On 16/12/2010 12:57, stuart noble wrote:

For me it's the peace of mind thing. I am not prepared to a) look at it
myself or b) ring a load of cowboys from yellow pages who might be able
to diagnose the fault, might be able to get the parts, and might come
when they say they will. With a manufacturer's callout you know it will
be fixed there and then, and they take the hit for any parts fitted on a
trial and error basis.
The other important thing to consider is the price of spares. My boiler
has a "special" pump, identical to a generic pump apart from one little
detail, so it's £120 instead of £40. Labour charges are probably the
least of your worries when assessing the risk.

Well my boiler's running on a fan that was a replacement from (let me
plug him too!) cetltd.co.uk. It's actually the second replacement, the
first one only lasted a couple of years must have been a dud this one
has lasted ages.

We've been in this house for over 15 years. Same boiler. 12 quid a
month for 15 years - that's over 2 grand. Enough in the bank so if it
does go wrong tomorrow and I _can't_ fix it I can afford to replace it.

Also, check the terms. I heard someone's small print on the radio the
other day saying they'll come out and inside 24 hours except at times of
unusual demand.

Translated they might come and look at it if they aren't too busy, but
they won't fix it unless it's easy.

I _like_ having a backup immersion heater, gas fire, electric heaters...

Andy