New british gas tv advert

[Doodlebug]

There is nothing false about the British Gas advertising and you know it. Customers have a choice and still they come to British Gas, Fact!


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[petercj]

The service BG provide is second to none. I went to an on call assist the other day where the customer paid £99 for a one fix, the part I fitted to the boiler was over £200 but the customer only paid £99 all in parts and labour, not bad aye?

You seem a pleasant enough guy Doodlebug, but what was the point of posting the above?

Only people that believe in Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy are going to swallow the tale that you fitted over £200 worth of parts for £99!

Telling only half the tale serves to misrepresent the facts.

 

[Doodlebug]

You seem a pleasant enough guy Doodlebug, but what was the point of posting the above?

Only people that believe in Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy are going to swallow the tale that you fitted over £200 worth of parts for £99!

Telling only half the tale serves to misrepresent the facts.

I have no need to tell lies mate, I remember showing the customer the cost of the part. Sometimes it works the other way, if the part needed cost say, £3, the customer would still pay £99, its swings and roundabouts.


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[Doodlebug]

The difference between what I post and what you post Peter, is that I post facts and you don't, simples!


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[petercj]

The only facts I could find on any BG websites are that £99 is an excess payment on a cover plan - and if BG customers fix their gas prices, then they get a reduction in plan premiums.

So you're suggesting that customers call in BG and take a chance on a £99 fixed fee, whatever the cost of the repair?

Estimates not being allowed of course, as obviously they would duck out if it turns out to be only a small thing.

But then what's to stop them getting a free estimate and assessment from an independent GSR, and then calling in BG if the job is going to be costly?

Doesn't quite add up, does it?

 

[hammers4spanner]

The difference between what I post and what you post Peter, is that I post facts and you don't, simples!


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utter carp

Like any other privatised company Bg are all about ££££££££££'s making sure the share holders profit from BG's succes , wether it be from annual gas price rises ( obviously just as temp drops) or over priced labour charges , power flush scams and sales bull.And to be quite frank they do a very good job for the share holders.
The minute the bubble bursts then you will hear the usual cut backs in staff all you guys are is a number on payroll which can be dropped at first sign of profit squeeze

 

[Doodlebug]

The only facts I could find on any BG websites are that £99 is an excess payment on a cover plan - and if BG customers fix their gas prices, then they get a reduction in plan premiums.

So you're suggesting that customers call in BG and take a chance on a £99 fixed fee, whatever the cost of the repair?

Estimates not being allowed of course, as obviously they would duck out if it turns out to be only a small thing.

But then what's to stop them getting a free estimate and assessment from an independent GSR, and then calling in BG if the job is going to be costly?

Doesn't quite add up, does it?

Unfortunately that's what does sometimes happen.


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[hammers4spanner]

Unfortunately that's what does sometimes happen.


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beep beep beep

 

[Doodlebug]

utter carp

Like any other privatised company Bg are all about ££££££££££'s making sure the share holders profit from BG's succes , wether it be from annual gas price rises ( obviously just as temp drops) or over priced labour charges , power flush scams and sales bull.And to be quite frank they do a very good job for the share holders.
The minute the bubble bursts then you will hear the usual cut backs in staff all you guys are is a number on payroll which can be dropped at first sign of profit squeeze

Is it a crime to make a profit, do you go to work for fun, don't you charge your customers a fee? PowerFlush scams? What are you on about. British Gas are now regulated by the FSA and will always refund any customers who aren't happy, if a system needs a flush, a quote is left, a customer has a choice to pay British Gas to do the work or pay "hammers4spanners" to do the work. The customer is under no pressure to purchase from British Gas its their choice. If I said to you, "hey mate, I've got two products here, one costs £700 and one costs £300" and you choose the £700 product, then that's your choice.
By the way, customer retention at British Gas is at an all time high.

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[villa_tom]

To be fair to BG this one off fixed price repair is a great deal really. The customer knows the deal from the start and for most people getting their boiler repaired for under a tonne is great for them.

Obviously some parts do cost a couple of quid, and some may not need any parts at all. So on some jobs BG profit greatly,and on others they take a huge hit but the risk is well worth the reward otherwise they wouldn't do it.

