Rescue yourself from rip-off emergency repairs

The cheapest way to get cover for home emergency repairs - without paying for rip-off boiler breakdown insurance.

I've long believed that boiler breakdown cover is a rip-off. And today, I'm going to explain why.

To understand the appeal of these policies, you have to have BBF: Boiler Breakdown Fear. Specificially, BBF in the dead of winter - particularly, say, on Christmas Day. Companies like British Gas will use your BBF to sell you policies that cost hundreds of pounds a year.

But this is the price I pay for peace of mind, I hear you cry. What alternative do I have?

Home emergency cover

While most homeowners - particularly the elderly - have been targeted by boiler breakdown companies at some point, few have heard of 'Home Emergency Cover' (HEC).

Personally, I think it's well worth knowing about. With a standard policy, you get up to £500 towards call-out charges, labour costs, parts and materials - plus up to £100 for temporary accomodation - with no excess, for anything deemed 'an emergency' in the home.

For example, it typically includes:

• Boiler breakdown or any kind of heating failure
• Breakdown of any essential service to your home, such as the water or electricity supply
• Sudden and unexpected roofing problems
• Blockages in toilet waste pipes
• Plumbing problems related to leaking pipes, blocked drains, water tanks or leaking radiators
• Failure of gas or electricity within the property
• Loss of all keys needed to get into your home
• Broken or damaged windows and doors that are a security risk
• Any other sudden or unforseen circumstance which renders your home uninhabitable or exposes you to a health or security risk.

In other words, if you want peace of mind, HEC offers it in spades. So how much does it cost?

As a standalone policy, typically £7 or £8 a month. But if you buy it from your existing home insurer, the cost falls to around £4 a month, as the table below shows:

*available from 8th March.

NB: Always compare the total cost of your insurance policy, including HEC.

So, on average, you can add on HEC onto your home insurance for about £50 a year.

It's also worth noting that some insurers offer greater cover than others. Swinton, for example, offers ?up to £750 in call out charges, parts and labour (£250 more than most). So check the small print before you buy.

So what's the catch?

Obviously HEC covers many more emergencies than boiler breakdown cover.

But that doesn't mean it can substitute it entirely. The biggest downside with HEC is that it doesn't cover maintenance. So no annual boiler servicing.

Mind you, a Which? Local survey carried out May 2008 found that the average UK price for an annual service on a six-year-old non-condensing wall-mounted gas boiler was only £60. (This was based on quotes from 321 companies across the UK.) 

So, you can have HEC and an annual boiler service for around £110 a year, with no excesses to pay. Compare this to boiler breakdown policies. Most cost at least £140, and even then, some will charge a £50 call-out fee. 

However, it is important to note that - unlike with home emergency cover -  most decent boiler breakdown contracts will replace your boiler free of charge, if it cannot be repaired. But watch out: buried in the small print, you'll usually find this only applies if the boiler is less than seven years old. 

Obviously, the newer the boiler, the less likely it is to break down completely to a point where it cannot be repaired. Plus, most will be covered by the manufacturer's warranty for the first year of its life, if not longer.

So you may be prepared to risk it with the repairs-only cover offered by a HEC policy, instead.

Pros and cons

I guess what it boils down to (if you'll excuse the pun) is what peace of mind means to you.

For example, if you have a boiler that is between one and six years old, and you want to be sure that it will be replaced if necessary, then boiler breakdown cover probably still is your only option.

But if your boiler is over seven years old, or you want to be covered for all emergency repairs - plumbing, electricity, security as well as heating - then I think you will be much better off with HEC, plus an annual boiler service and safety check. 

This is especially the case because repairs often go wrong, and home insurers which provide HEC are regulated by the Financial Services Authority. So if there is a problem with shoddy service, you can complain to the ombudsman. There is no such recourse with local tradesman and many of the boiler breakdown suppliers.

Of course, to get total peace of mind, you'd buy both HEC and boiler breakdown cover. But be aware that then you are, to some extent, paying twice for the same thing.

Whichever method you choose should, remember to shop around for a competitive quote - and don't let your boiler breakdown fears keep you awake at night!

Compare home insurance quotes today?