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Original poster

Boiler not serviced before buying a property

30 replies

Hamgreeneggs · 12/09/2018 09:52

I am not sure it matters and if I am making a mountain of a molehill, but the property I am buying has a 25 year old boiler which has not been serviced by a gas engineer. So there is no certificate or invoice. They get someone they know to look over it.

I am keen to move, so should I just suck this up as part of the buying process. It feels unfair that I should ask them to do anything with it and I knew the boiler was old when I put the offer in (but not that it had not been regularly serviced).

ty

OP posts:
AgathaRaisinDetra · 12/09/2018 10:00

I think your conveyancer will insist that this is serviced and that you get an up to date certificate before you exchange. We hadn't had our boiler serviced for a couple of years and we had to do this before we sold our house. It's pretty standard. Your conveyancer will not wish to be sued should you die of carbon monoxide poisoning after completion.

Ifailed · 12/09/2018 10:00

AFAIK, there's nothing that states they have to get the boiler serviced at all, but any recent work has to be done by a certified engineer.
I'm afraid this is one of the many aspects of Caveat Emptor when buying a house, they have to be honest in their responses to questions, but it's up to you to weigh any risks up that you identify. Personally I'd try and put some money aside so you can get it serviced properly and be able to pay for any parts etc. maybe even expect the worst & have to have it replaced?

Brideslave · 12/09/2018 10:01

Pay for your own service? Even if they got it serviced regularly there is nothing to say it wouldn't break down as soon as you move in. Plan to have to replace the boiler soon if necessary (and maybe a good idea if you are planning to carry out works to the property anyway).

Noqont · 12/09/2018 10:01

I don't think you can force them, but you could negotiate cost of new boiler off asking price. Drop the offer a bit. I would.

phoebemac · 12/09/2018 10:07

I don't think you can negotiate money off the asking price - those old boilers can go on for years and are more reliable than new ones, although much less efficient of course. Def get it serviced though.

ChristopherTracy · 12/09/2018 12:05

I would just assume you will need to spend 2K on a new one in the none-too distant future. We did get our one checked before moving in and it still broke within weeks.

Original poster
Hamgreeneggs · 12/09/2018 13:07

thanks all.

They did some roofing fixed but the boiler maybe a bridge too far. I will have a chat with the estate agent.

I am keen to move as ferrying the kids is a pain during term time.

Its supposed to be a very good but old boiler.

OP posts:
Mildura · 12/09/2018 13:22

@AgathaRaisinDetra
In 20years of selling houses I have never known a solicitor/conveyancer to insist a boiler is serviced and an up to date certificate provided. They may recommend that it's a good idea, but there is no obligation on the part of the seller to do so.

redastherose · 12/09/2018 13:28

I work as a Conveyancer and we routinely ask when the boiler was last serviced and request it be done if the service was last done more than 12 months ago. We can't insist though, and if a Seller refuses then we advise the Client to decide whether they want to proceed on the basis that the boiler could be broken and they would need to factor in the cost of full replacement. Usually the Sellers just agree to have it serviced as a matter of course.

TeaMeBasil · 12/09/2018 13:44

You can certainly ask - we did & they did it without arguing. We'd have still gone ahead if they'd refused of course but i was glad we asked.

Original poster
Hamgreeneggs · 12/09/2018 13:56

Thanks- I will chat with the estate agent tomorrow.

It would be nice to have it serviced but the vendors are nice and the house although dated is in good order, so I suspect it maybe ok.

OP posts:
samanthalou · 12/09/2018 14:04

We are FTB and have arranged for a gas fitter to go in and check the gas fittings etc. The vendor doesn't have any gas safety certificates and we don't want to run the risk of having to replace the boiler in the near and present future.

That being said, our solicitors have advised that it is up to us (not the vendor) to get it checked over and sort the certificates out if we want to.

