To think a D&G 'annual boiler service' should be annual?

[irked1]

We have paid for D&G boiler cover for several years, £21 a month. It includes a free annual boiler service.

www.domesticandgeneral.com/heating

The last service was on 11 Feb 2023.

Just rung up to book this year's service, and been told "you can't open a request for a service until 12 Feb 2024, your last service is too recent".

Note this wasn't D&G actually booking it in for 12 Feb! Instead we have to phone back then and then they will phone the firm they outsource it to. So probably no actual service till March.

AIBU to think an annual service you pay for should be... annual?

We have the BG Homecare. They've actually cancelled our booked service on two occasions, refunding us about a tenner for the privilege.

They did come out yesterday to fix a problem with it and did it satisfactorily, however.

If you paid a fee for the year 15th Feb 2023 to 15th Feb 2024 and that fee includes a service. Then you are entitled to a service. Regardless if you cancel.

So cancel the contract and then call.on 12th and demand your service as you paid for it. Check your t&Cs first though to make sure

Yep that's correct. Sorry for explaining it confusingly.

And the service is done at the end of the contract year.

You are still having annual safety checks, though?

Otherwise, you might not notice there's an issue and then your username could become reality.

@NeverDropYourMooncup I have a carbon monoxide alarm.

If you cancel the next years contract you should still get your service for this contract as you get one per calendar year you pay for.

Want to say my boiler annual service is under £100. Can’t remember exact figure. £21 a month is a rip off. You are better off saving 6 months and pay a local heating engineer.

And if it explodes, instead?

My MiL signed up with British Gas and got one within a few weeks of signing up.

I've just cancelled d&g after years of having them. Boiler cover went to £43! Needed a new thermastat and took 2 weeks, with a freezing or boiling house and a 4 week old baby. I could have gone to screwfix and bought new thermastat same day, but it had to be like for like. Also struggled to cancel policy that was up for renewal as couldnt get through on phone.In the end I cancelled direct debit and of course got immediate call that I couldn't cancel policy like that. I had to threaten ombudsman as thankfully had kept records of all my contact attempts. So they let me cancel. But I'll never use d&g again.

I have tried both BG and D&G over many years, and this "annual" thing was always an issue- you can end up getting the paid for annual service once every 15-18 months, or it just skipping a year because of their incompetence.
In the end I just found a local gas man- much cheaper and he turned up on time.

Avoid D&G for sure. They virtually won't cancel, and continue taking direct debits.

@NeverDropYourMooncup I do appreciate your concern! Never really something I've worried about tbh! Google is telling me it's pretty rare and there are warning signs beforehand. Not sure I'd trust a heating engineer to notice it anyway, it's impossible to get a useful one round here.