocouple is failing .

Cardew

Agree with the above. The gas would have been turned off to fit the meter, and hence pilot light will have gone out. It is a common occurance for the thermocouple* to fail and the pilot light not relight, or light and then go out soon after.

It is a very simple job for a gas fitter to change and the thermocouple itself only costs a couple of pounds. Surely the person you got in would have changed the thermocouple??

* the thermocouple ensures that the main gas valve on the boiler shuts off should the pilot light go out for any reason.

nspmartin

Thanks for your responses. The person I got in cleaned things inside but was able to light it again so didn't replace anything. There aren't replacement parts available for this boiler any longer, but do you think I should get the same person back again?

JJ_Egan

No but speak to him and see if he thinks it needs parts .

Gerry1

Something as simple as a thermocouple is probably still available generically.  It's just a good excuse to flog a new boiler.

Mister_G

Yes, I had to change one recently on my 37 year old Baxi back boiler.  No problem getting one from my local plumbers merchant for £8.

Cardew

Gas fitters normally carry several thermocouples. This is a generic example:

https://www.toolstation.com/universal-thermocouple/p64067?store=H6&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5IHo_qvN6wIVh7PtCh2BFAyqEAQYASABEgJ5wPD_BwE

jefaz07

Depends what type of boiler too. The TC’s above won’t fit on some older boilers. 

It may also be a gas valve issue. 

I don’t think the ombudsman will do anything...it’s a fairly common issue for companies that have to interrupt gas supplies as a matter of course. 

Unfortunately there is an underlying issue that was about to come to a head regardless. 

Newtalg14

British Gas ‘Smart Engineer Expert’ came to fit a smart meter. I gave into this after continuous badgering over the phone and by mail.
It was obvious from the start that he was more interested in finding fault with present installations than fitting a smart meter.
He was so scathing about my existing boiler that I actually asked him if he was on commission to sell new boilers, which he denied.
He seemed to think that scorching on the plaster where the balanced flue went through the wall was cause for concern and showed carbon monoxide spillage.
With no further checks her said he would put the new meter in, but cap it off, so the boiler could not be used.
He would get someone round to sort a replacement.
Although I protested, he said it was his duty to do this, as in his opinion the boiler was unsafe.
I immediately contacted the Gas Safe Registered plumber, who would normally deal with my plumbing and boiler needs.
After he had removed the cap on gas supply, and reconnected it to the boiler.
He then put a gas analyser in the flue, which the British Gas “expert” had failed to do.
The pilot light ignited straight away and burnt with a nice blue flame, and the main burners were the same.
The read out from the gas analyser showed that carbon monoxide was well below safe limits.
Things were exactly as he suspected but he would still have to charge me £65 for his call out.
He suggested I get onto British gas for my out of pocket expenses, caused by their ‘expert’.
So that I did not feel so bad about being taken as a gullible, silly old grey-haired pensioner he suggested I look at the internet.
There were hundreds in the same position as me and they even made a television programme about it.
After having the frighteners put on me by the British Gas individual, so I could sleep at night, he suggested for peace of mind, I should fit a carbon monoxide alarm. 
This hasn’t gone off after over a month with the boiler firing so it proves there was nothing wrong with the boiler it in the first place.
Is this British Gas's new way of selling boilers?

standuptobullies

Can I ask - How did this turn out?
Did you go to OFGEM (didn't Bulb go bust anyway- perhaps they deserved to if this was their service!)