Ripped off by plumbing charges......please help

[Agile]

Susie, I am sorry that you feel that your relative has been ripped off.

Unlike some others I feel that he has been overcharged BUT as he willingly agreed to these charges and paid with cash then there is little that you will probably be able to do. D. Hailsham used to give good advice on these situations but he is silent tonight.

I see this so often! It arises solely because in this democratic age we have to give everyone the right to look after their own affairs. He chose to take charge of the situation, did not call you and ended up in my view overcharged.

The law does not help you either, because even at 89 he still has the right to do what HE wants to unless you can get him sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1931. He can give all his money to charity or Battersea Digs Home if he wants to. ( I am not happy with them! They refused to let me have my dog back until the next day just so they could charge £19 B&B ! )

In any case he is probably totally happy with the situation. He must like to still be dealing with things.

To avoid ever getting into that situation I normally never deal directly with anyone over 70 and ask that a son or daughter come along to be present. But then I am a little unusual because I like to give good value for money and never rip anyone off. I did make an exception with a 93 y.o. lady because I was referred to her by her neighbour and she was still very awake and plays bridge twice a week.

Tonight an accountant friend was telling about trying to get Santanda to give him the sort code of one of his clients who was born in 1903. They refused saying they must speak to the client even though he is 107 and died a few months ago!

Tony Glazier

 

[ChrisR]

Battersea Digs Home?

Yes a Worcester i Junior IS a Dig to work on, and it definitely does have a plate heat exchanger. Worcester have put the damned thing at the back and when the boiler's new it's fairly quick to get out but when they're a few years old it's a different matter. It's often easiest to take the boiler off the wall. Then it doesn't take 5 hours... So yes I think you've probably been charged too much
If it was the guy's first one, then it could have taken him 5 hours. If he's done say 3, he'd be down to a couple of hours. Worcester guys probably can do them in well under an hour. If the boiler position is difficult, all of those can go up quite a bit..
He's charging for learning, which isn't really on in my view, so I tend to cut off at about £200 labour, for a single fault.
Maybe there was more wrong, but he'd have said.

Your Dad should have asked up front how long/how much it was likely to be.
Difficult now, but you can ask the worker 's company if he works for one, why on earth it took 5 hours. Ask Worcester how long they think it could take, but you didn't call them, you called this guy.

All the above is making assumptions - which may not be correct.

 

[joinerjohn]

£690 for 5 hrs work?? I'm in the bloody wrong trade. Where do I sign up for a cowboy course? and do they throw in a free horse?

Yee Haa

 

[Gasman77]

If you read the previous posts clown, you will hopefully understand if plumbers really made that must money, you would be a total moron not to go and retrain.

But they don't , so you don't.

 

[Charnwood]

never rip anyone off. I did make an exception with a 93 y.o. lady

Whoops!

We were recently charged £90.00 for one hours work, parts and labour, fitting a gas cooker point. It started out at £110.00, but my OH put her foot down - And I still say we were overcharged.

For some unfathomable reason he put it about 4" below the worktop, behind the washing machine, adjacent to the cooker!

Parts:
4 metres of 15mm copper
1 - 22mm end feed coupler
1 - 22 x 15mm ef fitting reducer (hmm, never heard of reduced couplers?)
2 - 15mm ef elbows
1 - 15 x 1/2" wallplate elbow
1 - micropoint cooker socket
A bit of solder, flux and gas.

I could have got the parts for £10 from work, but it was a rush job whilst I was off work moving house.
What is the usual mark-up for parts?

It took 4 weeks and 3 phone calls to get a receipt out of him, which we needed to prove to the landlord that we'd got the job done by a RGI.
When it arrived it was addressed to the wrong address and looked as though it had been screwed up in his pocket for all that time.
Thoroughly professional and I'll recommend him to anyone.


NOT!


And, just to perpetuate this level of service and professionalism he had an aprentice/trainee with him!!

The phrase that includes the words tar and brush springs to mind.

 

[Gasman77]

You got a great deal pal, I'd have charged you twice as much. But then again the servicing fees on my Porsche are only going one way....And now the butler wants a pay rise too!

