subject: How to find Emergency Tradesmen without the Emergency Price! [print this page] How to find Emergency Tradesmen without the Emergency Price!
As the nights draw in; we move into prime "things going wrong around the house" time. Freezing weather puts extra strain on boilers and heating systems as we all demand a piping hot shower and toasty house. Under the extra pressure some of our boilers will simply grind to a halt, sub-zero temperatures will cause pipes to freeze and burst, whilst heavy rain and melting snow will expose reveal leaky roofs and faulty damp proofing. Bad times for many UK households, but good times for the army of UK emergency tradesmen (plumbers, roofers, heating engineers etc) who see increased demand inflate the prices of emergency all jobs. So in a seller's market how do you makes sure you get a fair price for the work you need doing?
Firstly we need to make sure we are looking for a fair price rather than the cheapest price. When it comes to Gas and Electricity the safety of you and your family must come first. Good workmanship and the right qualifications are vital, as poor plumbing can lead to leaks (be that water or Gas!) or burst pipes, and inferior electrical work has numerous dangers.
But how do you find a good boiler emergency engineer? Well....in this day and age (as with many things) the internet is the best starting point. Sites like Rated People and My Hammer offer a useful window onto the workmanship of specific tradesmen (stopping them hide behind a professional qualification). Another great place is one of the national home emergency companies. The likes of British Gas, AA and HomeServe will now come to your house to fix boiler breakdown with their own emergency plumbers and heating engineers, but they also obviously offer the backing of large national organisations (so you are less likely to suffer if your local tradesman goes bust and fails to deliver on his guarantee).
Secondly we need to shop around. Probably the last thing you want to do during an emergency, but it is essential if you want to be confident you aren't going to be ripped off. Again here the national organisation offer an interesting proposition, because they have a fixed salaried workforce that doesn't make anything extra for advising you to get work you simply don't need. They also compete aggressively against each other which is great for keeping prices low.
Third and finally...depending on exactly what needs doing, you may be able to reduce costs by doing some of the work yourself! Be prepared to ask for a quote with the costs broken down. There is no point in paying an emergency tradesman to get a light switch for you, that you could have nipped to B&Q for! Equally you might find you can source parts cheaper than your tradesmen (so ask for labour and parts split out). Many use standard places for their parts (Screwfix, Jewsons etc), but if you shop around you can often make significant savings!
With a little common sense and work from us, we can all ensure we pay a fair price for work.
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