Gas leak we were not advised about

Netexporter

BennyKind said:

Just to clarify im not blaming the fitter for the leak and I'm not expecting him to pay for a new cooker but surely the fitter is employed by the energy company who I have been paying too much money to for 2 years. Why does everyone care so much that I want to get back some money for the gas I havnt been using for 2 years which I wouldn't have used if I had just been told in the firdt place that there was a leak! 

The energy supplier (and pipeline operator) is only liable up to and including the meter. After that is your responsibility. Same with water and gas.

ecraig

You’re going to struggle to find a mainstream like Rangemaster or Leisure to fit a 70cm gap. Try Ilfra or Ilve as they should do a full gas range in that size.
But, I’m sure your replacement cooker is going to be significantly more energy efficient - unless you can take this time to get an electrical supply to open up your options to a dual fuel offering. 

M25

If your washing machine gets a leak and there's no warranty just scrap it and buy a new one.

Good recycling and it'll save you money employing engineers to tell you something you already know. It's broke.

I'd probably do the same with a 2nd hand scabby old cooker.

MultiFuelBurner

A well known marketplace has some very good priced gas cookers available.

born_again

BennyKind said:

Looking for some advise on something please.

Me and my wife moved in to a new house in August 2021. We wanted to change to a smart meter so an engineer came out to change the gas meter that is outside the back door, this was in February 2022.

Fast forward to yesterday, 12th November 2023 and I could smell gas around our cooker. We called gas emergency number and had someone come out and make the house safe. He confirmed that there was a leak behind the cooker with his beeping machine and that was the only place it was detected. He then went to the gas meter outside to take some measurements. Whilst in there he found a note from the previous engineer that fitted the meter to say that he had a drop in ppm(!?. Not sure if that is correct unit) in 2 minutes which was the same as what the engineer was having last night suggesting that it was the same leak. 

The emergency gas engineer suggested that we have probably had the same leak the whole time. This is slightly concerning that this whole time we were not aware that we had a gas leak despite the previous engineer taking a measurement that would suggest we do! Should we not have been advised to do something about it?

So we had a gas safe engineer come and take a look at the cooker today and after a couple of hours and £266 later it turns out that there was two leaks in the cooker which is not repairable. (it was quite old).

So I am glad that we are all still alive and the house hasnt exploded but I cant help but feel someone should be held accountable for this that could have been so much worse. Not only that but we must have been paying too much on our gas bills for not far off 2 years. 

I fully understand that the leak is probably our responsibility, as it is out appliance and inside our property, but if we had known about it we would have done something about it at the time. 

I'm almost definitely going to bring it up with our energy supplier but I just wondered if anyone had any advise about claiming back the financial loss and how far I should be taking this matter? 

Plus I got to get a new cooker! 

Lived in house 27 months. 6 months later get meter changed.  So then 21 months after meter changed you smell gas. But note left about drop in ppm. If that was a issue you would have smelled gas long before.

Could it be that general wear & tear of the cooker is the issue.

Old cooker with 2 leaks, no mention of just what or where they are? How long had the cooker been there?

Just buy a new cooker. No reason that anyone else should pay.

EssexHebridean

BennyKind said:

Just to clarify im not blaming the fitter for the leak and I'm not expecting him to pay for a new cooker but surely the fitter is employed by the energy company who I have been paying too much money to for 2 years. Why does everyone care so much that I want to get back some money for the gas I havnt been using for 2 years which I wouldn't have used if I had just been told in the firdt place that there was a leak! 

Hold on though - your OP said that it was only on the 12th when you smelled gas, this alerted you to an issue, and that was when the leak was detected. If the leak has been ongoing for 2 years, why would you only have recently smelled the gas? Allowing for what you have said about the cooker, it sounds far more likely that it's age means that a part or parts have simply failed recently, not that the same leak has been ongoing for 2 years but you've only just started being able to smell it! And I appreciate what your gas fitter said, but it sounds like either it was a throwaway comment without him really thinking about it, OR he didn't realise how old the card was, OR he was mischief making! 

By the way, if you have gas central heating as well as a gas cooker, you should definitely be having a regular inspection - at the least a boiler service - and make sure you also have a CO alarm.