Am I being taken for a ride?

[BByTheSea]

I could use some genuine advice please. I employed a plumber to check why my boiler was leaking. He has been 4 times now, replaced the expansion vessel, PRV, o rings and washers.
He messaged last week to say leak was fixed but when you put the hot water on it was making the radiators hot. He went back today to fix this, said he’d put a spring in the wrong way. Today I’ve found out that the only way I can get hot water is to have the heating on. It wasn’t This way before he stripped the boiler! He text me tonight saying he’ll call the boiler manufacturer Monday but that it’s more hassle than he wants or needs.
So my bill is at £700, and from what I can tell he’s made things worse not better. Am I being taken for a ride? Should he now be solving this on his own time or is he right to expect me to keep paying him for these visits? I don’t know how to proceed but can’t afford to keep paying huge amounts of money out to no avail. Any advice please?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

yep i would say since you could of had a fixed price repair from the manufacture for around the 300 mark and they would of fixed it (worst case)

hell your not that far off from the cost of a new boiler (just the boiler)

what boiler is it?

 

[BByTheSea]

It’s a Morco Feb-24ed. I just don’t know what to do next as I think he’ll get confrontational if I explain I expect him to put it right and not bill me beyond the boiler re-assemble.

 

[Stu-B]

Yes indeed, seems you’re getting twirled a little here.
What make is it and how old is it?

 

[BByTheSea]

It’s in a caravan which was manufactured in 2012, so 8 years old Morco Feb-24 Ed. how do you think I should approach this with him? thanks For your reply 😊

 

[ShaunCorbs]

It’s a Morco Feb-24ed. I just don’t know what to do next as I think he’ll get confrontational if I explain I expect him to put it right and not bill me beyond the boiler re-assemble.

i would of went for a new boiler sorry to say any more than 3 years on a morco is good most often there installed in caravans and are hell for spares you can only buy direct so take ages

 

[BByTheSea]

i would of went for a new boiler sorry to say any more than 3 years on a morco is good most often there installed in caravans and are hell for spares you can only buy direct so take ages

I did ask early on in the repair visit whether it was getting to the point where a new boiler would make sense but he didn’t think so. what would you do next if you were me please?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

i would want a full break down of costs and why all those parts needed changing

 

[BByTheSea]

Does anyone have any idea what might cause the hot water to run only when the heating is on?! Thanks in advance

 

[Stigster]

i would want a full break down of costs and why all those parts needed changing

Shaun is absolutely correct that is your next move. You don't need to worry too much what happens next yet (easy for me to say I know) just ask for that breakdown in costs first. You don't even need to go into any detail or start making complaints yet. You are perfectly within your rights to have a cost breakdown whatever the circumstances. If he gets difficult and you don't know what to do, please come back here and ask about the next steps. The folks here are great and if they can help you they will.

Anyone doing honest work can and should provide that information.

 

[BByTheSea]

Shaun is absolutely correct that is your next move. You don't need to worry too much what happens next yet (easy for me to say I know) just ask for that breakdown in costs first. You don't even need to go into any detail or start making complaints yet. You are perfectly within your rights to have a cost breakdown whatever the circumstances. If he gets difficult and you don't know what to do, please come back here and ask about the next steps. The folks here are great and if they can help you they will.

Anyone doing honest work can and should provide that information.

Here is his breakdown...

 

[Vee]

Does anyone have any idea what might cause the hot water to run only when the heating is on?! Thanks in advance

Diverter valve issue

 

[BByTheSea]

Diverter valve issue

Thank you, I’ll suggest that if he gets back in touch.
[automerge]1595838902[/automerge]

Thank you, I’ll suggest that if he gets back in touch.

This was all working as normal before he stripped the boiler to replace all the other things, could this have been damaged in the process? I don’t understand why this diverted valve now has a problem when it didn’t do this before.

 

[Vee]

Thank you, I’ll suggest that if he gets back in touch.
[automerge]1595838902[/automerge]

This was all working as normal before he stripped the boiler to replace all the other things, could this have been damaged in the process? I don’t understand why this diverted valve now has a problem when it didn’t do this before.

Yes it may. Although you may have difficulty getting admittance. It would have probably been more cost effective to replace.

 

[BByTheSea]

Yes it may. Although you may have difficulty getting admittance. It would have probably been more cost effective to replace.

Yes I know that now, but it’s too late. Trying to figure out the most cost effective way of getting my boiler back working now 😔

 

[BByTheSea]

Shaun is absolutely correct that is your next move. You don't need to worry too much what happens next yet (easy for me to say I know) just ask for that breakdown in costs first. You don't even need to go into any detail or start making complaints yet. You are perfectly within your rights to have a cost breakdown whatever the circumstances. If he gets difficult and you don't know what to do, please come back here and ask about the next steps. The folks here are great and if they can help you they will.

Anyone doing honest work can and should provide that information.

Hi,

A wee bit more advice if you don’t mind? He’s been back and now saying the micro switch needs replaced. Am I wasting my time/money and should I just get someone else in and take the cost of the repair off his invoice?

thank you so much!

 

[Aquarius]

Ask for an estimate/price of replacing this part. Then obtain 2 more quotes and go from there. If you feel this is too expensive, maybe (from a different engineer) obtain a quote for a new boiler?

 

[Jim09876]

My dude seems to be very thorough...too many plumbers will rip out a boiler in a heart beat. Did you not agree a price before work commenced? I find agreeing price & terms upfront usually does the trick.

 

[BByTheSea]

My dude seems to be very thorough...too many plumbers will rip out a boiler in a heart beat. Did you not agree a price before work commenced? I find agreeing price & terms upfront usually does the trick.

I agreed for the price of stripping down the boiler and the 2 hours labour to replace the washers and o rings that were causing the leak. Then he said the expansion vessel wasn’t operating correctly and in cleaning the valve inside it broke. So that needed replacing. Then he said the PRV was broken and that needed replacing. Now he is saying the micro switch is broken and that needs replacing... it was all working before he went he stripped it down to fix the leak. As someone without any plumbing knowledge I’m kind of at a tradesmen mercy when they say something needs doing. But had he told me all this was required at the outset there’s no way I would have agreed, I would have replaced it. It’s not been a straightforward x needs fixed and it’ll cost Y. I’m not going to allow him back now as every time he touches it something else breaks. I’m going to take advice from the CAB now. Thanks for the support everyone, when plumbing goes over your head it is helpful to have people willing to take the time to help you make sense of it. I truly appreciate it.

 

[Aquarius]

To be fair, I work on boilers nearly every day, and sometimes, something else can go wrong when you're replacing a broken part or fixing a leak, so he may not have known about the other parts needing to be replaced.

 

[Ric2013]

The breakdown seems fair enough, and my impression is he's being honest enough but struggling with the job, possibly doing quasi-engineering work that merits double the hourly rate he is charging, but not quite up to the task, so taking a long time or making mistakes in the process?

 

[Dr John Doolittle]

Are you considered to be vulnerable? If so, I'd contact trading standards, the police and the body that gives him the ability to self certify his work. This man needs removed as he either has no idea or is deliberately defrauding you (criminal hence the police)