Soldato
Rather put money away each month in case of repair needed. Boilers can last years with parts still readily available. BG just say rubbish to get you to buy a new boiler off them at an inflated price.
British gas homecare 300 - worth carrying on?
- Thread starter cyber69
- Start date
Soldato
Exactly, I don't put money away per say, but I could buy a new boil if needed.
I've no idea what boiler I have (might check) but it's never gone wrobg to my knowledge. Used to get serviced yearly as the house was rented but we've not done it for s couple of years so might have to. Again, have a brother in law who can do it.
Edit, just checked, is a Potterton suprima... Never gone wrong anyway!
/touch wood!
I've no idea what boiler I have (might check) but it's never gone wrobg to my knowledge. Used to get serviced yearly as the house was rented but we've not done it for s couple of years so might have to. Again, have a brother in law who can do it.
Edit, just checked, is a Potterton suprima... Never gone wrong anyway!
/touch wood!
Last edited:
Caporegime
We have used it quite often, as we have an Ideal boiler which is a load of ****. The main board keeps going which at a cost of over £300 for just the part has worked out well over the years. Plumbers aren't cheaper at £70/hour you could easily burn through money if you've got a dodgy boiler.
Associate
Trying to get someone in to repair our boiler mid winter proved impossible which left BG as our last resort a few years ago. In all fairness they had someone out the same day once we'd signed up and paid them a one off £100.However, in our case, this proved to be the start of a total of 18 visits in a two month period. The cause of these was three fold. We rarely had the same 'engineer' twice, the degree of knowledge varied significantly between each engineer,and each visit would need to be followed by a further visit 3 days later while they sourced the part.
They did eventually fix the problem, but only once they'd thrown just about every conceivable part at the boiler. (A good thing long term possibly)
Some of the engineers seemed to have some inkling as to what they were dealing with, but most relied solely on a series of flowcharts on their laptop. I would imagine its pot luck across the country in terms of whether you get a competent engineer or not.
Is it worth it? You could argue the same for any insurance you shell out hundreds of pounds for each year and never claim.
If you can find yourself a reliable and competent local engineer, then I would put the money aside each month and treat yourself at the end of the year if you don't need to use it.
They did eventually fix the problem, but only once they'd thrown just about every conceivable part at the boiler. (A good thing long term possibly)
Some of the engineers seemed to have some inkling as to what they were dealing with, but most relied solely on a series of flowcharts on their laptop. I would imagine its pot luck across the country in terms of whether you get a competent engineer or not.
Is it worth it? You could argue the same for any insurance you shell out hundreds of pounds for each year and never claim.
If you can find yourself a reliable and competent local engineer, then I would put the money aside each month and treat yourself at the end of the year if you don't need to use it.
Man of Honour
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Handy that they will fix it quickly and I know my dad has done well out of it with his dodgy boiler. Mine is pretty new and as the installer told me - don't bother with this or even servicing, it isn't needed on these new systems, just fix it as it is required. Of course I always put that money away for when it IS needed.
Soldato
It's like any insurance, some people win but most lose. If you have a good boiler then it's probably not worth it.
I've had it for one year and one call out, the first guy was rubbish and didn't fix the problem, the next guy was brilliant though.
The main reason I got the cover is because we have a newborn but I will most likely cancel after this coming winter.
I've had it for one year and one call out, the first guy was rubbish and didn't fix the problem, the next guy was brilliant though.
The main reason I got the cover is because we have a newborn but I will most likely cancel after this coming winter.
The question that needs to be asked is how important is your heating? If you could survive a period without it, either while you waited for an independent plumber to be available, or until you can cover a big bill depending on the size of it and your level of savings.
We have both young children and pensioners in our house, and hence need to keep things warm in winter. Home care means if something goes wrong, they come and fix it quickly, if they can't fix it quickly, they provide alternative heating until they can. That makes it worth it for our household, whether it is worth it for yours depends on that really.
We have both young children and pensioners in our house, and hence need to keep things warm in winter. Home care means if something goes wrong, they come and fix it quickly, if they can't fix it quickly, they provide alternative heating until they can. That makes it worth it for our household, whether it is worth it for yours depends on that really.
You can actually find a local plumber and ask to put them on a private retainer, then you'd get first dibs on their time.
At £320 a year I'd rather get an electric system installed in the attic and have it on standby, and have saved enough to replace the main boiler every 10 years just for giggles.
You are throwing money away on insurance when you could just solve the issue forever by having multiple backups.
Like I wouldn't pay money to insure my computer, I'd just have a spare ready to go.
At £320 a year I'd rather get an electric system installed in the attic and have it on standby, and have saved enough to replace the main boiler every 10 years just for giggles.
You are throwing money away on insurance when you could just solve the issue forever by having multiple backups.
Like I wouldn't pay money to insure my computer, I'd just have a spare ready to go.