UPDATE TO FOLLOWING POST:
For clarity, my lawyer states it is indeed 5 years between gas inspections. In the following, I mention I had been advised differently and from what seemed to me a 'reasonable' source.
Just goes to show it is very difficult to be sure no matter who tells you. And, to be brutally frank, my experience of lawyers here is less than wonderful. So, maybe it's every two weeks. (Give it time.)
At first glance, one would think the Vaillant rep I talked with, would know the score.. unless it was a deliberate upsell.
Frankly, who knows. It's a pass the buck country.
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I can completely relate to that.
I received a letter with a date to do the inspection. It was some offshoot outfit of Naturgy, my supplier. I took it as genuine but you do have to remain vigilant. It's an obvious new outlet for scamsters who will happily take up to €80 from you.
In trying to re-arrange the date for when I would actually be in Spain via a helpful tradesman who speaks Spanish, he was met with such obstructivenessness* it's hard to fathom (*and if that's not a word, it is now) but, after 20 minutes or so battling with this unfriendly, unwilling tyrant, the 'lady' said someone would call back.
You can guess the rest.
I suffer this dismissive, arrogant ignorance so very often in Spain when attempting to deal with any type of service provider. In essence, 'ignored.' Emails to the manager of my bank (the less than helpful Bankinter) get the same non-service.
And so, I had to leave for UK with this unresolved and musing what I would come back to. Cold showers came to mind. Oh, and no one able or willing to assist.
On my return, no gas. And no further comms warning of same. Nor even a letter to proudly announce that Naturgy had 'gone and done the deed.' In researching this new inspection lark, I was advised - I hope reliably - by a more helpful Vaillant representative that gas inspections are in fact required every two years. But, two, five, whatever.
That was it for me.
I simply wasn't going to put up with any further jumping-through-endless-hopeless-hoops bull**it any longer.
And, every two years - or whatever you may have heard - being threatened with or actually suffering another disconnection??
Not a chance. Once bitten.
Here was my subsequent thought process. It's an option: an 'out.' It may work for some of you out there. For me, I have, for sure, liberated myself from yet further, tiresome, arguably unecessary bureaucratic red tape here in Spain..
1. electricity standing charge is exhorbitent but...
2. if I get an electric water heater installed (was quoted an 80 litre capacity tank for €340 incl)..
3. at least I am getting more for my buck out of the elec standing charge while saying goodbye to the gas standing charge as I terminate my contract with them and which, for me, was only ever just to heat water for showers.
4. I estimated it would take three years to break even. And thereafter, I would be on a gain. I factored in the saving by not having to have inspections at all over that period, as a mean, and the additional saving by no longer having to also pay a gas standing charge. Or have the boiler serviced as is the wiser option with a gas boiler. Meantime and forever.. no further hassle, demands or threats or punitive end-action.. from anybody!
5. Also, if there is a gas outage, that can - I really mean 'would,' don't I? - potentially take ages to sort. If there is a power cut, EVERYBODY KNOWS INCLUDING THE ELEC PROVIDER and they are compelled to get it sorted pronto. A gas issue would be all down to you to firstly tell them about it and then attempt to get it sorted in a timely manner. Or at all, frankly. And good luck with that.
YEEHA !
So, that's what I did. I exercised the 'Sod*'em' strategy. About two weeks ago. I am now the proud owner of an electric water heater. Oh and get clobbered just the one energy charge. I gave Naturgy one more bite of the cherry by taking whatever they wanted from my bank (it was €10 or so) before then instructing Bankinter to take Naturgy off the hit list. I had a couple of weeks previously got that same Spanish speaking tradesman to instruct Naturgy I was terminating.
The trade off is for me (I preferred gas in principle because it is literally supply only on demand rather than storage) already more than outweighed by the sheer peace of mind of it. For now and the foreseeable.
I have my sexy new water heater set very low and basically tweak the thermo only when I want a shower. I may have to wait 20 minutes. I can live with that.
I have also bought a 24hr timer for €6 odd and can use that if I want the water temp upped automatically before I rise from my chambers in the morning(ish.) So, no tweaking, more snoring. I am not at all, then, keeping 80L of very hot water stuck to the wall unnecessarily. Ever, actually.
Specifically, I heat the water only to the temp I want to shower in. Once in the shower, the mixer tap gets dialled to max hot and out it runs as just warm which suits me. Perfect! No need to mess about adding cold to hot. After all, that would be just a waste of electricity when the water ends up too hot to start with! Now, that's when electric water heating would get expensive.
It's working very well for me so far and I have no regrets. And when I next visit my apartment, I will dial it up to the 'damned hot water' setting, just the once, so there is no risk whatever of Legionnaires a-lurking or any other nasty creepy crawly microbes that were living in the storage tank while I was away. (Legionnaires Disease, specifically Legionella bacteria, cannot survive beyond 50 degrees. So if it's heated to what you would describe as 'very hot water; too hot to shower in without mixing..' that'll do very nicely.)
And once my heater reaches that temp, my thermostat will be reverted to Scrooge mode for the rest of my visit.
Ad infinitum inspections forced on me - particularly as a non resident but in any event - were never going to be viable.
What a racket, me thinks. Nice work if you can get it. Well, not from me they can't.
Hope this is food for thought.
For me, it is proving a rather cunning 'get out' clause.
I always say 'If you can't beat them..
.. think harder on how to!!'
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