Swale Heating Avis 8 405

Since the sell out /merger to SureServe the service has completely tanked. Engineers fail to turn up with out notice. A typical call to the service desk will take 25 mins on hold and the supposed live chat is just a robot that will have you wanting to smash your head on the desk or throw your phone at a wall.

It's a real shame as the service from Swale Heating use to be excellent prior to SureServe's involvement.

My suspicion is that resources are now focused on the London and commercial contracts.

If you want a service provider in Kent, my experience and advise would be to look elsewhere.

No doubt the customer care team will put some lame response apologising for the dreadful service and some banal commitment to look into the issues. I've read lots of reviews and it's pretty clear my experience is consistent with those of lots of other customers (ex) and that the issues are most definitely not being addressed or resolved.

For many years I have had a premium boiler service plan at a rental property and have had good service from Swale Haeting. As landlords it’s important to have copies of the gas safety certificate. For the last 10+ days I have been trying to get a copy of the last inspection from Swale making several phone calls all of which have meant being on hold for over 15 minutes emailing their customer experience team only to get a computer generated reply ‘we will be in touch’ that was 4 days ago.
Since becoming part of Sureserve Compliance South the service level has gone downhill, and unless I get a copy of the gas safety this week I will have to move to British Gas

Appalling customer service from this company. Had a new boiler installed by Swale Heating (Sureserve) in December 2025. The electrician was booked but did not show up on the day. I received a phone call from customer ‘service’at 16.59 hrs on the day itself, to say he wouldn’t be turning up, and could I rebook. No apology whatsoever - no training in evidence there. Electrician turned up the following day, and said that the metal filter and the pump were located in the wrong places, and needed to be switched round, which was later done. The balance of the system has not been right since. Have messaged the company twice, and contacted the ex-service engineer who did the original quote - NO RESPONSE FROM ANYONE! Atrocious level of service, be warned!

Absolute scammers since they were taken over by SureServe. Swale heating people give out wrong numbers as do SureServe. Paying the monthly premium but they just wont respond with either email or phone.
DO NOT go with these people

It is impossible to get a meaningful response from Swale Heating since the takeover. I have waited on the telephone for 20 minutes or 15 minutes, and no-one picks up. A message via the Contact Us webpage produced no response. You used to be able to book an engineer visit online yourself, but not now. I am very pleased with my new boiler installed by Swale Heating two years ago, but I will not be renewing my contract after this drastic deterioration in customer service since the takeover.

Absolute sham of a company been left with exposed pipework holes in walls after heating system replaced. Old radiator pipework sticking out. AVOID

Can't get through to them at all as a private customer all day for days since joining forces with another company. I may have to cancel the contract if I can't get In touch soon

My mum is 88 years old and is having a very very bad experience with Swale/Sureserve. She’s been with them since 2017 paying every month, but she’s been treated absolutely disgracefully.
I first phoned on my mums behalf on 22/1/26, as her hot water wasn’t getting very hot, they booked an appointment to come out on 26/1/26 .(Monday)
The engineer came, and as she is living on her own,we said we would talk to the engineer over the phone while he was there, to explain the problem. So I could talk to him.
When he turned up at my mum’s she said she would call me as agreed. She told the engineer she was calling me, His reply was “Why? I’ve just told you what I’m going to do”. RUDE.
He said you need a new valve in the loft. He never even went up in the loft. He said it will take a week to order in. Then he left.
I then phoned Swale that day, they said an engineer would be at my mums with the valve on 27/1/26 (Tuesday) the next day, not a week as he said
Then On the 27/1/26 an engineer phoned my mum at 3pm and said he was outside. She opened the door but nobody was there. She said your at the wrong address,once he realised, he said he will be at her house soon as he had put in wrong postcode.But he Didn’t turn up. I phoned Swale they said an engineer will now be out the next day 28/1/26 (Wednesday)
On the 28th the Engineer turned up and it’s the same engineer who came out Monday.(The rude one). Me and my husband was there this time. He went in the loft and found out he ordered the wrong valve. Yet This would not have happened if he went in the loft and looked on the Monday. He also was told her Timer was not working.He said he would order it. He also told my husband that if my mum wants hot water she needs to change the plugs over in the airing cupboard. She cannot have heating and hot water at the same time until the repairs been done. He said he would be there the next day to do the valve and timer. I asked if he can make sure he has the correct parts for the job this time. She has bad arthritis in hands (which are visible) and has difficulty with plug's so couldn’t do it for long.
On the 29/1/26 (Thursday) the engineer phoned and told my mum he would be there between 1.30-2 pm.
He didn’t turn up.
I phoned Swale again and said this is terrible. They then said, yet again, someone would be out the next day.
On the 30/1/26 (Friday) an Engineer was suppose to turn up after 12 pm…but never turned up.
I phoned yet again at 5.30pm but got out of hours advisors which is emergency only.so couldn’t help, the office closed at five.
This was Friday evening so she had to wait until 2/2/26 (Monday) for me to call them AGAIN.
On the 2/2/26 (Monday)I Phoned Swale.
They said somebody would be out that day, but would be an all day appointment, I said ok… Nothing.
I phoned 4.30 pm and said nobody had been out could they give me a rough idea of how much longer the engineer will be. I was SHOCKED to be told anytime up until 11 pm.
I said that’s not good enough and explained my mum is 88 years old and said she shouldn’t be expected to open her door that late in the evening. The advisor said the engineer will phone when he’s outside so my mum would know who she’s letting in. I said ok, waited a little while but I was not happy and phoned back. Another advisor then said she would be happy to book the following morning (3/2/26) (Tuesday) for an engineer to come and do both repairs. I agreed as I’m not happy for my mum to answer her door when it’s dark and late at night. I also said I will be there when the engineer comes in the morning.
That night my mum phoned me at 7pm and said the engineer phoned saying he be 1-2 hours. She told him I rebooked for Tuesday morning as it’s late. He agreed and said he would be there in the morning.
On 3/2/26 (Tuesday) I arrived at my mums in the morning and waited for the engineer. Surprise surprise, he never turned up.
My mum got a call from a lady at 1 pm saying the engineer is running late, my mum said to her I hope he doesn’t come too late.
I then phoned Swale at 4.30pm as we hadn’t heard anything. They phoned the engineer he said he would be there 5.20 pm at the latest. I phoned my mum and told her, but said I don’t think he’s going to turn up. She was upset and said she’s having trouble changing plugs over now because of arthritis in her hands. I told her I would phone again tomorrow if he didn’t come….Which he didn’t.

