What should I do if my boiler breaks down?

If your boiler has broke down, or you think it is unsafe, you should contact 247 Home Rescue immediately. We operate a 24/7 service, so no matter what time of the day it is, we’ll be here to help.

It is actually against the law for people to use gas appliances they believe are not safe. The best thing for you to do – other than make a boiler breakdown cover claim – is to turn the appliance off. You should not even touch it until an engineer has visited your property to take a look at it. But what else should you do if your boiler breaks down?

Only use Gas Safe-registered engineers for gas boiler breakdown work

All gas work must be performed by Gas Safe-registered engineers. People who are not registered or competent to work on gas fittings can still perform so-called ‘wet work’, such as installing radiators and water pipes, but any work on the boiler, including plumbing the boiler in and connecting it to the water supply, can only be done by registered professionals.

You can tell if an engineer is Gas Safe-registered because they will carry an ID card. This ID card will contain a picture of the engineer and their registration details, but will also state the types of appliances the engineer is fit to work on.

Pay attention to this information – you should not allow an engineer to repair your boiler if their ID card says they are only qualified to work on gas fires, for instance. 24|7 Home Rescue members will always receive a visit from a Gas Safe-registered engineer who is qualified to work on their particular boiler or other gas appliance.

If you have any doubts about the advice you receive from an engineer, then feel free to get a second opinion from another engineer or get in touch with the Gas Safe Register by calling 0800 408 5500 or visiting their website.

Dealing with a boiler breakdown

If your boiler broke down, you might be annoyed about a lack of hot water or central heating – well with 24|7 Home Rescue, you should receive a visit from an engineer as soon as possible, so you won’t have to experience this frustration for very long at all!

Most boiler repairs take an hour or a couple of hours, but if your boiler needs significant repairs, or if you need a replacement, it might be a couple of days until the appliance is back up and running again.

Members of certain vulnerable groups may be able to ask their local authorities to provide them with temporary water heaters or electric radiators, so if it looks like your boiler might take a while to get back up to scratch and you are worried that this may cause health problems for you or someone else in your household, contact the council for advice.

If you would like to benefit from the excellent and affordable boiler cover offered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by our team, give us a call on 0345 3192 247 or fill in our online enquiry form!

Still having trouble?

Don’t attempt to touch any part of your boiler or central heating system if you’re unsure. Did you know? It’s illegal for anyone to use a gas appliance if they think it’s unsafe. It’s always better to be safe than sorry as you could make things worse.

Instead, call us on 0345 3192 247 and we can help. Our technical team will run through some simple troubleshooting to see if your problem can be resolved on the phone or they can book one of our friendly and knowledgeable Gas Safe registered engineers to get you back up and running as soon as possible.