Boiler service - invoice has additional hourly rate?

[Daggerpie]

I've recently has my oil boiler serviced, have used the same company who I've used for several years, it's normally under £100 inc nozzle change/VAT etc

Just has the invoice through and this year it's coming out at £141.00 (basically over 40% increase) for a basic service. I dropped them an email and they've got back to me saying they've had a slight price increase (from £68+vat to £75+vat) which I've got no problem with at all. But, in addition, this year they have charged an additional half hour labour charge (£27.50+vat) on top as he was here for 1hr 25mins total and apparantly that extra 25mins is now chargable on top of their set service cost!

I have double checked the paperwork I received before service (the one that gets me to call to make booking) and sure enough they quote all their set service charges as having a slight increase (now £75.00+vat in my case) but in small print further down it does say "Visits lasting longer than 1 hour may incur an additional charge".

Is this the norm, surely a set price service whether it takes 30mins or 3 hrs is a set price? I don't know how long it takes, in fact, I made him a cup of tea and even have a little chat which annoys me even more!

Any thought gents?

[No_Idea]

Seems off to me, really they need to make this clear in their pricing and not hide it in their T&C's.

Mine has always been a set price although he is only here for 15-20 mins (£75!!).

Guess he won't be getting a cup of tea next time

[PositronicRay]

No_Idea said:

Seems off to me, really they need to make this clear in their pricing and not hide it in their T&C's.

Mine has always been a set price although he is only here for 15-20 mins (£75!!).

Guess he won't be getting a cup of tea next time

Or send them a tea bill.

[Daggerpie]

PositronicRay said:

Or send them a tea bill.

You jest, but the whole principle of it annoys me that much that did cross my mind!

I wanted to check peoples opinions first to see if this sort of thing is the normal nowadays or are they just taking the p1$$. I imagine a lot of "older" people would just pay the bill regardless, thats the sort of thing my OAP Mother would do saying "Ohh I don't mind, he was such a lovely man"..

[MattyD803]

Certainly worth querying it with them, its a completely fair question. A set price is a set price, particularly considering you've proof of that job being done in a "set" time on previous occasions, for a 'set' price.

If they are funny, pay it, (I mean it has been a funny year for all - it might just help them out if they are a small local firm) - but just make it clear that you'll be taking your business elsewhere in future.

[abzmike]

At least he didn't charge you travelling time.

[anonymous-user]

I can see why you are annoyed. A set price for a service, is a set price for a service!

I would be querying it, and telling them that unless they knock it back to the originally quoted amount, you will be taking your business elsewhere.

For comparison, my boiler service usually costs about £80.

[Sheepshanks]

If these are they guys you call when the boiler breaks down then I guess you don't want to fall out with them!

I'd be miffed if he hadn't made it clear that some extra / unexpected work made it go beyond the standard service charge.

[Bobtherallyfan]

Sound pretty fair to me.....our service takes about 45 mins normally for which we pay about £80. If we want any additional checks, adjustments etc which aren’t part of Worcester’s service schedule, we pay by the hour, in 30 minute chunks.

[Big Rig]

I’ve just paid £55 for a basic service on my 2 year old WB. He was done in 40 mins.

[Daggerpie]

Sheepshanks said:

If these are they guys you call when the boiler breaks down then I guess you don't want to fall out with them!

I'd be miffed if he hadn't made it clear that some extra / unexpected work made it go beyond the standard service charge.

There was no extra work work though, it was just a basic service with no unexpected readings or reports. The boiler is an oil fed Worcester Bosch, positioned in the corner of our garage so normal, easy access etc..

Time taken was pretty much the same as previous years, even by the same friendly guy each time. I'm 99.9% certain this is just a new policy to make a few more £££ on top but a very cheeky way of doing it. I don't want to fall out with them over £41.00 but it's just the principle that annoys me the most. Had I known it would have been £141.00 I would have got someone else to do it.

In car terms, it's like taking a Ford Focus to your local garage that you've used for years for their set price £99.00 basic oil/filter change then getting charged £141.00, Garage turns around and says "Ahhh, it's a new policy, it took slightly longer than it does on a Fiesta hence why we charge more...it says in the small print even though we've never done it before".

[dickymint]

I've known service companies where their fitters....oops I meant Engineers have to log off their jobs via phone app before they go to their next job or finish for the day. Some play "the game" with their time sheets.

Personally I'd never have a service contract (whilst I'm still fit/active I suppose). I would say if they wont budge with the charge then cancel there and then.

[guindilias]

Did you hear the hoover running for over an hour? Standard boiler service cost here is £50 plus the cost of the nozzle if he bothers to change it. Domestic oil boilers just do not need serviced yearly. Every 2, even 3 or 5 years is fine.

[sospan]

Have the company said why it took an extra 25 mins?
How long were previous services taking?
If longer than previous services then what caused the extra time?
Was the service an extended one due after a set age, as with cars requiring major/minor services?
If you are satisfied with the answers then pay them. If not, say so and see what response you get.

[Daggerpie]

guindilias said:

Did you hear the hoover running for over an hour? Standard boiler service cost here is £50 plus the cost of the nozzle if he bothers to change it. Domestic oil boilers just do not need serviced yearly. Every 2, even 3 or 5 years is fine.

