fill my day Coming to BristolComing soon

GUIDE

How to find a good plumber, and avoid the cowboys

Most plumbers are honest and good at what they do. A few checks before you say yes help you find them.

IN SHORT

To find a good local plumber in the UK, check their registrations and insurance, and for any gas work make sure they're Gas Safe registered. Get a written quote rather than a phone estimate, keep any deposit under 25%, and pay by card or bank transfer, not cash. Cowboy plumbers tend to give themselves away: nothing in writing, pressure to decide now, and credentials you can't check.

This is one of our plain-English guides for anyone with a plumbing job waiting. Whether you find a plumber through a neighbour, a plumbers directory or an app, the checks are the same.

What to check before you choose a plumber

Check who they are, what they're registered for and whether they're insured, before anyone starts work. Citizens Advice suggests checking any scheme or trade association membership on that body's own website, rather than trusting a logo on a van.

  1. Gas work? Gas Safe first

    By law, anyone working on gas must be on the Gas Safe Register. Ask to see their ID card, check the back lists the work you need, and look them up free online or on 0800 408 5500.

  2. Check their registrations

    Plumbing isn't a licensed trade in the way gas is, but many good plumbers belong to WaterSafe Register, CIPHE or APHC. Our guide to plumber registrations explains what each one means and how to check it.

  3. Ask about insurance

    Public liability insurance isn't a legal requirement, but WaterSafe Register and APHC both require members to hold at least £2 million. Ask to see the certificate, and check the name and expiry date.

  4. Get proper contact details

    A business address, a phone number and how long they've been trading.

  5. Talk to past customers

    Ask for two or three recent jobs and contact those customers yourself.

Where to find a local plumber

A recommendation from a neighbour who's had similar work done is hard to beat. WaterSafe Register lets you search approved plumbers by postcode on its website, and a partial postcode works too.

A directory lists plenty of names, but tells you who has signed up, not who's free this week. Whichever route you take, run the checks above first.

Getting quotes: a quote is not an estimate

A quote is a fixed price; an estimate is a best guess. Citizens Advice explains that once you accept a quote, the trader can't charge more unless you agree to extra work or the price was an obvious mistake. With an estimate, the final bill can be higher, but it must still be reasonable, and you can dispute one that's far above what you were told.

For work that isn't urgent, get written quotes from at least three plumbers. Which? suggests treating a price given over the phone as a ballpark only. A good quote shows:

  • the total price, and whether VAT is included
  • labour and materials, broken down
  • how long the price is valid
  • when the price could change, and why

Then compare like with like. One price may include parts and another may not; one may be per visit and another per hour. Our guides to what plumbing jobs cost give typical UK prices job by job, so you can see whether a quote is in the right range. Before work starts, get the agreement in writing too. A spoken agreement still counts, but writing helps prove what was agreed.

Deposits and paying safely

Avoid paying a deposit if you can, and never pay the whole price upfront. If a deposit is needed, Citizens Advice says to keep it under 25% and get a receipt. Which? gives the same limit.

  • Pay in stages on bigger jobs, each one linked to work that's finished.
  • Pay by card or bank transfer, not cash, so there's a record.
  • Consider a credit card. Citizens Advice says paying by credit card for work costing between £100.01 and £30,000 may give you protection under section 75.

Your right to cancel, and when urgent repairs don't get one

If you agree a job at home, by phone or online, you usually have 14 days to change your mind. That's the cooling-off period under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. For a service, it runs for 14 days from the day after you agree the job.

  • If you want work to start sooner, the plumber needs you to ask clearly, and for a job agreed at home that request should be on paper or by email. If you then cancel, you pay a fair share for the work done so far.
  • If they never told you about your right to cancel, the period can be extended by up to 12 months, and if you cancel you don't pay for work already done.
  • Urgent repairs are different. If you specifically asked a plumber to come out for an urgent repair, such as a burst pipe, there's no right to cancel that repair. Extra work beyond the urgent fix is still covered.

Red flags: how to spot cowboy plumbers

Cowboy plumbers often show themselves before they touch a pipe. Between them, Citizens Advice, WaterSafe Register and Which? warn about someone who:

  • won't put the price or the details in writing
  • quotes far below everyone else
  • wants cash only, or full payment upfront
  • gives only a mobile number, and no references
  • pushes you to decide now because the work is "urgent"
  • has credentials you can't check with the body that issued them
  • is hard to reach before the job, or keeps poor time

WaterSafe Register points out that anyone can call themselves a plumber, and suggests a second opinion before agreeing to work you're told is urgent. It reports that nearly one in ten people in the UK have used a rogue trader in the past five years and needed another professional to put the work right.

What to do if it goes wrong

Raise it with the plumber first, in writing, and give them a fair chance to put it right. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, Citizens Advice explains, a service must be done with reasonable care and skill, at a reasonable price if none was fixed, and in a reasonable time if none was agreed.

  • Use their scheme. WaterSafe Register plumbers are covered by an independent complaints procedure for technical disputes. TrustMark complaints go to the business, then its scheme provider, then an ombudsman.
  • Get advice. The Citizens Advice consumer helpline is on 0808 223 1133, and it can refer cases to your local Trading Standards.
  • Gas. If an engineer doing gas work can't show a valid Gas Safe card, don't let them carry on, and contact Gas Safe Register. If you smell gas, leave the property and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999.

How Fill My Day checks plumbers

When Fill My Day launches in Bristol, every plumber's qualifications and public liability insurance will be checked by a person before they can reply to a job. Anyone offering gas work must be Gas Safe registered. Read how we check plumbers.

It's a check of documents when a plumber is approved, not a guarantee of the work on any particular job. The advice on this page still applies: agree the price and what's included in writing (on Fill My Day, that's the app's messages) and read the reviews.

Where these figures come from

GOOD TO KNOW

Questions,
answered straight.

How do I find a reliable local plumber?

Ask neighbours, search WaterSafe Register by postcode, and check any registration on the issuing body's own website. Get written quotes and speak to two or three of the plumber's recent customers.

Do plumbers have to be registered by law?

Only for gas: anyone doing gas work must be on the Gas Safe Register. Other schemes, such as WaterSafe Register, are voluntary. Our guide to plumber registrations explains each one.

How much deposit should a plumber ask for?

Ideally none. If a deposit is needed, Citizens Advice says to keep it under 25% of the price and get a receipt.

Can I cancel a plumber after agreeing a job?

Usually, within 14 days, if you agreed it at home, by phone or online. Not for an urgent repair you specifically asked them to come out for, such as a burst pipe.

How can I tell if a plumber is a cowboy?

Watch for nothing in writing, cash only or full payment upfront, a price far below everyone else's, pressure to decide now, and credentials you can't check.

KEEP READING

Where to next.

FIRST STOP / BRISTOL

Bristol.
You’re up first.

The app is in development and isn't taking bookings yet. Plumbers first, other trades to follow.

About the Bristol launch Try the app concept