Left in the dark over the bill for a new bulb

SIR – I can certainly beat Sally Hands’s exorbitant call-out fee for replacing a light bulb in her Neff oven (Letters, December 26).

In 2006 I puzzled for a while over replacing a broken sidelight bulb on my VW, and eventually gave up. A main VW dealer quoted me £460 to fit a new bulb. I asked why the price was so high, and was told that the task required the removal of the front grille and bumper as well as the headlight washer system. The time needed to put it all back again drove up the cost still further.

A local independent garage eventually did the job for £24, including the cost of the bulb. I didn’t bother to ask how they managed it. Alan S Greer

Maidenhead, Berkshire

SIR – I would urge Sally Hands to have more faith in her own ability.

I was recently faced with the same problem in my Neff oven. My husband purchased a replacement bulb, then said we would have to get an electrician in to install it. Knowing that the call-out fee would be considerable, I decided I would at least try to do it myself first.

Following the instructions in the Neff booklet, I managed to prise the cover off the light bulb and replace it with the new one relatively easily – and, I might say, with considerable satisfaction. Jenny Slatter

Menheniot, Cornwall

SIR – I have found that the problem with trying to change an oven bulb oneself lies with the difficulty in removing the bulb cover.

Buy a replacement 40W oven bulb and purchase online a £4.99 plastic lamp cover remover tool, which fits both Neff and Bosch ovens. Heat the oven at 50C for one hour. Turn it off, and immediately place the remover tool over the bulb cover. To give better leverage, insert the metal shaft of a screwdriver along the groove in the bulb cover remover tool and push on the handle of the screwdriver. You should find that the cover will now turn easily. Liz Tidey

Newdigate, Surrey