“7 Questions YOU need answered before hiring any plumber!”

     Over the years I have heard a lot of horror stories. Some of them were from past plumbers, some were from contractors in other fields. Since I am a fairly friendly individual I always asked what they wished would have been different. Out of all the answers I have compiled a list of questions that need to be answered by any service company before you should let them enter your home. Of course since I am a plumber I titled this to do with plumbing, but you should ask any service company this same questions.
     One thing that I found to be kind of strange is that even after telling me about their bad experiences with companies in the past these same people never asked me anything, some did check with the better business bureau, but most just hired me on the spot.
     I suggest to you that you should learn from their mistakes and ask your next plumber ALL of the following. Or you can call me. ( I hope you will still ask me these same questions.

1. Are you insured?

If they answer no then you need to run. Of course nobody will answer with a direct no so watch out for all the round about reasons people will give you to not need to be insured. And no matter what they say other then an absolute ‘yes’ should give you a huge RED FLAG. If someone does not have insurance then they really do not care about you or your families well-being. They will not be around if there happens to be a gas leak or your home is flooded. Without insurance you instantly know that this is a fly-by-night company.
If they do answer YES then ask them for their policy number. Remember a little bit of due diligence goes a long way.

2. Are you licensed?

If ANY contractor you hire is not licensed then that company is operating illegally. Do YOU really want to have someone committing a crime on YOUR property? Well that is exactly what is happening when you hire an illegal contractor. Where do you think all the horror stories come from? Not pulling a permit is a criminal act. This falls under the safety codes act and a fine of up to $5000.00 for each offence, up to 6 months in jail, and a criminal record forever is what is in store for those that commit this crime.
Is saving $100 or so on a $1000 job worth all of this? Not for me and not for you either.

3. What are your qualifications?

The law states that for every journeymen there can be only one apprentice. Make sure that the people working in your home are qualified or at least supervised by someone who is. The only people who suffer from under qualified work is YOU and YOUR FAMILY.

4. How long have you been in business?

I am sure that you have heard 50% of ALL businesses fail within 3 years of first opening their doors. And, I believe that about another 50% fail before hitting their 5th year. That means that any company you deal with that has only been around for a year or two will only have a 25% chance of being around if you have a problem later on that needs attention. Even if your problem is well past the warrantee period you will get a faster repair done by someone that knows the job as compared to someone who does not. So you may save money NOW by going with a cheaper less experience plumber, but YOU WILL pay in the long run.

5. Do You Give Written guarantees?

GET IT IN WRITING. How many time have you heard this? Of course this generally means to get a contract before any work is done. But, you need to get your guarantee in writing as well. If something happens you need to be protected. On court date (sometimes problems will go this far) you need to have everything you can on your side. We are all human and sometimes things will go wrong, but as long as you have your written guarantee and you are dealing with a reputable company you will get the attention you need to come to a quick resolution. (Also your guarantee means nothing if the company you are dealing with goes bankrupt, so watch out for companies that have been in business less than 5 years.)

6. Do I Need to have a permit for this?

If you move an existing fixture more than 10 feet you will need to pull a permit. Any company that says you do not need to pull a permit for a job that does require one is in violation of the safety codes act (mentioned in number 2 above). Also by asking this question you may suddenly find that your contractor is not licensed and is not able to pull the permit, or they may ask for you to pull the permit for them. Again RED FLAGS should be going up. To do business legally every company must have a business license.

7. Can I See a list of your references?

Every company should be able to provide a list of references. If a company cannot provide for you a list of happy clients or some type of references, then maybe after you hire them you WON’T be giving them a reference either. And if a company does give you a list, give a couple of their past clients a call. (I have seen people brag about giving references to their clients with fake names, can you believe that?)

8. I Know I said 7 questions to ask, but our service company always goes one step further. So…
You need to ask ‘if I pay cash and don’t take a receipt will you give me a discount?’

If anyone says YES to this question you will have no guarantee on labour, no guarantee on material, no insurance coverage, and you are helping them commit fraud against the tax man. (I don’t like taxes any more than the next person, but this is not the way around it) And to save a couple of hundred dollars now just to maybe have something go wrong and have your home flooded or burned down without insurance is not worth it.