We’ve all heard of the nightmare builders, rouge traders etc so I thought I would give our advice on hiring an expert!
Finding the right trader
Check that the drainage engineers are properly trained, not just in health and safety but in order to use the equipment that is High Pressure Water Jetting etc. Our engineers are City & Guild Trained for Safety Awareness and Drain and Sewer Jetting, carry CSCS cards, trained for Asbestos Awareness, Renoline approved Installer, Confined Space and Harness. We also have engineers that are trained for first Aid.
Companies that take the safety of their employees and the public serious will have the necessary training certificates to show. Belonging to a trade association such as Safe Contractor or Exor(which of course we are) is a good tell-tale sign that that company has the necessary certificates and policies to pass such a rigorous score system as these regulatory bodies check that equipment is serviced regularly, PAT tested and staff are trained accordingly.
Specification and quotes
In our opinion quoting over the telephone for a ‘normal’ blockage is adequate (blocked toilet, blocked sink etc) however if the problem seems more in-depth than the customer should be offered a free no obligation quote on site and this should be followed by a written quotation explaining what is required, what equipment will be used and how long it should take. Good reputable companies would give guarantees too!
Payment
We would never expect a customer to pay upfront or in instalments, only once a job is complete and the customer is happy. Occasionally if a job exceeds over £1000 and materials are needed to be ordered a deposit is sometimes requested.
Alarm bells
Things we would tell customers to look out for are quotes considerably lower than others, this is sometimes because the right materials/machinery will not be used therefore the job although may look ok on completion, if job not done properly, further more costly problems could occur. If a company has immediate availability this would be alarming as even for emergencies it would be a couple of hours wait time, other excavation jobs would normally be booked in a week ahead. I would advise customers to check how long the company has been in existence, quick check on Companies House could confirm this, using a company that has been around longer gives customers peace of mind that they are not going to be gone if something goes wrong or while their guarantees are in place.
