Fire extinguisher check

One of our fire extinguishers

Today the fire extinguisher man came.

Having an outside GPL tank (‘bombolone’ as it’s called) means it’s compulsory to own at least one fire extinguisher and to have it regularly maintained.

Maintenance of fire extinguishers is obviously a lucrative business rife with ‘customer poaching’ and general sharp practice .

After engaging a particular company, through recommendation, to supply and maintain our 2 extinguishers, we received a visit last year from a technician in a van with the company logo. He offered a discount as per the laminated notice inside his van if we paid up front for the next visit as well. Which I did.

Then, lo and behold, a different technician turned up a month or so later. He knew nothing of the offer, assured me he was the real deal, and said the previous one was a rogue who’d been fired by the company.

I was thoroughly confused, and called the previous technician (whose mobile number I had taken because he had said to trust no-one else) AND the company. Each argued vociferously in favour of themselves and against the other party. I was so fed up with them that I did something I’ve never done before nor since: I put the 2 receivers together and let them get on with it.

In the end I was convinced by the technician who was actually on the scene. He told me that if I’d peeled the logo off the van that made the last visit, I would have found the details of a completely different fire extinguisher company underneath.

Cloak and dagger in the fire extinguisher world!

I never recouped the money paid up front last time, but I’m confident we’ve got it right now. Till the next time, that is!