Hi,I applied for  a new boiler on the government grant scheme,had 3 chaps coming round on different days,checking various things,even to where the new boiler would be sited.I qualified,as am on state pension and credit,they came to install it last thursday,and after an hour told me they thought my pipework was too old to support the pressure of the new boiler,so theyd have to go and ask their boss if the grant would stretch to new pipework.No one contacted me,so after a week I rang them,to be told there wasnt enough money for the pipework,and of course i wouldnt be getting my boiler,either.Im so disapointed,as there is no way I can afford a new system.The boiler is old and frightens me with the racket it makes,the engineer who serviced it last said it had a cracked backplate,and was probably on its way out.It wouldve been such a relief to be free of the worry-and so close,too!
            What Id like to ask ,is ,has anyone else had similar,and has anyone any ideas what I could do,please?Is it worth trying a different company offering boiler grants,saying whats happened?

Could you afford to fund the pipework if you still get the grant for the boiler?

I know people who have been able to get the grant and top up the grant amount for extra work needed.

My friend was in this exact same position.

How old is your pipework? Just wondering if the company is trying to con money out of you to pay for new pipework. I would get a 2nd opinion. I know my own parents recently got a new gas boiler (paid by themselves) that replaced a 30 year old boiler. They had to pay to get the radiators flushed out but it was connected up to the existing pipework.

No get the pipework done as from experience and having to move out our house for 11 months and an insurance bill of nearly 100k later after the downstairs had to be gutted floors and all plaster replaced because of multiple leaks due to a boiler change it is not worth the risk.

They don't have to replace they can bypass the pipe work if it goes under the floor as our was so may not be that expensive but well worth challenging the grant administrators.

im not sure,roxylola,i darent really take any loan on,even if i could find a lender-my daughter maxed out my credit card(not frivolous,it was rent,car insurance etc after her partner lost his job)although she is paying it off,ive probably got a bad credit rating because of it.I have a small cleaning job to help out,but i cant really rely on that because i dont know how long i can keep it up,i seem to have galloping arthritis - so many aches and twinges!

i think itd already been in a few years when i moved in,and ive been here 13 years. someone else suggested a con, as well. I guess I could ring them again and at least find out if they would be willing to let me pay for the pipes-whether I could or not is a different matter!
   Thank you all for your replies.!  On a lighter note-when the boiler peeps left to see their boss,a parting shot was"see you in a few days,and make sure you have digestives and bourbons in!"well,I did-so at least i can do some comfort eating!

There are lots of companies who are involved with the Government scheme - I have had several leaflets through my door this week from different companies - so worth asking another company to come and look at your system and see what they say. If you google the scheme online I am sure you will find a huge array of different companines who offer that service. You can then compare their individual survey and see if they agree with each other.

we had a new boiler last year under the government grant scheme (we are in Scotland) and were told that there was xxx amount of money on the grant and if we needed more work done we would have to fund it ourselves although we ended up with a boiler and 1 extra radiator with no cost to ourselves.  Must add that it was a nightmare having the fitters in, they took liberties and did a lot of damage which their company denied liability for, and were poor workers and very inefficient. I think you should be given details of work needed, total cost of work, and amount of grant to be deducted from the total cost so you could ask for details of it all in writing. If you want any more info on our installation feel free to pm me.

About 14 years ago, we qualified for the government Warmstart boiler grant.   We were thrilled!    Until they said that they'd have to rip out our wall to get the pipes out (pipes were easy to get at, so no need)  and it would only cost us....

£6000         

We declined.

Last year, we knew we couldn't keep the old Baxi any longer, so we got some quotes.    For the boiler of our choice,  complete job ...

£2000   
Cheaper than the 'free' boiler from the government

They didn't rip the wall out as the pipes were indeed easily accessible.

The company were lovely,  the whole job was done in 5 hours and not a drop of water spilled.   They cleaned up totally, and a more pleasant bunch you couldn't hope to meet.       We were lucky, the original pipes were up to the job so only needed flushing.

We were told that if we'd had the very thin pipes, they'd have been replaced, but we had the older, wider pipes.

It might be an eye opener to get a few different quotes.       We got a recommendation from friends and family for the company we went with ;)

thankyou everyone.I think Id better get emailing.Im not giving up yet!Thanks for your help and advice,much appreciated.

quick update,in all the emails ive sent,including the one i sent to my mp,not one response!I now have a helpline number to ring!

Got a helpful email fom mp!Now trying eon,please wish me luck!

good luck