Boiler broke down after British Gas service

OdinsBeard

Hi guys.

I didn't find an existing thread for this, however, if there is one, please refer me to it.

I took out a one off boiler service with british gas in September, when they were offering it cheap.

Luckily, it's been warm up until now so I didn't have to use the heating. When I did this week, the pressure on the boiler plummeted. I put it down to first use and topped it up. Same thing happened again later after the heating came on (Prior to the service, I'd mentioned a slight pressure issue to the service engineer who advised me to check for small leaks in the pipes).

A quick Google led me to the expansion vessel being the likely cause, which should be checked and signed off by the engineer during service. I contacted bg customer service, who basically said "so what" and offered me a one off repair or cover agreement. 

When I proffered that the expansion vessel should've been checked and signed off as in good working order, I was given some nonsense about it being a basic service and not being able to anticipate every issue, to which I said there was no option for an enhanced service to spot all these defects so saying it was a basic service was dishonest, and if you took your car in for a service, you'd be given advisory issue notification to get it fixed. All the while every response back from the agent included options to repair or for cover.

Do I have any recourse for complaint and getting them to fix the vessel for no cost, or am I stuffed? In which case, is a service actually worth the paper it's written on?

Thanks in advance for any constructive comments. 

I also have screenshot of the conversation as it was on whatsapp. 

Ayr_Rage

If the heating was left in a working condition after the service then you have no claim against BG.

Have you had it confirmed by a heating engineer that the expansion vessel is faulty or are you self diagnosing the fault with the help of Mr G?

Loss of pressure can be down to several causes and you've already admitted that the system was losing pressure prior to the service so any small leaks may have become big leaks.

mmmmikey

Hi - have you had the expansion vessel checked and established with certainty that is the cause? Are you talking about an expansion vessel that is part of the boiler, or a separate one that is external to the boiler? Unless you are absolutely certain that the problem lies with the boiler itself and within the scope of the service you're probably unlikely to to get very far with a complaint, unless they are prepared to do some sort of goodwill thing. There's definitely some good information available online but there's also lot's of misleading stuff so I'd treat what you've read on Google as a starting point for investigation rather than a diagnosis. (And welcome to the forum :-) )

Edit - looks like I crossed posts with @Ayr_Rage but we seem to be going down much the same line of thought...

thebullsback

A bit like vehicle MOT a pass is a pass at that moment in time..
Only Two things can cause loss of water  with a combi Boiler 
Water leaking from pipework or leaking from a Boiler component .
Pipework can be difficult to check as some pies may be boxed in .
Loss of water within the Boiler is easier .
Also check your Pressure Relief valve is not passing water as these can cause loads of problems .
Locate your PRV outlet pipe and if its damp or dripping this may be the culprit. 

OdinsBeard

Thanks guys. It just stings a little, which is a given, and I didn't want to just plough into a complaint because I was annoyed.
I guess I'm arranging an engineer call out. I might go local though, I've had enough of british gas for the time being.

Eldi_Dos

@OdinsBeard

You ask if a service is worth it,I would say it is, as a important part of the service is checking that the flue is working and flue gases are being discharged correctly.