To SWALE
My mum has been a loyal customer since 2017. I’ve been told all calls are recorded LISTEN to them and see how many times I’ve phoned.
My mum should be able to have HOT water and HEATING at the same time. That’s what she’s been paying for the last 9 years.
I feel sorry for people having to deal with companies like you, who don’t think about the older generation. If you read this please get in touch. My mum’s been messed around enough. It’s now been 13 days since my first call. This is not good enough, we are disgusted with the service.

My timer broke on my boiler and swale came out the guy said it was faulty .. now that could have been done the same day just go to get part but no a week later a person came ... Which I might add they wanted to change the appointment again ... I told them I am suppose to keep warm as I have a chest. Condition ... Anyway they came the guy came and said he had to get part so if he went to get part ... Badly organised from the office .... You need to treat your bread and butter customers better and since you are doing council work for all the London boroughs we no longer count ... You were once ok but now not as good but at least my boiler is up and running now with timer .... Thankyou .. but I really wouldn't recommend you anymore .... Sorry the first person who came should have got the part come back and fitted it on the same day ... what a waste of resources 2 people to do one job ......

Honestly the worst company that I have ever encountered. Nothing against the engineers, as I did not get the opportunity to see one, but the overall customer service, organisation and attitude of the telephone staff was absolutely abysmal. I’m a 43 year old professional male and I have never witnessed such appalling service.

4 appointments made 4 times they didnt bother showing up using excuses and just rebooking me time and time again. Then when I said dont attend on school hours he shows up a month later so again another week with no heating. Awful service. Sureserve are just as bad.

Needed a new boiler and Swale were bed efficient and professional in getting this done in the shortest time frame. Most of my interactions were with a representative named Grant. He was very friendly on the first visit, explained what would happen and with time frames and was honest with his pricing. There were a few hiccups that weren’t necessarily a result of any service provided by Swale but even despite this Grant was on hand by phone to help field my questions and concerns and was able to liaise with Swale/Sureserve on my behalf to assist me. I was really impressed with Grants level of customer service and I’m sure I’m not the only customer who feels this way. Grant is an asset to your company.

This company is awful at communicating with customers. You call and request Manager call back and it never happens. You email and they never reply. You phone customer service and after lengthy wait on phone they only take messages and pass these on which are then ignored. Weve had 3 engineer appointments booked and 3 no shows. We paid in advance for works which not carried out and now lost complete trust and faith in company after 20 years as a customer. Shocking and appalling how little consideration they give to customers. All we want is our money back and this is proving a real challenge.

Overall, the engineers are efficient and want to be helpful. The problem seems to lie with the booking systems and accessibility. My record wait on the phone has been 40+ minutes before giving up in frustration.
We have had cancelled service appointments; long waits for parts; and, most recently, the wrong job logged, resulting in the engineer calling to say that he was expecting to perform a job already completed, but unable to undertake the one required. Our main radiator that warms us downstairs has been cold all winter!
What on earth is going on at Swale? The engineers are very apologetic, and seem as frustrated as I !