May as well get it serviced and out of the way :)

Same with the electricity and wiring, luckily, we know a good electrician who will look over and produce certificates for us a bit cheaper than others.

johnd2 · 12/09/2018 14:05

Servicing could mean anything, with a modern boiler ours says don't open up the combustion chamber unless there's a fault as it can do more harm than good. So all they would do is check the pressures and check the flue is in good condition.
You really want your own person to look over it, as they can give a report on the life left in the boiler. You can service a boiler fine even if it's leaking and about to break. But a good engineer could give you an opinion on the condition.

serbska · 12/09/2018 14:15

You buy as seen, the house has a 25 year old boiler. There is no requrment for a seller to have it serviced as part of the sales process.

Your offer should take into account the house condition including the fact there is a 25 year old boiler.

Lucisky · 12/09/2018 14:23

Old boilers were certainly more reliable. Ours was nearly 40 years old when we replaced it. It was a solid reliable (and noisy) old beast.
I wouldn't have a boiler serviced specially for sale, but we have an annual service anyway, which is sufficient. If the boiler has not been regularly or professionally serviced, I would wonder what else in the house had been allowed to slip, but if I wanted the property I don't think this is something I would hold out on. As long as it can be demonstrated that it works, that would be okay.
A pp mentioned gas safety certificates. There is no obligation for a seller to have these (or electrical safety certs). These are to do with rental properties and tenants.

whatsthecomingoverthehill · 12/09/2018 14:24

What serbska said. The boiler isn't some hidden problem that you could be faced with - you could see how old it was when you made your offer so presumably you took into account the age of it in coming up with a price, just as you would for the kitchen/bathroom etc. A service really doesn't offer any guarantee for how long it will last.

ChristopherTracy · 12/09/2018 16:34

John is completely right - as I said upthread we spent 100quid getting it checked and it wasn't worth anything at all. It will pass even if it is leaking etc. Factor it into the price.

mermaidsandunicorns · 12/09/2018 16:44

Hi OP I work in heating industry we have recently had a lot of requests from old heating installs for copies of gas safety inspections completed on boilers or to carry out them in properties that are being sold. This is a different certificate to a service so I am not sure if the conveyancing law has changed recently around boilers.

foulmouthflora1 · 12/09/2018 16:56

We asked our sellers to get the boiler serviced but they refused on the basis that they thought the boiler was fine and they'd never serviced a boiler in any house they'd lived in Shock. I wanted it checked just to be safe. We went back and forth and in the end I relented and paid for a service and check. The engineer said it was fine.

If there'd been an issue we'd have gone back to negotiations as I'd want it sorting before moving in.

serbska · 12/09/2018 17:32

I think it’s a prob with FTBs thinking it’s like a rental property re requrment a for gas and electrical safety certificates. It isn’t, and it’s not up to the seller to pay for any servicing or surveys.

Jonathan1972 · 12/09/2018 17:48

It's the buyers responsibility to arrange and pay for a service engineer but if your sellers like you they might do it if you ask.
But I agree that it just demonstrates it is safe right now and is no warranty that it will continue to work this winter.
You can look up the likely lifespan of different boilers but again that is just an estimate. If you can afford to replace it the work will likely have paid for itself in 3-4 years as newer boilers can be up to 35% more efficient. If you do decide to replace it consider whether you want it moved at the same time.

foxycleopauper · 12/09/2018 21:41

@AgathaRaisinDetra I hope you were joking with the suing comment HmmGrin Total nonsense.

I'm a solicitor and it isn't a requirement to have a boiler serviced before exchange/completion. We recommend that clients do so, either at their expense or the sellers', depending on what they negotiate between themselves, but ultimately it's up to them.

loveka · 13/09/2018 13:12

Well we had a survey on ours, and it was serviced.

Still blew up 2 weeks after we moved in !

glintandglide · 13/09/2018 13:14

Agree pay for your own service- I wouldn’t pay out for one for the new owners benefit

(unless they were massively over paying on the price or something and I was desperate not to lose them)