British gas insurance... Yes or no?

[raelgrin]

The fan in my boiler has just broken so I was without heating and hot water for 3 days. It cost me £140 to fix and that was at mates rates.
What do people think about British gas insurance where they cover everything and service for £12 ish a month? Is it worth is or should I just put that money aside each month in my account?

[Teddy_boy]

I use British gas cover and I'm happy with it. Could you trust yourself to put aside the money, and would there be enough saved when an unexpected breakdown occurred?It all depends on your financial position and how confident you are of your ability to save and the likelihood of a breakdown.

[hammerman]

I never trust any of these insurance deals. If an insurance company can get out of paying for something...they will and believe me, they'll move mountains to not pay out.

Put the money in a seperate account each month.

[missnemesis]

Definitley worth the £12 a month raelgrin. A couple of weeks ago I had a breakdown, it took three visits from the engineers and ultimatley a new fan. I dread to think what that would have cost without the Ins cover. The annual service also offers great peace of mind. BG also offer a 'no claims' discount if you don't need a repair within the year.

[slaney]

Ive had it for over 20 years, and during that time have had replacement pumps , clock, cold water tank; not to mention leaking pipes repaired - on Christmas day on one occasion. They have always come promptly.
I think it's worth it.

[woofgang]

another vote for british gas insurance they have been really good for us. Stay away from homeserve!

[riptide]

I had British Gas cover for years and years, hardly ever had to call them out and could have saved loads but just putting some money away each month. They say they do a service but they do not, I asked them once about this and it is a safety check they do They do not properly clean out the boiler or check everything inside is okay. Also if you call them out during the year they put the premiums up. I cancelled mine last year and am sure overall will be better off. My friends have recommeneded a boiler man so I shall use him in future for my service. At least it will be done properly when due for a service.

[buildersmate]

As always, the answer is 'it depends'.
It depends:
whether you've got an old boiler that history tells you keeps breaking down
whether one is completely clueless when it comes to understanding where to get decent support from someone who isn't going to charge you the earth.
Simple laws of business ought to tell you that for all the people above who claim to have put less into paying for insurance than they've taken out, there are dozens of people who didn't bother to post an answer who just keep paying the premiums and don't get as much back - otherwise the insurer would be out of business.
I'm firmly with ridtipe on this. In about 30 years of having gas and then oil boilers, I've had to have a repair man out once - apart from for servicing the units. And even on that I only organise a service every two years and make sure I get the technician to tell about the condition of the boiler. It currently costs about £70 for a decent 45 minutes of service.
But, you pays your money, you gets your peace of mind.

[Booldawg]

when we moved into our house 6 years ago the flush on the toilet was bust. We joined the Homecover 400 package that insures electrics, CH and water.

They came out and fixed it straight away. for £30 a month it gives peace of mind and we have used the service maybe an average of once a year. TBH we pay alot more for car insurance that you know wont pay out!

[buildersmate]

Yes, but car insurance is compulsory by law, domestic appliance protection insurance isn't.

[johnny37]

My home insurance has an emergency cover section which includes breakdown of heating system. Cost is minimal and makes little difference to my premium. Only requirement is that it has to be maintained. As far as I can see there is no excess on this section. Not sure wht the effect on no claims discount would be.

[raelgrin]

Thank you everyone. As usual, a very thorough discussion which I found very useful :)

[MRsnail]

no

[NoMercy]

MRsnail ... Are you some sort of a virus?

You appear to be randomly infecting threads...

[MRsnail]

infecting?? i am answering the question and my question is its not worth it so no - half of my answer did not come out

[MRsnail]

* sorry answer