Thats interesting to know, I just checked the x3 Danfoss nozzles that have been taken out over the last 3 years servicing, I don't know exactly what I looking for but apart from the fuel smell, they actually all look pretty much brand new!

[Daggerpie]

sospan said:

Have the company said why it took an extra 25 mins?
How long were previous services taking?
If longer than previous services then what caused the extra time?
Was the service an extended one due after a set age, as with cars requiring major/minor services?
If you are satisfied with the answers then pay them. If not, say so and see what response you get.

As mentioned above, they've always taken pretty much the same time (approx 1.5hrs max), no extra work this time and never had any extra charges before, always been the same guy also. I've just dug out some old paperwork from them and there has never been any mention of this extra hourly charge before, it's only mentioned in this new paperwork.

Obviously a new thing but is it ethical is my question or just a blatant rip off hoping people don't notice. I totally understand if it's repair work based on an hourly rate, it's not though, it's just a basic service (to what was/is a perfectly healthy boiler) with this new "add on" to their set service costs.

[guindilias]

Daggerpie said:

Thats interesting to know, I just checked the x3 Danfoss nozzles that have been taken out over the last 3 years servicing, I don't know exactly what I looking for but apart from the fuel smell, they actually all look pretty much brand new!

I changed the nozzle on mine a couple of months ago after 4 years use. Out of interest I look flue gas readings before and after - they were all within 5% of the old nozzle once I changed it, which is within the variation you can get simply by taking 3 consecutive readings. Oil boilers in a domestic setting aren't an exact science.
I know a few guys who service oil boilers, and some check the readings before and after - if they were close enough the old nozzle goes back n the van and gets cleaned off to be reused on a boiler that actually needs a new nozzle.
A bit crooked, but so is servicing a boiler every year!

[Sheepshanks]

Daggerpie said:

As mentioned above, they've always taken pretty much the same time (approx 1.5hrs max), no extra work this time and never had any extra charges before, always been the same guy also. I've just dug out some old paperwork from them and there has never been any mention of this extra hourly charge before, it's only mentioned in this new paperwork.

Obviously a new thing but is it ethical is my question or just a blatant rip off hoping people don't notice. I totally understand if it's repair work based on an hourly rate, it's not though, it's just a basic service (to what was/is a perfectly healthy boiler) with this new "add on" to their set service costs.

In some ways it's even worse offering a service for a fixed price if it always takes longer.

[ST12AT]

guindilias said:

Did you hear the hoover running for over an hour? Standard boiler service cost here is £50 plus the cost of the nozzle if he bothers to change it. Domestic oil boilers just do not need serviced yearly. Every 2, even 3 or 5 years is fine.

You normally post some fairly accurate stuff but this is absolute rubbish.

I have a contact for around 250 oil boiler services and they are priced at a set amount and time (£85+vat and 70 minutes that includes the nozzle). Vacuuming out the heat exchanger accounts for 15 minutes work. The secondary heat exchanger (condensing boilers) can take double that and there is pretty much no vacuuming involved in that!

Oil boilers that aren’t running correctly are massively problematic, a dodgy nozzle or an worn out oil pump will cause soot that even the most hardened of Northern miners would wince at. On top of that, oil leaks are not a cheap experience. I’ve been involved in two this year that have cost £60k+ to put right.

To add some further information to pricing/timings the above figure is based on boilers that I currently have on the books, new clients pay £145+vat to bring the boiler up to my standard (that includes nozzle, filters and long life hoses). There is also a clearly written disclaimer that says an additional cost will be added to the invoice if the boiler is excessively dirty or if it has been ‘adjusted’ by a third party (oil boiler owners love sticking screwdrivers into places they shouldn’t or pressing the reset button seven hundred and forty eight times).

In response to the original post it would appear that the additional charge is acceptable but only if there is evidence to say why. It would have been an easier pill to swallow if the engineer had said at the time of the service that some additional time would be needed because it’s really dirty this year. It does sound like they are trying it on, although it could be for a reason, so I would be polite and honest with them.

Lastly, try to organise the service for the summer months - all of our favourite service jobs happen to be when the sun is shining and if something went wrong you’re unlikely to be in a mess without a boiler when it’s -2!

[anonymous-user]

Daggerpie said:

I've recently has my oil boiler serviced, have used the same company who I've used for several years, it's normally under £100 inc nozzle change/VAT etc

Just has the invoice through and this year it's coming out at £141.00 (basically over 40% increase) for a basic service. I dropped them an email and they've got back to me saying they've had a slight price increase (from £68+vat to £75+vat) which I've got no problem with at all. But, in addition, this year they have charged an additional half hour labour charge (£27.50+vat) on top as he was here for 1hr 25mins total and apparantly that extra 25mins is now chargable on top of their set service cost!

I have double checked the paperwork I received before service (the one that gets me to call to make booking) and sure enough they quote all their set service charges as having a slight increase (now £75.00+vat in my case) but in small print further down it does say "Visits lasting longer than 1 hour may incur an additional charge".

Is this the norm, surely a set price service whether it takes 30mins or 3 hrs is a set price? I don't know how long it takes, in fact, I made him a cup of tea and even have a little chat which annoys me even more!

Any thought gents?

Everyone has their own way of putting a value on their own time, but personally I wouldn’t invest the time you appear to have spent on this for £40 odd.

Each to their own though.