Also the customer will get a safety check thrown in with this, as it has to be done once a boiler cover is removed.

Plus any other faults will be fixed in with this 99 quid. So to be fair to them it's a great deal that they can offer.

I can't see where the false advertising comes into this though, I'm not here to toot the BG horn, but credit where credit is due. They do a good job and they wouldn't have so many customers if they didn't do a good job.

 

[TBServices]

The powerflush scam is rife in BG Doodlebug and you know it. Even the rep i spoke to yesterday from yellow pages told me BG said he needed a powerflush, but he was a bit savvy and saw it for what it is: A money making scam.

For every £99 fixed price repair that costs over £99, there'll be 10 that cost next to nothing. And just think about all the poor old biddies who trust the name British Gas so blindly, they'll follow any advice given, even if its for a £700 power flush they don't need.

I don't blame you for wanting to keep a secure job with decent pay and benefits, but at least you could do us all a solid and tell it how it really is when you're off the clock. You don't have to defend the fat cats just because you're making them fatter.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Quite clearly never understood post as i stated british gas (or russian gas as they should be called) do a very good job at making profit for share holders in many ways which coincidently has recently as this week been picked up as price fixing .

A link from national newspaper

Trouble with the boiler? - Telegraph

They adopt a selling technique which is fraudulent with scare tactics which i hear numourous times a week from disgruntled custs , same as the advert fradulent british gas pfffft!!

 

[hammers4spanner]

quite clearly cant see the picture as your to busy being in it !!

 

[villa_tom]

Quite clearly never understood post as i stated british gas (or russian gas as they should be called) do a very good job at making profit for share holders in many ways which coincidently has recently as this week been picked up as price fixing .

A link from national newspaper

Trouble with the boiler? - Telegraph

They adopt a selling technique which is fraudulent with scare tactics which i hear numourous times a week from disgruntled custs , same as the advert fradulent british gas pfffft!!

The thing is with BG is that you ever like them or you don't. And this isn't a pop ant anyone, but people who don't like them have never worked there and base their opinions on what they hear from unhappy customers. Of course an unhappy customer will not rate BG as they are unhappy. But for every one unhappy customer, they have 1000. Surely this blows any argument against BG out the water.

And this old powerlushing scam that keeps coming up. I have never seen a powerflush carried out that doesn't need it. I've seen powerflushes cancelled when they are not needed though.

As a contractor I've had the privelidge of working all over the midlands for many different firms. And BG by far and away beats them, yes I am bias towards them but why shouldn't I be? They have looked after me and I've contracted there for nearly 2 years which is quite uncommon in the contracting world.

Ive not been brainwashed by the BG machine either. I like it there, I like the way they work and the way I see things done make it easy to see how millions of customers rate them. And at the end of the day, the customers who vote with their feet and those who like BG will use them

 

[Orry Clayton]

Ive not been brainwashed by the BG machine either.

So they have a machine to brainwash you too

 

[zzzjim]

Some people are beginnig to notice if you go to the big guys ,
SKY / Big Supermarkets / BnQ , Homebase , Halfords

...you wave good bye to small local independant
( or is internet to blame )

...Some of their staff .never mind brainwashed
... Zombified

( Most of us can spot a sales pitch -
and if you can't you learn to )

 

[petercj]

quite clearly cant see the picture as your to busy being in it !!

That, and not biting the hand that feeds!

 

[villa_tom]

That, and not biting the hand that feeds!

Why would you bite the hand that feeds you though?

 

[Doodlebug]

I'm defending British Gas because I see what you don't see and people who make wild accusations towards a competitor should maybe spend more time looking at themselves. As Villa Tom said, customers speak with their feet and for every unhappy customer you will find a hundred happy customers, the figures speak for themselves. I am proud to work for a company that takes customer satisfaction very seriously.
As for the fraudulent adverts, if they were fraudulent they would have been removed pulled and action against British Gas would have been taken.


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[Nostrum]

I've seen systems with my own eyes that British Gas have recommended a powerflush on that are pristine. According to the homeowner they didn't even take a water sample. The true cause was the radiators needed balancing and the pump was lazy, hence the cold radiators.

To be fair, powerflushing is widely used as a money spinner for a lot of companies, including those that undercut BG after they have recommended it.