 

[yourmoneyoryourwife]

£90 sounds cheap to me and if you include traveling it would work out a lot more than an hour! no wonder you're plumber couldn't be arsed to send a receipt you sound like a right tightfisted miserable scrote

 

[breadnbutter]

i agree the lady was well overcharged for the boiler repair,he most prob rung up emergency company out of the yellows. premium rates,these companys not interested in building costomer base. plumber would be on a percentage of that money ,maybe 40%,depending own van ,ect

try and find local sole trader.
there is stiil alot of good ,honest tradesmen about. dispite the media

 

[Beerlover]

4 metres of 15mm copper
1 - 22mm end feed coupler
1 - 22 x 15mm ef fitting reducer (hmm, never heard of reduced couplers?)
2 - 15mm ef elbows
1 - 15 x 1/2" wallplate elbow
1 - micropoint cooker socket
A bit of solder, flux and gas

I'll give you £30 can you get me three

(hmm, never heard of reduced couplers?)

Yes but they are dearer than a coupling and a fitting reducer - but being in the trade you would know.

 

[cumbriahandyman]

Please can someone help. My father in law has a Worcester Bosch boiler 241j and the hot water came warm then stopped working. A plumber came and charged £591 for the repair.
He is 89 years of age and I just cannot believe the price. It was £69 an hour and he stayed for over 5 hours and said he bought two parts, a NYC sensor and a plate heat exchange for which he charged £100.
From what I understand the boiler indicates the fault by a code.
I feel so angry about this......or am I being unreasonable.
Many thanks for your help.
Sue.

Your Father-in-law was ripped off. Unfortunately there is probably little you can do about it.

It is real shame that there are people out there who will do this to an old man.

I think you will by now have realised that you won't get a lot of sympathy from other plumbers on here.

 

[Gasman77]

What would you have charged?

 

[Boilerman2]

Sad fact of life...EVERYTHING COSTS these days!!
Just had a Vivaro Van Serviced (it was at the Garage 3hrs) Bill? £520+Vat
am I on here complaining about being ripped off....no!

But clearly my prices have to reflect things like the above including

Annual Gas Safe registration £700
Annual cost of keeping my Technicians Gas Quals up to date £1,500
Annuallcost of CHAS & Construction line £500
Annual dues to HVCA £1,000
Annual Liabillity insurance £3,500
Annual Vehicle fleet insurance £4,000
Annual office rent Rates & insurance £9,000
Cost of Telephone calls and Sending out invoices
and chasing late payments £5,000
Annual Road fuel bill for last year £24,000
etc etc etc

Add that lot up and then try your argument about £70p/h being unreasonable!!!!

 

[Charnwood]

4 metres of 15mm copper
1 - 22mm end feed coupler
1 - 22 x 15mm ef fitting reducer (hmm, never heard of reduced couplers?)
2 - 15mm ef elbows
1 - 15 x 1/2" wallplate elbow
1 - micropoint cooker socket
A bit of solder, flux and gas

I'll give you £30 can you get me three

Oddly enough - and a fact that I didn't mention - that is what he charged for those parts. I work for a distributor, so admittedly I would get them cheaper than you pros. Excluding the consumables, what would you expect to get charged for that lot from your local merchant, roughly? Generic fittings, not Endex or Delcop.

 

[Charnwood]

they are dearer than a coupling and a fitting reducer

Not always. Depends on your supplier.

Flowflex through Screwfix:
22 x 15 ef reduced coupler = £6.49 for 10
65 pence each.

22 ef coupler = £3.49 for 10
22 x 15 ef fitting reducer = £11.99 for 25
83 pence for the two.

Endex, on the other hand, would be as you say. More expensive for the reduced coupler

 

[Beerlover]

what would you expect to get charged for that lot from your local merchant, roughly?

From my normal merchant about £13.00, but if I had to use another merchant where I had no terms up to £20.00.

The point you miss in the £90, you were charged is; the RGI had to travel to you - vans need insurance, diesel, insurance, road tax & buying. He needed to be registered and trained (renewable yearly and five yearly respectively).You wanted it done asap.

IF you can bring your house to my door, supply all the materials, tell me how to do it, sign a disclaimer so public liability is not required, certify the works, and at a time that suits me - I will do any gas work for £10 an hour