When your boiler stops working, it’s easy to call an emergency repair. It’s important to know what is an emergency, saving yourself call-out fees you didn’t need and helping engineers work first on genuine emergencies.
What Really Qualifies As Urgent
True Emergencies: Call Immediately
Gas Leaks – Gas leaks are true emergencies; you will know if it is a gas leak by the smell. Never try to attempt to fix yourself. If you are able, you can turn off the gas supply at the meter, open windows and doors to ventilate and evacuate your property then call National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 immediately. Never use electrical switches or make sparks!
If you or someone in your home is suffering from headaches, dizziness, nausea, confusion – call emergency services and leave the property. The ghostly killer, undetectable, is carbon monoxide.
Significant Water Leaks: If you have a boiler that is leaking large volumes of water that may lead to property damage or flooding then it needs an immediate response. Stop the water and call an emergency engineer. For Tewkesbury Boilers, consider www.combi-man.com/boiler-finance/boiler-finance-tewkesbury
No Heat And Winter With Vulnerable Occupants: This constitutes an emergency if the heating goes off on you in below-freezing temperatures while vulnerable people are present inside – such as young children, elderly relatives or sick residents.
Urgent But Not Emergency
Cold weather strikes with no way to heat the property or no hot water; it is undoubtedly uncomfortable yet often not a safety issue in residential properties where occupants are healthy adults. This should be treated as urgent but doesn’t justify middle-of-the-night callouts, most engineers will turn up the next day.
The Boiler Making Alarming Noises – Banging, whistling or gurgling is a problem associated with boilers but do not usually constitute danger. Urgent (same day) appointment maybe but not an emergency callout.
Boiler On And Off Inactivity: This is slightly more serious, it works once out of 3 or four times that you need it. It needs sorting sooner rather than later, but not in the ’emergency’ bracket.
Can Wait Until Normal Hours
No Hot Water (Summer): Annoying, but book an ordinary appointment and for now you can cope with water warmed via the kettle.
Low Boiler Pressure: This will also sometimes be just a case of topping up the system yourself. Should it often start but cease running, schedule a regular service test to find out why.
Radiators Not Heating as They Should: Air in the system or you need to balance it. Not super urgent, except when it’s really cold.
Drips: Even if relatively small and innocuous, dripping away somewhere can wait given it’s not an emergency (albeit you should absolutely place a container underneath and monitor it until an engineer comes out).
Cost Considerations
Emergency callouts can be as much as double or triple standard rates, especially out of hours from a usual working pattern. So ask yourself: is this really an emergency or can it wait until morning?