What is your licence number
Every plumber working in NSW must hold a licence, and the number should be given without hesitation. You can check it on the NSW Fair Trading register in about a minute.
Ours is 384065C. If a number is not offered when asked, that is your answer.
Will I get a fixed price before work starts
A fixed price means you approve a number. An hourly rate means you approve a process and find out the number later.
There are genuine cases where the scope cannot be known upfront, and an honest plumber will say so and cap the investigation cost. What should not happen is a vague range that quietly becomes the top of the range.
Who is actually doing the work
Ask whether the person quoting is the person attending. Larger operations subcontract, which is not wrong in itself, but you should know it and it should not come with a hidden margin.
Do you issue compliance certificates
Any gas work and most water work requires a Certificate of Compliance. It is your written record that the installation was tested. Missing certificates cause problems at insurance claim time and at sale.
What happens if it fails
Ask what warranty covers the workmanship, separate from the manufacturer warranty on any part. Ask how long, and ask whether a return visit is chargeable.
Will you show me the problem
Camera footage, photographs, or the failed component handed to you. You should not have to take anyone's word for what was wrong or what was replaced.
This one filters more effectively than any of the others, because a plumber who is comfortable showing you the evidence is generally comfortable with the rest of it too.
Written by the team at Adlington Plumbing. Licensed plumbing and gas fitting across Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and the Central Coast. Licence 384065C.