I have worked as a contractor for B.G, and had to attend there little one day training course, in which they made it very clear that they saw themselves as the elite, to the point where I felt patronised, especially considering they were looking to use us/me for their work! This is the attitude that I dislike the most and dare I say it, it does rub off on a lot of the engineers that work for them.

I've no doubt they they are in a position to offer their engineers a great deal with training and all the top quality gear etc, but for that you are expected to actively promote the company and create sales, again this comes straight from the horses mouth.

In effect they have created a kind of franchise arrangement with the engineers, both benefiting each other, which is fine and makes business sense, but when engineers knowingly sell something that is (in my opinion often) un-needed and priced at the higher end of the market it doesn't look good for B.G regardless who's to blame.

This discussion is never going to change the opinions of those that work there, although I have spoken to a lot of ex B.G engineers who do agree with my comments once they are 'released' :devilish: lol

Its business and it all comes down to value for money, or perception of. programmes like rogue traders don't do the small traders much justice and often scare people into paying more for a more trustworthy brand, whether or not they truly get that is open to debate, I certainly have my opinion of it.

 

[petercj]

Why would you bite the hand that feeds you though?

Fair point.

From what I've seen, BG do look after their staff quite well, which I think is a good thing.

It's a very large company, and still has some of the old institutional ways and attitudes of British Gas, so I can well imagine that: "when you're in, you're in for the whole nine yards".

It's the bit that comes before the: "3 . 2 . 1 you're back in the room" that gets everyone singing from the same hymn sheet!

 

[Dannypipe]

BG make 100's of millions in profits every single year. Year in, year out. Yes a lot of that is on energy but the install/servicing/breakdown side is big business too. They don't make that sort of profit by being magical "A Team" engineers, who can fix your problems in a jiffy with a giant grin on their face. They make hundreds of millions of pounds profit every year by being expensive. Good or bad, they are not cheap. Even if thats in the long run.

So the quaint little story of a £200 part being installed for under a ton, well that's lovely, and if BG make a loss next year, I'll even start reccomending them to my friends and family.

 

[petercj]

BG make 100's of millions in profits every single year. Year in, year out. Yes a lot of that is on energy but the install/servicing/breakdown side is big business too. They don't make that sort of profit by being magical "A Team" engineers, who can fix your problems in a jiffy with a giant grin on their face. They make hundreds of millions of pounds profit every year by being expensive. Good or bad, they are not cheap. Even if thats in the long run.

So the quaint little story of a £200 part being installed for under a ton, well that's lovely, and if BG make a loss next year, I'll even start reccomending them to my friends and family.

What puzzles me is why these fantastic deals don't appear in BG advertising?

If BG are prepared to fix boilers at a loss, no matter how much it costs, surely they would be shouting about it?

 

[Dannypipe]

Well there seems to be two staunch BG defenders on the forum. Shouting their corner, so I'm sure it's not the last we've heard of it, even if they don't advertise it!!

 

[Doodlebug]

It's a gamble which obviously pays off, for every Job that costs more than £99 there will be 2 jobs that costs nothing. You have to be an energy customer and a lot of these customer decide to join up on a service and repair contract, so it's a way of growing the business.

 

[petercj]

It's a gamble which obviously pays off, for every Job that costs more than £99 there will be 2 jobs that costs nothing. You have to be an energy customer and a lot of these customer decide to join up on a service and repair contract, so it's a way of growing the business.

When I said earlier that the £99 was part of a service and repair contract you said it wasn't - post 44 - now you're admitting that it's 'energy customers' who: "join up on a service and repair contract".

The £99 is an excess payment, not a one off charge.

The one off-deal is from £79, including parts and labour - which just means that charges start at £79, so it could be £400 including parts and labour based on a fixed quote. Which is what most companies do anyway, its just that BG dress it up to sound like a deal.

God knows who does the marketing for BG - but Jay from The Inbetweeners wouldn't be a bad guess.

 

[villa_tom]

When I said earlier that the £99 was part of a service and repair contract you said it wasn't - post 44 - now you're admitting that it's 'energy customers' who: "join up on a service and repair contract".

The £99 is an excess payment, not a one off charge.

