Consumer unit

[peevee]

Following an EICR I was asked to have fitted a consumer unit in my rented property.

I subsequently received the bill for £672 and paid. For this sort of outlay and given that as a landlord it's my responsibility if anything goes wrong I asked for the guarantee for the unit installed. Neither the agent nor the contractor are able (or are unwilling) to provide this. I was simply sent a link to a website which didn't even specify the type of unit installed.

I've no proof of purchase, no proof of the type of unit installed and whether it's an approved model so if it's faulty I'm likely to have to cough up again.

Surely this isn't normal ? Who do I contact to get satisfaction ?

Thanks

 

[andyb]

I can't agree with your comment and the "lifetime" workmanship guarantee you claim
From experience all terminals work loose over time no matter how diligently they are tightened during installation.
With copper creep you can torque a terminal and 10 minutes later you can re-torque it and it will tighten a little bit more
It is not unusual to find terminals that are not as tight as they should be on a 2 year PPM or a 5 year EICR so without a regular maintenance visit yes problems can and will occur

Especially if the terminals are subjected to any thermal stress the heating and cooling/expansion contraction will loosen them.

This totally misses the point and it's getting a bit tedious now.

What's so hard to understand about workmanship???

Of course terminals can loosen over time, if the termanitations were made correctly then that’s fine, you've done the job correctly so what’s the problem? You’re not guaranteeing the job itself forever.

Let me give you an example then I’m out of here.

You do a rewire, a couple of years later you get a call from your client asking to come and look at an issue he has with the rcd tripping. You investigate and discover that you nicked a cable with a screw when refitting the floorboards and it’s just showing now. You sort it and leave.

Now, that was my fault, I did this and I’m responsible, I would not charge. This is 2 years later so you guys would, Now what do you do? Do you come up with some cock and bull story such as ‘this happens over time guv, them there screw move due to harmonics and go through cables on their own £100 please’? Or do you say ‘that’s my fault, I screwed through a cable but it’s over 12 months later so pay up’?

That’s me done with this thread.

 

[Risteard]

This totally misses the point and it's getting a bit tedious now.

What's so hard to understand about workmanship???

Of course terminals can loosen over time, if the termanitations were made correctly then that’s fine, you've done the job correctly so what’s the problem? You’re not guaranteeing the job itself forever.

Let me give you an example then I’m out of here.

You do a rewire, a couple of years later you get a call from your client asking to come and look at an issue he has with the rcd tripping. You investigate and discover that you nicked a cable with a screw when refitting the floorboards and it’s just showing now. You sort it and leave.

Now, that was my fault, I did this and I’m responsible, I would not charge. This is 2 years later so you guys would, Now what do you do? Do you come up with some cock and bull story such as ‘this happens over time guv, them there screw move due to harmonics and go through cables on their own £100 please’? Or do you say ‘that’s my fault, I screwed through a cable but it’s over 12 months later so pay up’?

That’s me done with this thread.

No-one suggested that in specific circumstances where they knew that they had been at fault that they wouldn't rectify it, even after the year. This does not mean that it is sensible to commit in writing to more than a year's warranty on labour, however. I'm a decent person and wouldn't check the calendar for a decent customer who had an issue where it was clear that it was something which was pre-existing. (That said, I'm careful not to leave issues!) But I certainly won't tie myself in knots by guaranteeing beyond a year subject to statutory rights. It's not sensible as a business to do that in my opinion.

 

[Pretty Mouth]

This totally misses the point and it's getting a bit tedious now.

What's so hard to understand about workmanship???

Of course terminals can loosen over time, if the termanitations were made correctly then that’s fine, you've done the job correctly so what’s the problem? You’re not guaranteeing the job itself forever.

Let me give you an example then I’m out of here.

You do a rewire, a couple of years later you get a call from your client asking to come and look at an issue he has with the rcd tripping. You investigate and discover that you nicked a cable with a screw when refitting the floorboards and it’s just showing now. You sort it and leave.

Now, that was my fault, I did this and I’m responsible, I would not charge. This is 2 years later so you guys would, Now what do you do? Do you come up with some cock and bull story such as ‘this happens over time guv, them there screw move due to harmonics and go through cables on their own £100 please’? Or do you say ‘that’s my fault, I screwed through a cable but it’s over 12 months later so pay up’?

That’s me done with this thread.

In this example, I would put my hand up, fix it and make no charge. But not a great example as either I'm using ridiculously long screws, or it's a blatant non compliance as the cables are <50mm under the floor. It is clear that the fault is mine.

Let's change the example to "RCD tripping, the cables under the floor are damaged, but it's unclear how they were damaged".

Within 12 months, it's a fair bet that the damage occurred on installation, and it was my fault. After 12 years, I would say it was possible, but unlikely that the damage was there from the start. At some point between the 2 dates, the fault has gone from being my responsibility, to not being my responsibility. When exactly is this cut off point?

With a lifetime guarantee, there is no cut off point, and, after 12 years, my customer may reasonably argue that I should fix the above FOC.

With a 12 month guarantee, everyone knows where they stand. I fix all faults with the installation free of charge, be they due to failing materials or poor workmanship, unless it's clear that the problem was caused by rats or the plumber. After that date, I can still fix any problems that I feel are my fault, at my discretion.

 

[telectrix]

should be a set guidline for guarantees. all my work is fully guranteed until 2 minutes after payment is either cash or cleared funds. ??

 

[scootknew]

peevee did u pull up in a lambo? that can add a few $$$ onto the price

 

[peevee]

Well I’ve definitely ruffled a few feathers here amongst those in the trade but it certainly wasn’t my intention and unlike some who have assumed I want a lifetime guarantee it’s far from the truth. Nothing nowadays lasts for more than 10 years unless you’re lucky.
The analogy with a car repair isn’t that far from the truth in one respect - it’s done either to be roadworthy again or to simply pass an MOT but not necessarily done with any sense of professionalism nor rigour. With respect we’re talking about something slightly different for which I don’t have the choice about the ‘garage’ to have this done but ultimately I’m responsible
Still waiting for the agent’s reply after a month - maybe I’m just a moaner who should cough up whatever the consequences. Anyone who demands their rights is seen oddly in a negative sense nowadays

 

[peevee]

Well after nearly two months and after following it up I finally managed to prise a NAPIT compliance certificate via the agents. I suppose this is about as much as I can expect as it at least puts in black and white that I'm covered for 6 years even if the contractor goes out of business. Thanks for all your imput - varying opinions but it's nice to know there are serious people out there even if you don't all agree !

 

[i=p/u]

6 yr guarantee theyl awnser the phone.

 

[UNG]

A 6 year warranty that's long enough for 2 regs amendments to be issued and possibly even a new edition and have a non compliant consumer unit

 

[MJPD29]

Should anything actually go wrong with highly doubt it'll be worth the paper it's written on. Good luck anyway.