Boiler service - invoice has additional hourly rate?
Discussion
The additional charge is absolutely fine in my eyes and his explanation as to why is also absolutely fine.
However, claiming it took 1.5 hours when it only took 1 hour is absolutely not fine.
Sticky situation really, he probably won’t care one bit if you decide not to use him again and you’ll probably not care for the additional £30 once you’ve paid it but you’d both feel aggrieved either way. You’re more likely to need him in the future than him needed long you so I wouldn’t just stick your jack. Give him a call and say that his explanation of the additional cost is fine and you’d be more than happy to pay but you want to query how long the engineer was there for.
Oil companies to put additives in but that’s another story, it wouldn’t be at the cost of 30 minutes more servicing time though....
However, claiming it took 1.5 hours when it only took 1 hour is absolutely not fine.
Sticky situation really, he probably won’t care one bit if you decide not to use him again and you’ll probably not care for the additional £30 once you’ve paid it but you’d both feel aggrieved either way. You’re more likely to need him in the future than him needed long you so I wouldn’t just stick your jack. Give him a call and say that his explanation of the additional cost is fine and you’d be more than happy to pay but you want to query how long the engineer was there for.
Oil companies to put additives in but that’s another story, it wouldn’t be at the cost of 30 minutes more servicing time though....
alfabeat said:
Just had our oil boiler serviced and received the invoice this morning...£172 (inc VAT).
Ex VAT prices
Service - 1 hour @ £95
Oil hose - £17 x 2
Nozzle - £15
Didn't bother getting a quote as they come every year, but this is a jump up on previous years and they replaced the oil hoses last year.
How often should oil hoses be replaced?
I think I will be shopping around next year - or switch it to every two years.
Prices look ok to me. Ex VAT prices
Service - 1 hour @ £95
Oil hose - £17 x 2
Nozzle - £15
Didn't bother getting a quote as they come every year, but this is a jump up on previous years and they replaced the oil hoses last year.
How often should oil hoses be replaced?
I think I will be shopping around next year - or switch it to every two years.
Replacing hoses every year is a money making scam at those prices. £17 would suggest it’s a long life hose which should see 5+ years service life. £3 hoses shouldn’t be used in my opinion but they should be changed annually.
ST12AT said:
The additional charge is absolutely fine in my eyes and his explanation as to why is also absolutely fine.
However, claiming it took 1.5 hours when it only took 1 hour is absolutely not fine.
Oil companies to put additives in but that’s another story, it wouldn’t be at the cost of 30 minutes more servicing time though....
You're getting confused, he was there for nearly 1.5hrs, just like he was the same time last year and the year before. All 3 years services (same friendly engineer) he has always quoted boiler absolutely fine, no probs, changes nozzle, gives me the old one (which looks brand new anyway) and gives me the test sheet to show it. We always have a little natter, cup of tea etc...all good.However, claiming it took 1.5 hours when it only took 1 hour is absolutely not fine.
Oil companies to put additives in but that’s another story, it wouldn’t be at the cost of 30 minutes more servicing time though....
It is only now I have been hit with this additional charge (yes, yes, I know its only £40.00) to apparantly cover this extra time for dirty boilers caused by dodgy additives. I totally understand the explanation of the charge but just cannot get my head around why it is applicable to me, it has taken exactly the same time as previous years and not a mention of a dirty or clogged boiler on service sheet or verbally, in fact, always quite the opposite.
I think I'll offer to pay service cost and have done with it. Goodbye and use someone else for next service.
Daggerpie said:
Goodbye and use someone else for next service.
Indeed, trust is lost now either way. Better to find someone else, it's their loss not yours.
One of our cars was serviced last summer at a local garage I've always used. The bill was way more than I expected, as they claimed the filters were difficult to source and expensive.
I looked them up and those parts are some of the most readily available as well as being inexpensive. All he's done now is lost a customer for the sake of trying to make a quick buck, not an effective long term business strategy.
Why would oil companies add additives to the oil that make it dirtier? And more to point how come the OP has special oil that it is dirtier than everyone else’s and therefore makes his service take longer?
If the service has taken 1.5 hours every time then either the engineer is slow (& potential methodical) compared to other engineers, or the OP has a boiler that’s more difficult to service than others.
To suggest the oil that the OP is using causes the service to take longer has to be wrong, unless the OP has a strange source of oil.
If the service has taken 1.5 hours every time then either the engineer is slow (& potential methodical) compared to other engineers, or the OP has a boiler that’s more difficult to service than others.
To suggest the oil that the OP is using causes the service to take longer has to be wrong, unless the OP has a strange source of oil.
The thing that stands out for me is the fact that’s it’s historically been a ~1h30 visit but you’ve always paid an hour, and presumably you’ve always been aware you’ve paid for less time than received and kept it quiet as a ‘win’ but don’t like it when the shoe is on the other foot.
They’ve now cottoned on to charging for an hour when it’s takes between and hour and 1h30. They don’t charge pro rata for the 1h15 it may have taken without small talk or tea.
If you use another company next year, will they charge you for the 1 hour at a similar rate? Or will they probably charge you more to the point you’d wish you’d stayed with the same company?
Have you had quotes from others?
You sound like a man of principle so will only be happy if you get off the 30 mins charge and go your separate ways, but just consider what you’ll pay next year and which is the best option in the long run.
They’ve now cottoned on to charging for an hour when it’s takes between and hour and 1h30. They don’t charge pro rata for the 1h15 it may have taken without small talk or tea.
If you use another company next year, will they charge you for the 1 hour at a similar rate? Or will they probably charge you more to the point you’d wish you’d stayed with the same company?
Have you had quotes from others?
You sound like a man of principle so will only be happy if you get off the 30 mins charge and go your separate ways, but just consider what you’ll pay next year and which is the best option in the long run.
Chrisgr31 said:
Why would oil companies add additives to the oil that make it dirtier? And more to point how come the OP has special oil that it is dirtier than everyone else’s and therefore makes his service take longer?
They don't, that is a blatant lie. Which is why I would tell them to f
ck themselves, not pay the bill at all, and use someone else in future. If they said that his boiler had been building up soot over the years and had no got to the stage where it needed more time due to the cleaning required that would be more acceptable, but possibly still wrong and very possibly still a lie as he's been told how clean the boiler runs. The company are being dishonest to make more cash and trying to cover for it.Send them a bill for the chat time, charged at a good high hourly rate.
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