This is a report from the Guardian Newspaper, for verification go to:

 

http://money.guardian.co.uk/utilities/story/0,,1927634,00.html

 

British Gas pays up for more “ terrible” service

 

Miles Brignall reports on the pensioner told that she had to shell out £5’000 for a central heating system fault – only to find that it cost only £231 to repair.

 

Saturday October 21, 2006

 

A pensioner who was told she needed to spend £5,000 on a new heating system by British Gas staff has accepted £374 in compensation from the company after an independent plumber fixed the problem – and charged her just £231.

 

Janet Lowther, from Haywood, Lancashire, asked British Gas for her money back after experiencing “terrible service” that she says could have resulted in her spending large sums unnecessarily.

 

Her problems started last December when she called out British Gas to fix a problem with her boiler. “No one turned up at the first appointment. When they did, the engineer quickly diagnosed a faulty pump.” she says.

 

Lowther handed over £198 for the new pump and other work, and also signed up for the company’s Homecare heating insurance. But the problems persisted. When she called out a second engineer, she was told her system needed a “poweflush” that would cost her £440.

 

However, just before this was due to happen, yet another British Gas member of staff visited her house and told her not to bother as she needed a new boiler. “A subsequent sales visit stated that a £5,000 replacement was required. The man who came round offered a £2,000 discount if I agreed that evening. I felt pressurised.” says the widow, who lives alone.

 

At that point she decided to get a second opinion and called out a local independent engineer (Acorn Gas Services), who blamed a faulty valve. “He changed the valve and drained a couple of radiators at a cost of £231. It now works perfectly.” she says.

 

Millions rely on British Gas to service and maintain their central heating and hot water system. They typically pay £192 a year to the firm, which covers them for call-outs and parts. The price is higher in London.

 

Guardian Money has highlighted several similar stories concerning the Homecare products- many concerning elderly customers. Last winter thousands were left without heating as the company could not cope with demand. Others have complained about the calibre and competence of some engineers, while others have said their older boilers have been condemned because the engineers could not obtain spare parts. Independent plumbers have found them easily.

 

The company has also been accused of using Homecare policies as a way to sell new overpriced boilers. Its engineers get a £10 bonus for making appointments for sales colleagues.

 

A spokesman for British Gas says: “We made a mistake in not advising Mrs Lowther on our first visit to consider replacing her 21-year old boiler. Given an ageing heating system with two radiators not working, most likely due to a build up of sludge, we should have recommended a new energy efficient boiler. A new installation would have included a powerflush, which is the best way of removing sludge.”

 

A new boiler would be the best long-term solution, otherwise, there is an increased risk of breakdowns.

 

Guardian Money gets many complaints about Homecare, so we advise that people spend the £192 on the services of a trusted independent plumber. Lowther’s plumber quoted her £45 for an annual inspection.

 

Flushed with success?

 

One of the add-on products that British Gas engineers frequently tell customers they need is a powerflush. To those uninitiated in the internal workings of their central heating system, this involves using chemicals to wash out, at high pressure, all the gunk that can build up in a heating system.

 

It is very much flavour of the month among the entire plumbing community, not least because it is very profitable. Charges start at around £300, but can be as high as £800. British Gas charges £440 for smaller systems.

 

Kevin Wellman, operations director at the Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering, says powerflushing does have a role to play in modern systems.

 

Twenty years ago boilers were much bigger and heavier and less prone to corrosion. Today’s boilers are lighter and may require flushing out to improve efficiency. Noisy systems and radiators not heating up at the bottom can be a sign that they require cleaning out. However, this can also fall into the ‘cultivated work’ category. Spurious, in other words.

 

Several Guardian readers have reported being told by plumbers that their system needs a flush, only for another to come along and say it is unnecessary. A second opinion should always be sought in such circumstances. Some engineers have been quoted in debates on websites as saying that just one in ten powerflushes are actually necessary.

 

Wellman says the best engineers invite the homeowner to examine the material removed from the system. He suggests consumers not offered this evidence should ask for it.

 

Meanwhile, there is nothing to stop a British Gas customer who is told they need a powerflush from getting it done by a cheaper rival.

 

OUR ENGINEERS COMMENTS

 

On the original story about Mrs Lowther’s boiler, the problem with two radiators not getting hot is usually because the system needs balancing correctly, if all the other radiators are working it’s unlikely to be the pump which is at fault, so why did British Gas change it.

As regards the British Gas spokesman saying that old boilers are more prone to breaking down than new ones, he’s talking absolute rubbish, modern boilers break down on a regular basis and changing an old boiler for a new one, purely because it’s old, would be the worst mistake you ever made. You would never recoup the cost of installing a new boiler by saving on your energy consumption, even if you installed it yourself.

If you read the comments from the Institute of Plumbing, the spokesman admits that new boilers are not as robust as their older counterparts.

In respect of powerflushing, the article says it all, they are rarely necessary and anyone who is only remotely handy can clean their own system for around £30, using the information supplied by us.

© 2006 Heating & Plumbing Solutions

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