Choosing a boiler plan with Baxi

w00519773

I have a Potterton Powermax HE 85 CP boiler (insalled in summer 2006).  It is a combi boiler - the hot water is on all year round, however the central heating is only on in winter.  At the end of January 2019; I switched my boiler on for the first time since the previous winter and it caused an error.  I had emergency cover on my home insurance, which covered the cost (the repair and care plan on a 12 month contract for £27.99 PCM) because the boiler would not switch on i.e. no hot water and central heating.  The Baxi (use Domestic and General) plumber attended in February 2019 and did the following:

1) Replaced diverter valve
2) Recharged pressure tank
3) Replaced pressure release valve

In my opinon, t appears the diverter valve will have to be replaced again after just 18 months.  Baxi tell me I have three options:

1) Repair and Care Plan: Costs £27.99 PCM for 12 months and does not include radiators.  Baxi (via Domestic and General) will immediately visit my property and repair any issues with the boiler.
2) Platinum plan: Costs £19.50 PCM for 12 months and includes radiators.  This plan assumes that the boiler is in good order so apparently I would have to wait one month before calling out an engineer.
3) Gold plan: Costs £17.50 PCM for 12 months and does not include radiators.  This plan assumes that the boiler is in good order so apparently I would have to wait one month before calling out an engineer.
I have always had an issue with one of my radiators - it does not heat up as much as the others.  Therefore option two seems to be right for me, however it does not appear to make sense i.e. pay less and get more.  Baxi say as long as I wait a month, then it does not matter what condition the boiler is in now! It is only October so I am tempted to wait for one month.  Grateful for thoughts as this does not seem right.

Sandtree

w00519773 said:

  Grateful for thoughts as this does not seem right.

Sales guys wanting their commission and somewhat able to get away with it because you are talking about a service plan rather than insurance (in most cases) which is not as highly regulated an industry.

Havent read the T&Cs of the plans you are referring to but from what you say the system must be in good working order at the time of taking the plan out, as yours isnt that means were you to buy it today the plan would not be valid as you've failed to meet one of the conditions. In theory you'd need to get the boiler and radiator fixed before the plan becomes valid and you would then be covered for any future issues.

Effectively the sales guy has said to commit fraud, buy it today, claim everything was fine at the time and low and behold the thing broke one month later. Its not a new trick, a lot of customers work out to do it themselves when their equipment breaks without the help of a sales guy. How the claims people see the matter may be very different to the sales guy.

In theory, you have a reasonable argument as you were explicitly advised by the sales guy to do this, the downside is enforcing that may be difficult as it not being insurance means your only escalation point is the courts if they don't stand by what the sale guy said or if there conveniently is no recording to prove what the sales guy said. You would imagine they'll say their sales staff don't encourage you to commit fraud against themselves.

TrickyDicky101

I thought Combi boilers only lasted 10 - 15 years?  Sounds to me like you should be planning the replacement rather than trying to keep this old goat running.

w00519773

Sandtree said:

w00519773 said:

  Grateful for thoughts as this does not seem right.

Sales guys wanting their commission and somewhat able to get away with it because you are talking about a service plan rather than insurance (in most cases) which is not as highly regulated an industry.

Havent read the T&Cs of the plans you are referring to but from what you say the system must be in good working order at the time of taking the plan out, as yours isnt that means were you to buy it today the plan would not be valid as you've failed to meet one of the conditions. In theory you'd need to get the boiler and radiator fixed before the plan becomes valid and you would then be covered for any future issues.

Effectively the sales guy has said to commit fraud, buy it today, claim everything was fine at the time and low and behold the thing broke one month later. Its not a new trick, a lot of customers work out to do it themselves when their equipment breaks without the help of a sales guy. How the claims people see the matter may be very different to the sales guy.

In theory, you have a reasonable argument as you were explicitly advised by the sales guy to do this, the downside is enforcing that may be difficult as it not being insurance means your only escalation point is the courts if they don't stand by what the sale guy said or if there conveniently is no recording to prove what the sales guy said. You would imagine they'll say their sales staff don't encourage you to commit fraud against themselves.

I asked the sales chap to write our conversation in the notes and he did.  I called back the next day and spoke to another sales chap who read out what the previous sales chap said (and agreed with it).  I then spoke to a supervisor who had the same stance.  It doesn't make sense to me.