The one off-deal is from £79, including parts and labour - which just means that charges start at £79, so it could be £400 including parts and labour based on a fixed quote. Which is what most companies do anyway, its just that BG dress it up to sound like a deal.

God knows who does the marketing for BG - but Jay from The Inbetweeners wouldn't be a bad guess.

Id say whoever does the marketing for BG is doing a terrific job. They are a massive firm and only seem to get bigger.

Im not on here to argue with anyone, and while I totally disagree with your viewpoint, I respect your opinion. We will just have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Thats whats marketing is all about tho tom bringing the cust in to the hard sell tactic , i even see it in local mags from small business advertising this that about boilers and the magic word 'FROM' .

My whine about bg is i frequently come across lazy services/repairs or unnecessary orver priced hard sell tactic scare monger boiler upgrades where peeps cant afford it . If i adopted the same tactics i would soon get a rep of a over priced con man.On a more positive note for small business like myself i get regular phone calls from custs where bg have been and i have been contacted for second opinion . The tactics they adopt do make money for me yet are so wrong imho.

 

[Avatar]

This is certainly a sore point and everyone seems to have very strong feelings about it one way or another.

Nobody likes big companies pushing them out of business, but this is the way of the world.

BG is one good reason why I never bothered with gas work - too much competition!

Saying that there are now businesses moving into general plumbing repairs and the like. Might be time to get out personally . . . .

We used to have corner shops everywhere 'when I was a lad' and now we have Tesco express instead.

I have a nasty feeling it is going that way with plumbing too where the little guy is being squeezed out of the market . . . . .

 

[Doodlebug]

@ Petercj, I'm not admitting they are on contract, I'm saying they are an energy customer, we fix their boiler for a fixed one off price and hope they will then become a service and repair customer, simples!

@ Hammers4spanners, have you never had a customer say over the phone what the problem is and you then give a minimum price to fix but when you arrive to the job, you find that its a bigger job than you thought so will cost the customer more?

@Avatar, British Gas are not taking work away from you, a friend of mine owns he's own plumbing business and makes a very good living out of it, the secret to he's success is, he is very very good and all he's customers recommend him to their friends. If there is any gas engineer/plumbers out there who are sat twiddling there thumbs then I'm very surprised, my mate is rushed off he's feet. You'd be surprised how many customers say they get let down by plumbers not turning, or you get some who turn up and either condem a boiler that just needs fixing or are honest with the customer and say "sorry love, don't work on them" because they don't know what they are doing. So before you slag British Gas off, ask yourself this, why do customers continue to come to British Gas.



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[Avatar]

It depends where you live as well - I have a friend with 40 years under his belt and he advised me to get out of gas work as he did himself when Gas Safe began . . . . .

I would say that dont get bent out of shape as I am well aware that not every guy working for BG is clueless. BG use proper engineer as well - which you very well may be!!!!


My personal experience with them has been bad however . . . .

 

[Doodlebug]

I'm sorry to here you've had so many bad experiences with British Gas, are they all personal experiences or what customers have told you, reason I'm asking is because sometimes the full truth can get lost in translation if you know what I mean.
What area of the country do you work in?

 

[Doodlebug]

@ all BG haters, all British Gas customers now get a phone call after the engineer has left asking for a score of 0-10 on how happy they are with the engineer and guess what, we're doing very well on our customer satisfaction scores. I suggest all the knockers concentrate on their own work, if British Gas are as bad as you all say then they will lose a lot of customers surely which will just make you that bIt busier.

 

[CES]

I don't hate British Gas, in fact I make a very good living going in after them when they quote for a boiler installation.
I used to subby for them like Villatom. Most of the guys I know are decent enough, although there are some chancers, but then again I know some chancers that are self employed too!

 

[hammers4spanner]

I dont think anyone hates BG more a case of people dont agree with their ethics of business , like i stated earlier post if a small business adopted the approach they have your name would be mud before you got to pub on friday after work .

regarding your pricing over the phone i dont generally do it as i always say couldn't possible know without seeing it , however if pushed i use 'FROM' but my from is never anything like £400 to fit a magna clean (mornings work) and then say if you dont have it your boiler will go kaput !!

