Bought a house and have a boiler issue..

[mobeyone]

Was not sure where to put this so apologies in advance.

We have just bought a house and were unable to turn the heating on, we initially thought it was because of the prepayment meters (which we were not told about ) but still were unable to turn on, the pressure guage would not move so we called out Bgas and the egineer advised the following.

The rear of the propery had been rendered which has obstructed the flue on the boiler which is why there is no air coming in and why the boiler will not come on. The engineer then went onto say that the worrying thing was the owner had tried to botch the boiler by bypassing the internal air pressure gauge and joining the two terminals togther hoping that this would work.. which is illegal and he should be reported for. Bgas left the boiler with a waring sticker advising not to use and have left me with a report that I need to hand over to all relevant parties.

I was trying yo get the heating system looked at but we completed on the last working day before christmas so were unable to.. hindsight is a lovely thing.

As we are in the fetsive break, I have been unable to approach anyone about this but was wondering if anyone could help and give me any advice? I was told to report him to the police, inform my solicitor and to contact corgi and ask them to come out and carry out an inspection with a view to prosecute..

thanks in advance.

[Bookworm]

I would have thought the first persons that need to be brought to task are the surveyors, as they should have spotted something like that, or did you not get a full survey?

[mobeyone]

The survey was part of the mortgage deal so I am guessing was not looked at... they did spot a number of other items which were rectified.. the house has been empty for over 5 months..

Am I "screwed"?

[crash3903]

Originally Posted by mobeyone

I was told to report him to the police, inform my solicitor and to contact corgi and ask them to come out and carry out an inspection with a view to prosecute..

thanks in advance.

Hi Mobey

1. The Police will not be interested in this
2. CORGI are the governing body of gas fitters (Council Of Registered Gas Installers)
3. When you were buying the house did you have documents from your solicitor saying that you should check the equipment like boiler, electric etc etc before exchange?

Judging by what you are saying you didn't have a full/structural survey but a mortgage survey - The two are different. Check your survey report and see what the surveyor says - Does it mention the boiler? Did you have a HIPS done? Not knowing anything about the property difficult to judge. If the previous owner was a gas fitter and is registered with CORGI then they will be interested

Check your paperwork and report back here?

HTH

Mark

[crash3903]

Sorry couldn't type quick enough - You have answered the survey question. if the property was empty for 5 months was it rented out before?

[Bookworm]

I don't know, tbh, I really don't know enough about this type of things to advise you properly, but being Boxing Day, it's a bit thin on the ground and I didn't want your query at what must be a very upsetting time for you stay unanswered.

I would get the survey out again and see what they were and weren't supposed to look at. I can not believe that they could have missed such a big thing, but it would depend on what type of survey, if it was the more basic one to check for mortgage suitability only, it might not have been part of it.

I think that contacting your solicitor asap is definitely the way to go, (s)he will be more familiar with your details than anyone else and should be able to tell you what's the best way to proceed. I don't usually recommend going to solicitors, but in this instance, there are so many variables that it is probably best to go back to the person who has dealth with your file all along.

Let us know what happens, and good luck to you.

[mobeyone]

Hi Mark,

Damn..

The survey made no mention of the boiler and no hips was done as the sale was agreed pre hips. I only found out that the property had car meters on the day we were given the keys so I have a feeling that when the surveyor was at the property gas and elec were not on. Both meters were in debt at the time which I had to recover before supply was turned back on.

When the BG engineer was out, he advised that what he had done is illegal by tampering with the fail safes of a gas appliance hence having Corgi carry out an investigation and ask the vendor to explain what took place and by whom as they would take action themselves.

I am guessing that I have no comeback on this...

[mobeyone]

Originally Posted by crash3903

Sorry couldn't type quick enough - You have answered the survey question. if the property was empty for 5 months was it rented out before?

Property had been rented out for the last 10 years which is why I was asked to contact the police as it is illegal?

[mobeyone]

Originally Posted by Bookworm

I don't know, tbh, I really don't know enough about this type of things to advise you properly, but being Boxing Day, it's a bit thin on the ground and I didn't want your query at what must be a very upsetting time for you stay unanswered.

I would get the survey out again and see what they were and weren't supposed to look at. I can not believe that they could have missed such a big thing, but it would depend on what type of survey, if it was the more basic one to check for mortgage suitability only, it might not have been part of it.

I think that contacting your solicitor asap is definitely the way to go, (s)he will be more familiar with your details than anyone else and should be able to tell you what's the best way to proceed. I don't usually recommend going to solicitors, but in this instance, there are so many variables that it is probably best to go back to the person who has dealth with your file all along.

Let us know what happens, and good luck to you.

Cheers bookworm and thanks and yes, the solictor will be contacted first thing next wednesday.

I am a little annoyed about it, its actually dangerous wht he has done and with me spending hours trying to get it going, I was I believe filling the boiler with gas so if there was a sudden influx of air then there could have been an explosion according to the engineer which is why they advised not to touch and have corgi carry out an investigation.

Does sadly mean we cannot move in until this is sorted

I will keep you posted and fingers crossed, the vendor has a heart............

