Warning re 24/7 Home Rescue

{Text removed by MSE Forum Team} Three engineer callouts over the period of a month (each time the engineer hasn't been able to fix, and we've needed to take another day off work to wait in). This time, I've had to do a Saturday so as not to lose any more work time. Was given an 8am-8pm slot and told to call on the day to get a better idea of arrival time.

Called Saturday morning and waited 53minutes to get through, just to be told they don't know what engineer is coming out and that I just need to wait. I would get a call 30mins before he arrives. 6pm - still no call. A 38minute hold before getting back through to the same operator and I'm told the same thing. "Definitely coming today between 8am-8pm, he will call before coming."

Well, guess what, NO engineer. I'm livid. Another wasted day and freezing my ar se off in a house without heating.

UPDATE:

Further to our no-show on Saturday, we had the engineer out today (another day off work) to be told the faulty gas valve can't be replaced and that the whole boiler would be deemed 'Beyond Economical Repair'. In other words, not their problem. A month without heating, to be told that it's not going to be fixed.

I have just had a third-party gas-safe engineer come over to look at the boiler. He said, quite categorically, that it's nothing to do with the valve, as gas is clearly getting into the combustion chamber. In fact, within 5 minutes, he used the Manufacturers' manual to isolate the problem to a faulty spark generator and ignitor. Two parts, less than £100, and a five minute fix. I'm livid!

I've called 247 back to explain, just to be rudely told that "we won't go against and engineers' report, if you disagree with our engineer's findings, you'll need to submit a complaint". Meanwhile, I'll just sit here and freeze my backside off?! I asked to speak to a manager, told no - he's busy, so I asked to wait. Was told she had other customers to help and that "My manager won't do anything different, and will back me up. You'll just need to fill out the online complaint form". Not giving up easily, I demanded a manager call me back, and was told that he would, within 2hours. I'm not holding my breath.........

{Text removed by MSE Forum Team}

I will email you now.

However, for transparency on the forums, it is not beyond economical repair. The parts required to fix it are less than £100. (Alpha 1.018162 and 3.018304). Third-party engineer said the boiler is otherwise in excellent condition.

Complaints are not my immediate concern - getting my boiler fixed is. To fill in one of your webforms is not going to resolve the issue today, tomorrow, or anytime soon. Speaking to a human being, should. To disregard all verbal or email complaints is beyond staggering... (Worth noting, too, that I was never sent the link for the complaint form either, as I was told on the phone...)

Any views?

It's a long read.

Susan McKeown

Trustpilot.

Omg where do I start... we have had a contract with 24/7 for 12 months. I received a phone call two weeks ago offering me a service on the boiler. They also offered me, for £35 ....the option to have an inhibitor applied. I agreed and paid out the £35. Engineer arrived on Friday the 26th of October. Nice lady. checked the boiler, then applied inhibitor to a radiator as she said she was unable to put it into the boiler. She then went back to the boiler and replaced the cover. May i just point out that the boiler had been working absolutely perfectly up until the point the engineer arrived, and we had hot water and heat with no problem. As the engineer left my property she stated that the boiler was in perfect working order with no problems whatsoever and that there was years left in it. Her words...not mine. 10 minutes after she had left the property the boiler started to make a strange sound. There was also a flashing on my hot water light. I assumed it was simply making a noise because she had taken the cover off. I decided to monitor over the weekend and to call them on monday and discuss. By Monday morning we have no hot water and no heating!!! I rang 24/7 and was promised that an engineer would contact me the next day. Nobody did.and so on Wednesday morning I contacted them again and was told engineer will be in touch with me same day. Sure enough an Engine contacted me on Wednesday afternoon. He came to the property at 3 p.m. and stayed around 10 minutes. He got the system working again and left. 10 minutes after he had left it was not working again. I rang him on his mobile and asked him "can you come back"and he told me I should not be ringing him on his mobile and for me to contact the Office. I contacted 24/7 and was told they would make it a priority the next day to have an engineer out again. I've waited all day today for somebody to phone and nobody has. I have rung 3 different numbers Eventually I spoke to a manager in technical department, he told me that having looked at the second engineer's report, the boiler is Condemned as the fan is too badly damaged. I could not believe this. My central heating system was in perfect working order until the service engineer came to our property!!!! She had said nothing of a faulty fan!!! It is obvious that something has been done during the service. After ringing another 2 departments this afternoon, and relaying my story for the 9th time, and nearly crying/screaming in frustration..i eventually spoke to a manager...guy called aaron. Aaron, the manager at technical department, offered me a new boiler as he said it would be too expensive to fix my old one!!He said we could have a new boiler for £599 labour charge only and the boiler would be free "we dont give free boilers away all the time you know,". He said. All seemed a bit fishy and a bit too good to be true to me...so i asked him to email me all of this so that I could check it over. I have just received the email and what aaron failed to mention...is that there is also a £40 per month 7 YEAR CONTRACTED service charge!!! lol!!!!!. So.. the boiler is not actually free, it ends up costing me over £3,000. {Edited by Forum Team}!!!!!! I am now having to pay for another plumber to come to the property tomorrow and have a look at what damage has been done AND WHAT I CAN DO TO RECTIFY IT.
i will be seeking advice from solicitors as I have read on MSE forums that I am not the first person this has happened to. And there are numerous scarily similar tales!!! can I also point out that I have a child with special needs, autism and wets the bed most nights she has been without heat and hot water for what will be 5 days tomorrow .....Absolutely disgraceful. Do not use this company at any cost. thankfully I have not lost too much..But I will stick to British gas in future ..
even if it's twice the price
***** UPDATE TO THIS SAGA
Unable to go any further without heat or hot water, we decided to bite the bullet and pay for an independent plumber. Rang him on Thursday night after reading all the horrendous reviews about 34/7 HOME RESCUE on MSE forum, property tribes, trustpilot etc etc. He came out within 24 hours of our call. ( Far better service than we had from 24/7, to whom we have paid a monthly fee for this service!!! What a joke.)
He took a look at the system,showed us that the fan was sticking, could not really explain why or how this has happened since the engineer had been out as it had worked perfectly well until she came. He replaced the fan in 10 minutes, at a total cost of £140.
Yes £140....which included his labour!!! My boiler is now working as it was before the original engineer came, lovely hot water and heat throughout the house. No noises ...no flashing lights. I am APPALLED....LIVID...that 24/7 told me my boiler was Condemned. What is that telling you about either the engineers that visit your property or, the call handlers and so-called managers!!....Who then try and sweettalk you into having a new boiler with 7 year contract and labour charge that adds up to £3959!!! I have been lied to...quite simply lied to and {Edited by Forum Team}. And I am not letting this go until whoever has lied to me is brought to justice. It's not about the money I have spent over the past 12 months, it's not about the £140 that I have spent on another plumber...this is about a disgraceful service, being without a working system for 4 days when I have paid for cover, and quite frankly and best of all, being told i have an economically unrepairable "condemned," boiler.