Is your estate agency looking for 24-hour heating contractors in Edinburgh?
With so many properties on your books, it’s good to have someone you can rely on in emergency situations, and I know this is a concern for many of my clients. In fact, over the years I’ve been asked time and time again whether we provide this service, but sadly there’s not much of a demand for 24-hour heating contractors.
In fact, many local heating engineers and boiler specialists – including others such as Scott Findlay Plumbing & Heating, Contract Heating, TB Mackay and First Call Home Assist – do not offer this service, as we simply can’t afford to have someone waiting in their van at all hours of the night on the off-chance someone will call.
So, who will be there to answer your call in an emergency? That’s a very good question.
For gas emergencies, always call the number located on the front of your gas meter (it should be 0800 111 999). This way you can arrange to have an emergency engineer to your property within two hours.
For all other emergencies (such as boiler leaks and plumbing problems etc.) you can count on some of the companies listed below.
1. Scottish Gas
Market leader Scottish Gas is also notorious for being quite pricey, but you’ll find they cover most hours and days of the week (365 days a year), as well as having the greatest manpower behind them for emergency call-outs.
They may not always have parts right away, but this is one of the companies that you can be sure will answer your call and come out to diagnose the problem.
2. Walker Gas Services
An experienced, reliable company, Walker Gas Services offer service contracts and one-off boiler repairs in Edinburgh. They also carry out work for national company Homecare, and they offer 24-hour call-outs, 365 days of the year at not unreasonable prices.
I’d definitely recommend giving them a ring if you’re in a pickle!
3. AA Home Service
AA Home Service is another large, national company with very mixed online reviews and quite promisingly, no call-out charges (which is what we like to hear over at Superwarm).
Their website states: “From burst pipes and faulty electrics to broken boilers, our qualified AA engineers are ready to deal with your emergency 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.”
4. Homeserve
Homeserve’s motto is: “We’ll take care of it.” The company uses agents and sub-contractors to cover a wide area all over the UK. They first started out as a small plumbing company, but have since become one of the biggest in the country, so they must be doing something right.
Call them for 24-hour cover any time of the year for when you need a heating engineer to see to one of your property’s boiler, plumbing or electricity in off-peak hours.
5. Cummings Plumbing Edinburgh
Cummings Plumbing Edinburgh is a smaller company, and provide a separate mobile number on their website for out-of-hours call-outs. They provide genuine emergency call-outs when you need it, and they cover a range of services including plumbing, boiler, drainage and electrical repairs.
Remember, sometimes the smaller companies can sometimes provide a more personal touch and will go the extra mile, so don’t be put off by the fact that they might not have as much manpower behind them as the likes of Scottish Gas.
6. Postcode Plumbers
This company refers to itself as Edinburgh’s leading plumbing and heating company. Postcode Plumbers covers everything from leaks, blocked toilets and burst pipes, to boiler and heating repairs – regardless of the size of the job.
I’ve never personally came across them before whilst pricing jobs, so don’t really have any experiences to share, but they do provide separate freephone numbers for emergency gas and emergency plumbing services.
Weigh up your options first
Hold on just a second! Before making that call, think about whether it’s absolutely necessary to call out a heating engineer or contractor during off-peak hours. Remember, this could cost you up to double the price of standard hours.
If you can do your homework and know where to locate and isolate the water supply, electricity and gas, in most cases doing this should see you through until the morning/next day.
In summary
I hope this blog will see you through in an emergency, and has provided you with a good resource of contractors your estate agent business can turn to if you ever need it.
Remember, for gas emergencies, always call the number located on the front of the property’s gas meter (it should be 0800 111 999), and an emergency engineer will be sent to your property within two hours.
Have you had experiences with any of the above companies? Let me know in the comments.