[crash3903]

Sadly I think you are on a hiding to nothing. I may well get criticism for this but my view is the following:

1. The landlord has a duty to ensure that the work carried out on the boiler complies with the relevant legislation - In this case carried out by a CORGI approved fitter.

2. As stated above, when you got the papers from the solicitor pre - exchange I expect they had a clause in there that says you assume responsibility for the equipment in the house and should have it checked before exchange, in this case the boiler.

I doubt very much that if your solicitor is worth their salt, which they will be, they would allow such an important clause to go past them. Bearing in mind they normally use template documents anyway and adjust to suit the sale.

As bookworm has suggested I would speak with your solicitor - Before you do make sure you read the contracts sent prior to exchange and the survey report. You are looking for the clause about getting the equipment checked.

The most important thing at the moment is

1. Make the unit safe (Expect they have done that already)
2. Get the boiler repaired asap
3. Whilst doing this see where you stand with your solicitor and run this in parallel with 1 & 2

Let us know how you are doing

Regards

Mark

[crash3903]

Originally Posted by mobeyone

the vendor has a heart............

maybe but doubt it

[mobeyone]

Hi Mark,

Heres one for you.. we never got anything in the form of a contact pre exchange, we simply went in signed and a day later were given keys and as yet we do not have a copy of the contract as everything was last minute to get the everything ready for completion before the holidays.

With this situation in mind, would the solicitor be in the wrong? The forms we signed did not mention anything about the heating as far as I can remember but not having sight of them makes them difficult.

Cannot wait till next wednesday...

But,, regarding your fist point, clearly the boiler was not maintained and in compliance with the correct legistlation and with this being noted by a BG engineer, would this not form "something" that could be used to go back to the vendor?

Appreciate your thoughts and comments regardless and my concerns is that the vendor knew that a young family was moving in and as the engineer advised it was simply unsafe and dangerous aswell as illegal. If he did not have any work carried out to make the boiler safe, surely there should be some comeback on this for him if he fails to act on my enquireies next week?

[crash3903]

Hi Mobey

Its difficult for me to comment as I don't know what was said or not said or done with your solicitor. What normally happens is that the seller is asked to fill out a property information form about the property. In this document are questions like:

1. Has any gas appliance been installed in the property since 1st April 2005
2. When was it last serviced and by whom
3. And most importantly for you "Please confirm that the central heating system is in full working order"

There are a few other bits but I can't remember off the top of my head what they are. You need to see sight of this document from your solicitor. If need be take a copy away and study it carefully. In my experience it is always best to keep your solicitor on side. If you really have an issue with them and you think they have acted unprofessionally then the law society will take your case up. But please make sure you are 100% happy that they have failed you and that you have asked them to rectify any problem you perceive to be their fault. As I say, be 100% of your position before you go to the law society as you will only embarrass yourself. If need be get advice from another solicitor

The property information papers are what you will need to reply on. If the vendor has sold the property saying the gas was in good order and signed the documents then your solicitor will have a field day with them (hence why I say keep them on side)

Will they have a heart? Well if it were me, I would pay to get the problems rectified and accept the liabilty. £2-3K is nothing to keeping my liberty and livelihood as well as having to pay the costs of both sides. Fore your info it is the health & safety executive that would carry out any prosecution.

Whats your next step?

1. Get the boiler fixed by CORGI fitter - British Gas are not always the best to use due to price. Seek out a local CORGI fitter and check on their website before you instruct them (GET A QUOTE!)
2. See your solicitor to establish the facts
3. If it appears to be on your side then get a report from CORGI keeping your proof of costs
4. Take your solicitors advice about the next step

I trust my solicitor 100% that he gives me realistic advice and not "You have a good case so we should sue" If he thinks I am on a hiding to nothing then it stops there

Its very difficult to say exactly without the facts so its over to you and your solicitor

Sorry I can't be more help and good luck

Mark

[mobeyone]

Hi Mark,

Thank you very much for this information.

Needless to say, I will be in touch with my solicitor next wednesday to see what they have to say. I cannot remember seeing this document or anything of that nature. The only thing that I can remember which may fit within what you are talking of was the statement/fixtures and contents which stated that there is a gas supplied central heating system, nothing else but all was sold in working condition and not a botched attempt at fixing a gas appliance to a point that they are endangering its occupants.

Its a shame to be honest as the house otherwise is immaculate and most of the fixtures are new (kitchen, bathrooms etc) so I hope he comes good...

Thanks again and lets see how this goes...

[crash3903]

No problem you are very welcome

As an aside I would get the electrics and less importantly the plumbing checked by qualified tradesmen. If the boiler is like this what else has he or the tenant(s) done??

Piece of mind if nothing else


Tip the scales?

Regards

Mark

[caro]

A mortgage survey just confirms that the property is worth the amount of the mortgage so that the provider is sure they can get their money back if they have to repossess. I don't think you have a leg to stand on TBH, but with a young family, and a BG engineer warning I'd be inclined to get this checked as a matter of urgency. At the very least I'd get a carbon monoxide detector which you can get for under a tenner. Had you had a full surveyors report they should have picked up on this, but if not, this may now have proved a false economy. Now you've completed and exchanged I think it's too late to do anything about it, although this is just my opinion. Buyer Beware.