British Gas Jobsworth

Not DIY I know but could somebody give me an opinion please. I have a property that I rent out, I am the landlord. Apparantly the meter needs changing due to it's age (1992). The BG engineer came round yesterday to change it and said "I can't do that mate, lead piping on YOUR side" He pointed to the pipe from the meter to the house pipework. The lead pipe is screwed on both ends so no sweating was used to attatch it. Apparantly not to current regs. This pipe has been in as long as I have had the house (4 years) and presumably since the meter was put in 15+ yearsago. The BG man said it should be noticed on my next Gas Safety Check.

The conversation went as such.

Me: "OK, can you do it when you change the meter and bill me for the pipe and labour"? BG: "No, it isn't our responsibility, you need to get a CORGI registered engineer to do it" Me: "Are you not CORGI registered then"? BG: "Yes but I cannot do it, it is your responsibility" Me: "I am ASKING you to do it for me then please, I WILL pay you" BG: " I cannot do 'foreigners' Sir, it is more than my job's worth"! Me: "I am not asking for a 'guvvy job', can you do it please on behalf of BG and give me a bill"? BG: "No, it isn't our responsibility, you need to get a CORGI registered engineer to do it"

At which point I started losing the will to live and asked him to leave.

The pipe is approx 18" long and has large screw fitting , not unlike a compression fitting but bigger. Does anybody know a rough cost I should expect for doing this work as I cannot face calling BG to ask them!!

Cheers

John

Reply to
John
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The advice was very simple for you, call someone to change the pipe, then call BG and get the meter changed. It's not really worth a newsgroup post is it! He isn't a jobsworth, your "type" would be the first to complain and put in a compensation claim if there was an incident after the meter was changed. Health & Safety rules are important. If you want to put yourself and others at risk, it shows what sort of person you are.

Reply to
john

=================================== It seems to me that in this instance the BG employee acted very properly and in your best interests. British Gas, like any other business, are entitled to choose which work they do and they seem to have made it very plain that they do not do work on a customer's pipework. The BG employee doesn't make the rules so he couldn't do the job without authority and he declined the opportunity to do a 'cash-in-hand' foreigner which could have compromised both himself and yourself.

Cic.

Reply to
Cicero

Doesn't NEED doing: according to regs (which I CBA to dig out ATM) you're not allowed to do new lead pipework for gas but lead piping currently in service is OK to leave in (provided it's in OK condition, natch). I suppose there may be some argument when changing a meter since that there's a risk of disturbing the lead and inducing a leak but I'd be inclined to challenge them to either say (and justify) that the installation is currently At Risk due to the pipework or accept that it isn't (or at worst is Not to Current Standards, which doesn't require a request or demand to shut off appliances or service) and replace the meter.

Or if you don't want the hassle get a RGI in to do it. If I were doing it it'd prpbaby cost you about £65.

Reply to
John Stumbles

I'd share your frustration.

I suspect the part you want is on this page

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I'd get the part, book another BG visit, and offer the guy a tenner to install it when he changes the meter.

David

Reply to
Vortex

Read the Op again .A " cash in hand" foreigner was not being asked for .

Reply to
Stuart B

================================== I don't need to re-read the OP because I'm well aware that 'cash-in-hand' was not being *asked for* . What I said was that the BG employee had an easy *opportunity* to offer such an arrangement but did not do so. Many less honest tradesmen would have taken advantage of the situation to pocket a fee dishonestly and improperly.

Cic.

Reply to
Cicero

Well ,ever reluctant as I am to be pedantic ,you did not say

"that the BG employee had an easy *opportunity* to offer such an arrangement but did not do so"

you said

" and he declined the opportunity to do a 'cash-in-hand' foreigner"

It could be argued that if it wasn't offered then it couldn't be declined . :-)

Reply to
Stuart B

================================== It could indeed, if you have a penchant for nit-picking , as you clearly have.

