Boiler servicing: have you paid over the odds for cover?

Your comment on burglar alarms interested me Vynor I fitted my own wiring in all the rooms with detectors and also window break detectors . I notice the new ones are radio controlled with no wiring but then you have the batteries to replace . Quite a few BT engineers in my day “moon lighted ” as alarm installers , used to get the parts wholesale . make sure the external box is good quality and change the battery every two or three years.

The only problem with installing and maintaining your own alarm system is that a system has to be professionally maintained (and maybe installed) to qualify for a discount on home insurance. I know this from experience. 🙁

Wavechange I know you like “going by the book ” but check into what or who qualifies to be called a “burglar alarm professional ” . I am streets ahead of them in technical knowledge and qualifications when it comes to electronics . I could at a pinch repair the old main unit PCB but now its a case of replacement of them , just like a “professional ” would do. Have you seen the training? no disrespect but you certainly dont need a degree in electronics they just get a bit of training nowadays in the basic essentials . I have wired up some very complicated systems in the past . This word “professional ” although sounding like Professor is by no stretch of the imagination in the same league as you and it is now applied with a vengeance to lots of jobs where the staff watch videos or go for a couple of weeks of training . I spent 5 years at an apprenticeship in all factory equipment repair and replacement . I qualified as a Hospital Engineer , I am qualified to work on fork lift trucks , I have decades of training in the old TV and radio repair and am conversant in building solid state equipment including top of the line Hi Fi power amps and the repair of them including all valve equipment , all types of electronic test gear and I have built my own distortion analyser testing down below -0.001 % THD . I have had extensive training with BT on all its old business electronic switching equipment at Otley , W, Yorks and Harrogate ( where HMG armed forces were trained ) and much more so even at my old age I would have no problem getting a “professional ” certificate to install/repair burglar equipment and yes I am up to date with the test equipment used to test them with , I also have equipment for testing digital circuits ( ex HMG forces ) . It is a case nowadays that a repair man goes in and changes a PCB , no unsoldering parts , too costly for the company .

When I have spoken to home insurers they have insisted on NACOSS (now NSI)-approved alarm companies to offer a discount. Before house and car alarms were sold to the public, I made my own, including making my own fibreglass circuit boards and hand-soldered the components. Happy days, but it has been a hobby rather than a living for me.

Meanwhile back on boiler servicing, Which? has found some of the workmanship is poor and some checks may be overlooked.

You are absolutely right about inspection, John. Hopefully the householder will check that hand-operated valves do close and are not showing any sign of leakage, but it’s one thing that a service engineer should check. They should also look at concentration of corrosion inhibitor in the system and drain a little water from a downstairs radiator to look for evidence of corrosion.

I noticed that yesterday’s Daily Mail splashed its front page with news that insurance companies will from now on have to state the previous premium on renewal notifications and that this was a direct result of their campaign. I was a bit taken aback because I thought Which? had rather a lot to do with raising this issue and pressing for the regulations that have just taken effect. I won’t deny that the DM might have added its weight to the campaign but surely they got it from Which? . . . or is my memory failing me? No mention of Which’s efforts, of course.

I have my boiler serviced once a year, on its anniversary, by an independent plumber. That costs around £60. It is probably necessary for your house insurance to cover any consequent incident, but sensible to keep it functioning properly .

You never know when it might breakdown – if only you could. A relationship with a decent local firm has paid dividends for me. Last year the boiler banged and thumped and we suspected air in the system. The plumber came the next morning; fortunately the boiler played up again, and it turned out to be a pump that was beginning to seize causing the water to boil.

In the 8 years since the boiler was installed I’ve spent around £300 on servicing, £72 on replacing the boiler syphon, plus non-boiler items in the central heating circuit – new circulating pump and new condensate lift pump around £300. So around £95 a year overall. The average contract costs around £243 (Which?) with the best rated being Worcester at £198. A contribution may be made if a boiler is beyond economical repair. So I’m £720 better off to date.

Whilst Which? do not award “best buys” they do rate service contracts, helpfully, for those who choose what many see as pricey peace of mind. Handy for those not confident at organising help independently, sorting out the lottery of a decent plumber, for example – and there are lots of those. For example:

Which? verdict:The best servicing contract, according to our survey
Brand score: 77%
We’ve rated Worcester Bosch’s boiler cover in our annual satisfaction survey, based on the experiences of its customers. Worcester Bosch offers only one contract and it’s available only to those with Worcester boilers, so how did its customers rate it?

PROS A servicing contract can provide peace of mind, and remove the chance of high one-off bills.
CONS Our research shows that only 3% would be better off with a servicing contract compared to paying for repairs on an ad hoc basis and an annual service. The vast majority will be better saving their money for a rainy day, rather than giving it to a boiler insurance company.
Worcester Bosch tops our boiler cover survey for the sixth year running, with a customer satisfaction score of 77%. The company received excellent ratings for customer service, repair response times and ease of arranging an annual service.

With an annual cost of £198, slightly less than Which? members’ average spend – £243 – on boiler cover, it was also rated well for value for money.

Normally your insurance requires you to have had your heating installation checked every year should you make a claim because of a failure. Mine requires evidence that it has been done within 15 months. However I think at least for your own safety it is worth a check to ensure combustion is taking place correctly.

Thats a good point Vince , you are lucky I just recently paid over £300 to British Gas for the same thing and its only for the 2 star service not the 3 star.

I have the two star service with British Gas and, off the top of my head, I think the annual charge is £145, and ours is a big system with quite a lot of apparatus to go wrong and twenty radiators to feed.

?????- John . I better check this out. I couldn’t get any info off BG official website very obstructive in volunteering info and they track you . Went to another site , charges are based on the number of call-outs (breakdown history ) when determining the charges for the following year and quote- repairs to a central heating system are not covered