I’ve put 1 star so that I can leave a review, would have preferred to leave zero stars. I’ve left a longer review on ‘io’ site so will be brief. DO NOT TAKE OUT A SERVICE CONTRACT WITH THIS COMPANY. They are unable to deliver, different engineer each time, engineers don’t communicate with each other or the office staff. 3 weeks without heating now and have given up. Long waits to speak to anyone then they make promises they can’t keep. I could go on……
Trustpilot, given all the recent appalling reviews I can’t see how you still have this as a mostly higher rated company.

I received a letter from Swale Heating advising that my annual service would be on 15th January and the engineer would arrive between noon and 6 pm, also to have boiler switched off for two hours before. We waited in all day without heating and, like many other customers, no engineer arrived and no phone contact made. I appreciate that breakdowns take priority over services, but we should have been advised. I tried to log on to their customer portal but this wasn't working. We have received no communication from the company and I have sent two emails to them on 15th and 17th January, receiving automated reply saying someone would get back to us in 24 hours. Nothing received. When reading Swale's responses to other dissatisfied customers, they always say the standard response of they will investigate. What a fob off. I dread to think what would happen if we had a breakdown, we would freeze. I pay £20.83 a month for breakdown cover including an annual service. I will now cancel my direct debit. This dreadful company have taken enough of my money. They are not adhering to the terms of their contract. Many years ago I lived in Sittingbourne, Kent, where the company first started and they did then have a good reputation. Not any more. DEFINITELY AVOID THEM.

Do not use this company. Still waiting for boiler service, they make appointments and then never turn up.
Appalling customer service.
No show for 3 appointments now.

No show to appointment yet again. Promised after last weeks no show to service boiler that they would definitely attend today. Told to switch off boiler before they arrive so no heating or hot water all day. No one cares that you take yet another day off work. No explanation and no contact from them. Truly diabolical. So now don’t have a new appointment, or any information as to when they might attend. It’s so disruptive. Don’t take out a contract with this company. They will never attend your property.

Been with Swale for many years, since they installed my boiler, and every year getting the yearly service my monthly DD covered was a nightmare. If I called them a snarky receptionist complained I didn't need to call as they would call me when the service was due. Ok, great, so the next year I didn't call and nobody called me so a year with no service. So the next year I called again and again got a pissed off woman telling me they would call me!!

Their engineers are very much a mixed bag. Some are excellent, can't do enough for you, but the majority don't seem to care. Admittedly more than a few tell me this is down to Swale and how they manage appointments making it impossible for engineers to get to all of them in the given time. But some just can't wait to get out of your house it seems.

Since they turned into SureServe they have, if possible, got even worse! Last years service was more of a nightmare than usual. Got a date booked, no one came. Called Swale who said the engineer had listed it as he HAD called but couldn't get access, even though me and my wife were home all day with the heating off.

The next day that engineer didn't turn up either. Called again and eventually a lady called me back to say the area manager had told the engineer to get to my address before 6pm and do the service ... no one turned up. A few days later, trying for the 3rd time, an engineer did arrive and swept through the service and was out the door in minutes.

Am now trying to figure out how to cancel my contract with them!

boiler stopped working again for the fifth time in the last year. The resident is a stroke victim and she spoke to someone in the call centre at 8 o’clock on the 11th of January. The resident made the call herself they were aware that she was a stroke victim. They advised that it could take all day
No one had called to give an update so the resident called sureserve back at 5 pm and spoke to an extremely rude young man Who said it could take up until midnight.
It’s now 8:11 on the 12th of January
I stayed with a resident all night.the resident has just called swale Heating only to be told that they did not know that the tenant was vulnerable.
I dispute that because they spoke to the resident and I was here when the call took place. They work on behalf of Clarion so to be fair I don’t expect anything else but a sub standard service they’ve given me their customer care details and advised me that I can make a complaint on behalf of the tenant, but I think it makes more sense for as many people as possible to know just how poor the service is to probably go with another service provider other than Swale or sureserve
Update 11.28 am
The resident is still in a cold property
The boiler has not been repaired,the property has not been attended .
Your response appears to be a cut and paste exercise and your apology will not keep her warm.
She is cold ,diabetic and your company has let her down
What can you do to help???
UPDATE 13.11
It’s beginning to feel as if the tenant is being punished for talking about her experience with Swale Heating and I would hope that this would be something that would be taken into consideration when Clarion look at tenders for the next year2026/2027.
Nobody has called. Nobody has given an update. The property has now been cold for more than 30 hours.
The tenant and her carer were advised that now that the repair would be treated as an urgent issue and the property will be visited within four hours that was at 8 o’clock this morning that was five hours ago.
It just appears to be very unusual behaviour I would mention although I’m sure this has got nothing to do with it that the resident is a person of colour I’m absolutely certain though …………..that this lack of accountability has nothing to do with the service that Swale Heating are providing
Or as it happens, are not providing .
The resident has been asked to confirm that this is a true and accurate account of what has happened
the resident stand by her comments as do I