Plumbing is an industry and as we all know there are good guys and bad guys trying to get your attention and your money. Unfortunately, as I see it, things aren’t that simple as there are at least two boxes that have to be ticked for a plumber to be classed as good. Firstly he has to have the skills and secondly he has to have some scruples.

Plumbers who are highly skilled and have all the relevant qualifications can still be classed as bad plumbers in my book if they have dodgy scruples. So for example, your chosen plumber might turn up on time, diagnose the problem in a minute, fix the problem within an hour but then charge you an extortionate fee for his troubles. To me that still makes him a bad plumber and one I wouldn’t recommend to my friends or family. On the other hand there are the plumbers that charge reasonable rates but take an eternity to do the work because they’re not sure exactly what they’re doing. Again this doesn’t say ‘good plumber’ to me.

So what does a plumber need in order to be classed as ‘good’?

A quote that is reasonable and not too dissimilar from others – one of the golden rules when hiring any tradesperson is to get at least three quotes before agreeing to anything. A good plumber will give a quote that is similar in price to any others that you have – it may be a bit more expensive if they are a well established company but in general it shouldn’t be anything silly. They should also be able to guarantee that there are no hidden costs that aren’t on the quote, such as taking away old parts or waiting time while they order anything they need.

Word of mouth recommendations – any plumber that comes with personal recommendations is automatically classed as good. After all, you wouldn’t recommend a tradesman to your friends if he did a rubbish job, charged you the earth and left your house looking like a bomb site. Similarly you wouldn’t recommend him if he had awful manners, left the job half finished or ran off with all your valuables. Word of mouth is a good place to start when looking for a good, reliable plumber but if no one can come up with a name then you have the two factors above to fall back on.

If you look through any copy of the Yellow Pages or the Thompson Local you’ll find that plumbers are listed in their hundreds. Unfortunately not all of them can be classed as top quality – or even good quality in some cases – so how do you know a good plumber when you see one? 

Are they fully trained and licensed?
Any good plumber will be registered with the Institute of Plumbing. This means they either need to have passed a whole heap of qualifications, including their NVQs and such or they need to have 20+ years experience in the trade. Without these factors they wont get on the register. Some older plumbers may have the qualifications and the experience but in general this is rare. Regardless of which type of plumber you choose though, they should be able to provide evidence of their current registration with the official institution. Saying that, the Institute of Plumbing has recently launched a website that gives a full list of registered plumbers which makes finding one a much easier task for everyone.

Are they reliable enough to use?
It doesn’t matter whether you employ an individual or a company to do your plumbing work, they need to be reliable. One of the best ways to judge this is to make an initial appointment for a quote and see if they’re on time and looking the part. If they’re late or just don’t turn up then they aren’t the ones to go with and you need to look around for someone else. Choosing a reliable plumber comes easiest when they are recommended by a friend or relative that has used their services in the past. Ask around and see if anyone you know can recommend a plumber before trying the Yellow Pages.

Are they trustworthy?
For obvious reasons nobody wants to let someone into their home that can’t be trusted and especially not a burly plumber with rather menacing looking tools. But there are other ways that a plumber can be untrustworthy so you need to ask a few simple questions before hiring them for the job. For example, you should ask if they have an established premises for their business as this makes them less likely to do a runner with your money, ask if they have insurance that covers your property while they work on it, ask if they can give you the names of former customers so you can check on customer satisfaction and above all ask if their work is fully guaranteed. A good plumber who knows the trade will be able to answer yes to all of these questions. Then, once you’ve found a good plumber you want to make sure he stays in the industry so any time you can recommend his services, do it.

Guest Article by Clare Lynock

See also: Tips for Hiring Professionals in our Home Repair section