Cic.

Reply to
Cicero

Yup, fair enough...

Well since this is a DIY group it might be. Most folks round here would take the hint, learn what they need to know, change the pipe, then get BG back to change the meter.

This is a load of bollocks.

How do you manage to complete a full character assessment (assassination?) on a single post is beyond me. Secondly if you had read what the OP wrote, you would realise that the OP was attempting to employ a professional gas fitter to carry out the required work safely. Hardly a policy that is likely to contravene any important "Health & Safety rules", certainly not one that would be putting anyone at risk.

Quite

Reply to
John Rumm

Occasionally seen on the installation-pipework side, but the kosher way to do that side is simply an appropriate bit of copper pipework, usually

22mm. You'd probably want a BES P/N 0981 or 0977 from
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washer, sold separately) to connect to the meter
Reply to
John Stumbles

H&S rules? LOL, the OP was asking the BG guy -a CORGI engineer- to fit it. Either you can't read or you are sarcastic about BG's ability -and CORGI engineers'- to fit a pipe.

Reply to
Emil Tiades

Yes it is. It raises a point many wern't aware of.

Who better to change a gas pipe than British Gas? (clue in the name).

Reply to
The Medway Handyman

"John" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@bt.com:

I have a

meter

I sympathise But as you are a landlord just get a Corgi in to replace the pipe and do another gas safety inspection. You know it makes sense !

{John number 4 by the looks of things}

Reply to
John

i had a gas meter moved no more then 4 feet cost me £500 they ( BG) connected it to thier gas main but i had to get a corgi guy to connect the meter to the house main as BG dont get involved in connections to the house side of the meter.

Reply to
reg

Are BG engineers individually Corgi registered, or only 'covered' whilst working directly for Corgi-registered BG?

Reply to
Frank Erskine

The world's gone mad - largely due to privatisation which has split the responsibility for everything between numerous parties!

When my previous house has built (in the late 1960's) the builders (or maybe the Gas Board?) installed a capped-off pipe in the garage, which was connected to the gas main. The builders installed another pipe alongside it which was connected to the gas points in the house. We didn't initially use gas, until I installed a central heating boiler. Whereupon I requested a supply from BG (probably the West Midlands Gas Board in those days) and they came along and installed a meter - and supplied and installed 2 short lengths of lead pipe to connect the meter to the 2 pipes mentioned above. I imagine that was standard practice.

So why all this rubbish about everything downsream of the meter being the owner's responsibility, when it was very likely installed by BG (or their predecessors) in the first place.

When I moved into my current house in 1977 (also built in the late 60's) there were lead pipes either side of the meter - just like the previous house. The one on the consumer side is still there! The one on the supply side was changed a couple of years ago by contractors working on behalf of BG - or maybe Transco - who were replacing the cast iron gas main with plastic. I think they also changed the meter, but can't remember for certain. Nothing was said about the lead pipe!

Reply to
Roger Mills

Wouldn't this have been a bloke from Transco rather than British Gas?

Reply to
Bolted

OP here, will this not cause another 'problem' though? If I get my CORGI man in (I am awaiting a call back after the weekend) to replumb in fixed piping, i.e. not flexible, and then BG jobsworth comes back and the new meter is a different size will he not do it or will he presumably alter 'his' side of the pipework to suit. I just cannot see why he couldn't do it at the same time and get BG to bill me!

Just to clear up any mis-understandings that there may be from other posters, I was NOT asking for a 'cash in hand' job, the supplier of gas to the property is BRITISH GAS (tenants choice), and I have spoken to BG call centre and after what seemed like hours on the phone was told it wasn't their responsibility and couldn't help, I needed to "get a CORGI registered engineer in, and the call us back to arrange a meter change".

As a side issue as BG wont work on MY side of the meter how and why do they carry out boiler services etc?

Cheers

John ( No. 1 )

Reply to
John

Reply to
Mark

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