Murphy's Law
If a boiler is going to breakdown it is going to do it on one of the coldest nights of the year.
Fortunately we didn't have guests in (closed for re-decoration) and also fortunately we have insurance to cover such eventualities. Major repairs are being carried out this morning without costing us a penny
It still begs the question why a new boiler, supplied and fitted by British Gas (and maintained under contract) needs such major repairs less than 5 years after installation
Any other B&B owner take heed . . .get insurance to cover the repairs and also to cover loss of business. We adopt a belt and braces approach with back-up systems in place (hot water and heating) but I'm sure many smaller establishments haven't thought about the possibiliy of major breakdown of either hot water, heating, or in the case of Gas both.