Plumbers - How Much? - UK Landlords
By Chris Horne
This modern day knight of the urban realm can be hero or cowboy depending on the one you get. The secret with employing a plumber as with any other trademan, is to be clear what they are doing and what the cost is for each bit.
The consumer watchdog Which gives some useful tips on what to look out for. They warn about the practice of marking up on materials. Whilst less common than it used to be, many plumbers still add on 10-20% onto material costs they have bought at a discount from a merchant. This is fine if they can get the goods at a price less than you, particularly in the respect that it also saves you the time and effort of having to purchase the goods yourself. However, on big ticket items such as boilers or shower units, you could save up to 10-20% yourself by shopping around or sourcing them from the internet. In these cases it would be worth buying separately and then paying the plumber just to fit it. However, be careful. Unless you know what you are doing it is very easy to end up with the wrong spec or not all the parts that the plumber needs. In this situation they are not going to be impressed to then find they have to go round the merchant to get a few parts because of a mistake on your part or that they have an inferior and difficult bit of kit to fit because of your bargain hunting! These additional charges could all find there way onto your bill, particularly if you only asked for an estimate rather than a written quote.
Watch out for the call out charge, especially if it s evening or weekend. Frequently a plumber might appear to have a reasonable hourly rate, only to reveal at the end a hefty call out charge which effectively doubles the cost for the job if it is only a small one. Some plumbers dont charge a call out rate but will charge more for the first hour which effectively acts a call out fee.
Rates that plumbers charge can vary enormously not only nationally but within the same town. Therefore trying to identify accurately a standard rate for a service is very difficult. In my home town of Nottingham I can pay 35 for a gas safety check on a gas hob and boiler or 75 for exactly the same job. The motto is shop around.
Which has highlighted a range of reasonable rates for plumbers across the country. The range is calculated by ignoring the 25% most expensive and 25% cheapest quotes.
PLUMBING RATES Typical & reasonable rates
Region First hour /Typical costs
East Anglia 35-40 / 25-50
Midlands 25-50 /25-35
North-East & Yorkshire25-48 / 20-30
North-West 30-50 /18-25
Scotland 28-43 / 22-35
South-East & London 35-55 / 35-50
South-West 29-45 /20-35
Wales 30-40 /25-35
Nationally 30-50 /25-40
Which also asked a leading DIY expert set out the average time taken to do a standard range of plumbing tasks.
These are listed below.
INSTALLATION
Description Time
Outside tap 2 hours
Bedroom washbasin in vanity unit5-6 hours
Gas hob 2 hours
REPLACING
Dishwasher 1 hour
Two taps on pedestal washbasin 2-3 hours
A toilet 3-4 hours
A standard kitchen sink 2-3 hours
Radiator 2 hours
Thermocouple on a boiler 1 hour
As well as the very basic plumbing repairs many landlords, particularly ones that are refurbishing property require more substantial work such as carrying out a replacement to the central heating system or a new boiler. In which case, developer landlords should have a look at the latest publication from the Building Cost Information Service BCIS. This sets out a whole range of costs associated with domestic properties. The book entitled the Property Makeover Price Guide contains a whole range of prices from changing a tap to building a small extension. It is available from BCIS LINK for 17.99 is well worth the investment for any budding investor / developer.
An example of some of the costs contained within the book are given below:
Replace heating system (excluding pipework) - 3620 - 5720
Wall mounted boiler, single and double panel radiators, wall thermostat and programmer (clockwork programmer)
Replace heating system (including pipework) -5250 - 8610
Wall mounted boiler, single and double panel radiators, wall thermostat and programmer (clockwork programmer)
Replace boiler, radiators & general
Replace wall mounted boiler, including draining down system & connecting flue and pipework - 1410
Replace single panel 600*1800mm radiator including reconnection & balancing - 295
Replace double panel 600*1600mm radiator including reconnection and balancing - 435
Replace thermostatic radiator valve - 100
Replace wall thermostat - 80
Replace programmer (clockwork) - 185
Clean system with powerflush - 355
Overhaul storage heaters, inc inspecting fusible link, replace thermostat, resetting thermal cutout and checking cable and testing - 125
Which has provided some top tips for finding a good plumber:
* Ask friends or family for someone they can recommend.
* Get at least 3 quotes. Ask for a quote on the whole job.
* It s best to use a member of a trade association, but don t take the plumbers word they are a member. Double check with the association.
* Get at least three quotes. Ask for a quote for the whole job as well as the hourly rate including the first hour or call-out charge.
* Ask how long the job will take. If one person tells you ten minutes while another indicates it could be hours, you ll know something is wrong.
* Check the prices include VAT.
* If a plumber wants to inspect the work before giving a price, make sure they don t charge for this.
* Before hiring a plumber, get a written quote with a fixed price.
Trade associations offer more protection
The main trade association for plumbers with 12,000 members, is the Institute of Plumbers and Heating Engineers (IPHE). Other bodies include the Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors (APHC) in England & Wales and the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers Federation (SNIPEF) can give lists of members near you.
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APHC and SNIPEF both offer a warranty for work carried out. If the work isn t satisfactory the warranty means they ll cover the costs to rectify faulty work.
A final tip from the Property Hawk team, ever thought of learning Polish?
Chris Horne has 20 years experience as a property professional having worked for companies such as English Partnerships and Drivers Jonas as a planning and surveying consultant.
He now works full time as a investor and property developer.
He also has developed the site Property Hawk targeted at UK Landlords it provides FREE Property Management Software.
Property Hawk also includes a mass of Buy to Let targeted information,FREE Tenancy agreements , Inventory Forms , financial and management tools. Its primary aim is to make managing property simpler for UK Landlords.
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