 

[Destroyer2813]

Especially if its a 20 old floor standing cast hex boiler with big pathways in and a magnaclean is still advisers cos the 20 year old pump has packed up

 

[Doodlebug]

I would always recommend a Magnabooster, British Gas charge £289 to fit an in-day maga on an open system and £219 on a combi. If called out to fit then its £339 and £259. Don't know where your getting £400 from. If the customer doesn't want to pay us that price then fine, they can get you to do it for less and then you can go back every 12 months and service it for them and replace it free of charge if it develops a fault. (Its all yours) ;-)


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[Doodlebug]

Also Hammer4spanners, if while fitting this Magnabooster the job grows arms and legs, ie: blocked cold feed, do you still charge the same price you quoted or do you give them your time for nothing? And do all the extra work that's now involved free of charge?


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[Destroyer2813]

Question doodle, if a customer has four star cover are u required to attend a boiler call within 24 hrs ?

 

[Doodlebug]

If a customer has no heating or hot water and calls before 13:00 we promise to send an engineer the same day. Obviously in extreme circumstances this may not be possible for instance, during that very cold winter we did struggle to meet our commitments fully.

 

[Destroyer2813]

The customer I just replaced a boiler for called and reported a boiler breakdown and a engineer was due to call but then said they couldn't come on Monday, do you guys do Sunday calls ?

 

[Doodlebug]

The customer I just replaced a boiler for called and reported a boiler breakdown and a engineer was due to call but then said they couldn't come on Monday, do you guys do Sunday calls ?

Yes we work 7 days a week and always someone available 24/7 for emergency calls. When did you replace the boiler for the customer? Have they had a first visit inspection on this boiler?

 

[Destroyer2813]

Yeah guy was supposed to out on Sunday but said couldn't come till Monday for original call, I replaced earlier in week and they had a inspection/price

 

[Doodlebug]

Yeah guy was supposed to out on Sunday but said couldn't come till Monday for original call, I replaced earlier in week and they had a inspection/price

If we haven't actually been to visit this boiler since it went in, its actually not covered. Think of it like this, if you get a new car say replace an old Datsun 100a with a top of the range Mercedes then obviously you will let your insurance company know as there is a big difference. If the boiler has only just been fitted and has developed a fault already then its the manufacture you need to call and once fixed, the customer needs to arrange for British Gas to do a first visit inspection to accept it on to contract.


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[hammers4spanner]

Also Hammer4spanners, if while fitting this Magnabooster the job grows arms and legs, ie: blocked cold feed, do you still charge the same price you quoted or do you give them your time for nothing? And do all the extra work that's now involved free of charge?


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well there you go your answer straight away edges towards looking for extras before you even got through the door!!!!


done boiler change last year with blocked cold feed for main contractor for HA's paid £250 for boiler change .Boiler on the wall loving it by 12 cold feed unblocked by 0ne home by two why charge more????


greed!!!!! is your answer !

 

[Destroyer2813]

If we haven't actually been to visit this boiler since it went in, its actually not covered. Think of it like this, if you get a new car say replace an old Datsun 100a with a top of the range Mercedes then obviously you will let your insurance company know as there is a big difference. If the boiler has only just been fitted and has developed a fault already then its the manufacture you need to call and once fixed, the customer needs to arrange for British Gas to do a first visit inspection to accept it on to contract.




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The new one aint got a problem they came and inpsected the old one and quoted for replacment, there cancelling the 4 star any way i think

 

[Doodlebug]

well there you go your answer straight away edges towards looking for extras before you even got through the door!!!!


done boiler change last year with blocked cold feed for main contractor for HA's paid £250 for boiler change .Boiler on the wall loving it by 12 cold feed unblocked by 0ne home by two why charge more????


greed!!!!! is your answer !

My point is, if there is extra work involved while fitting the magnabooster then British Gas will do this without extra charge, would you?

 

[EPH]

You can't beat quoting against BG, always get the job as nobody's more expensive and the customer gets a better job done.

 

[hammers4spanner]

My point is, if there is extra work involved while fitting the magnabooster then British Gas will do this without extra charge, would you?

your answer is in my post

 

[Doodlebug]

You can't beat quoting against BG, always get the job as nobody's more expensive and the customer gets a better job done.

Is that a fact?