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Plumbers become very picky about which jobs they do at this time of year. Their choice is based on simple economics. If they ask for a call-out charge on every job, in addition to their hourly rate, they can seriously boost their winter earnings by doing several quick fixes rather than one long, complicated job, such as repairing a boiler.

 

It is this shortage of plumbers that has fuelled the growth in insurance for boilers, central heating and pipes in the home. Several companies now offer policies that cover the cost of the repair and maintenance of your central heating system.

 

Getting caught out

There is no better promotion for this type of policy than having a boiler breakdown when you are not covered. Finance manager Richard Henderson, from Berkshire, had just this experience. Richard was at home with his young family just before Christmas when their boiler seized up. “We were expecting a house full of guests and suddenly we had no heating or hot water,” he says. “Trying to get someone out proved extremely difficult. When I eventually managed to get someone from the Yellow Pages, it also turned out to be very expensive.”

Richard decided that he did not want to get caught out again and signed up for British Gas cover. “I had called British Gas out a couple of times for small repairs and appreciated its immediate response, and the fact that there are no extra costs to pay.”

 

Be honest

Some providers, however, have been known to accept customers for policies when their boilers are too old to be covered. You need to be honest about the make, model and age of your boiler to get the correct price and cover. Regular inspections are usually made as part of the policy, but if your boiler blows up before the inspection, you could be left without cover

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While you will be most keen to insure an old boiler, think twice about taking out cover on a boiler that has seen better days, as Richard Mason, a director at Moneysupermarket.com, discovered to his cost. “Eighteen months ago we moved house, and I looked at the boiler and decided to take out insurance with British Gas. I had it serviced, but as soon as something went wrong, the company told me it was obsolete and could not be repaired. It’s cost me £4,000 to replace it with a condenser boiler.” 

 

Helping hand

Should you need to replace an old boiler, find out if you can get help. Grants for replacing old-fashioned boilers and other energy-efficiency measures may be available from the government, your local authority, or even your gas or electricity supplier. You can search for available grants on the Energy Saving Trust’s website at est.org.uk/myhome.

 

Cover and costs

If you want insurance, you need to make sure you know what’s covered – price and cover vary hugely and many have limitations. For instance, British Gas’s cover – now called HomeCare – which starts at £16 a month – doesn’t cover taps, so if they do need attention you’ll have to either pay a British Gas plumber or find an alternative. It will replace boilers that cannot be repaired, but only if they are less than seven years old.

 

Meanwhile, Powergen’s HeatCover charges a monthly fee, based on the type and age of boiler, which starts at £14.99 a month. However, with this plan you can incur extra costs if the engineer has to call outside normal working hours.

 

HomeServe provides nPower’s Gas Boiler Breakdown Cover, starting at £6.99 a month. This only covers the boiler, and an annual service by an engineer will cost an extra £5.71 a month. You can pay to include other plumbing or household emergencies in your cover, but radiator problems are excluded. In addition, the boiler will not be replaced if it cannot be ‘economically’ repaired.

 

HomeCall+ is another option that charges £13.95 a month and includes an annual boiler service, as well as central heating and plumbing breakdown cover of up to £500 per claim. This might not be enough to cover a new boiler should you need one.

 

Shop around

So, before buying a policy, it is essential that you shop around, rather than just reacting to a bad experience and buying the first policy you’re offered. Check the policy details carefully, and pay particular attention to the small print, as this will explain when extra charges can be added, or work excluded, from cover. Only then can you work out whether the premium is worth paying.

 

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• Institute of Plumbers
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