Charging for boiler fault finding

[cr0ft]

Folks,

Do you charge for time spent diagnosing boiler faults? I believe it should be charged for but it seems a lot of customers expect me to be doing this for free like quotes.. Clearly there are two appointments involved, diagnosis and repair usually.

What do you all do?

 

[southcoastboile]

I always charge for a diagnosis and I tell them what it needs. If I don't get the repair work I don't really care, still made the £50 for diagnosis. As said it's very rare not to get the repair work anyway.

 

[SimonG]

Diagnosis is the easy bit. You could make a killing just doing diagnosis all day, and with no comeback if you word your terms and conditions correctly.

The only issue I have, is if I turn up and a customer says to me, oh it's the kerfuffle valve, so and so diagnosed it. Yeh right, I'm still adding extra on.

 

[Leo21]

Diagnosis is the easy bit. You could make a killing just doing diagnosis all day, and with no comeback if you word your terms and conditions correctly.

The only issue I have, is if I turn up and a customer says to me, oh it's the kerfuffle valve, so and so diagnosed it. Yeh right, I'm still adding extra on.

I tell you what ,those kerfuffle valves are getting expensive aren't they.

 

[SimonG]

Still cheaper than a flux capacitor or a dihydrogen monoxide relief valve

 

[buckley plumb]

I do charge now I learnt the hard way. People to advantage

 

[Linkyplumb]

Hourly rate for me

 

[REDSAW]

With boiler faults its either I'm coming to fix it or you'll be getting somebody else. Don't see the point in saying I'll charge £50 to tell you what's wrong and £xx to fix it when it can all be lumped into one.

Although you could make a fortune.

i do , especially if its a load of crap and i dont want the repair, get dozens that only need topping up

 

[so-solar]

When the customer asks if we charge a call out fee, we say "no", it's a diagnostic fee! £55

 

[thompsonbrown]

I struggle to be brazen enough to say I want a call-out fee, and if its local and just needs a pressure top up,
I don't charge more than £20
not saying I'm right, but a 5min fix, I just mentally cant say more. Sounds strange when I'm happy to charge
£150 + parts for 2 half hour visits to replace a fan.

 

[rocketmanbkk]

I obviously don't do gas but if I think it's a waster I'll charge callout

Not always easy to gauge though

 

[quality]

I always charge all work by the hour it is simple that way

 

[thompsonbrown]

I obviously don't do gas but if I think it's a waster I'll charge callout

Not always easy to gauge though

With me its just that 5 mins in someones house, and then saying something like "lets just call that £100" Ok

 

[gassafe]

British Gas are pushing there repairs from 79 pound again...

A quick look on there website reveals the true cost... 79 pound for 30 min repair, 199 for anything 30 mins to 2 hours & 409 for anything over 2 hours!!!!

 

[hammers4spanner]

They have an access as well

 

[Millsy 82]

With me its just that 5 mins in someones house, and then saying something like "lets just call that £100" Ok

I never spend just 5 minutes in a house. If it's low pressure I top it up and test the expansion vessel drain pressure off top the expansion vessel up refill and then you have to check the boiler and leave it running for 5 minutes.

A company that I worked for found that if you only spent 5 minutes people didn't want to pay and they always argued where as if you spend 15 minutes they would.

I'm not saying drag the jobs out to the 2nd hour but just enough so you can charge your 1st hour and feel confident about it.

 

[dave1]

When the customer asks if we charge a call out fee, we say "no", it's a diagnostic fee! £55

I'm doing exactly the same as this.

 

[mutley racers]

I always charge a 1st hour, order part and then I charge another 1st hour to fit as I have been and gone back it is 2 hrs, maybe more as getting stuck in traffic to pick stuff up on the same day takes a little longer than 2 hrs. I had my first client 2 weeks ago trying to fix it after I had diagnosed the fault. I told him his wireless stat was knackered and gave him a price to fix it. He said he would talk to his wife. I didn't hear from him so put in an invoice for diagnosis, he called me said I was wrong as he hit the programmer and it worked. A week later he called me up and said he would be happy to pay and go with the quote. Some people a

 

[REDSAW]

failed on a boiler today.
charged £40, he said you sure youve been here nearly 2 hours, make it £60.
so, i took it and refered him to baxi.

 

[buckley plumb]

failed on a boiler today.
charged £40, he said you sure youve been here nearly 2 hours, make it £60.
so, i took it and refered him to baxi.

I had a main last wk did my head in replaced most parts. In the end it was venturi.

 

[Leo21]

I had a main last wk did my head in replaced most parts. In the end it was venturi.

Did it melt? If it did, when I had it the pcb had gone. Occasionally firing regardless of what the ntc,s were saying.

 

[buckley plumb]

Did it melt? If it did, when I had it the pcb had gone. Occasionally firing regardless of what the ntc,s were saying.

No mate looked ok until compared to new one.larger diameter part of venturi was shorter on old one as if it had worn down.

 

[Leo21]

No mate looked ok until compared to new one.larger diameter part of venturi was shorter on old one as if it had worn down.

That is weird!

 

[buckley plumb]

That is weird!

I know mate had me puzzled. Only thing I can think of is boiler flue faces out onto a field ontop of a hill possible ware from dust in the wind.