Water service upgrades and repairs

HOW TO HIRE THE RIGHT EMERGENCY PLUMBING COMPANY

HOW TO HIRE THE RIGHT EMERGENCY PLUMBING COMPANY

Plumbing Emergency

Do you have old pipes that need replacing? Rooter Team is happy to provide you with water service upgrades and repairs!

It is a homeowner’s nightmare to come home and find that their beloved house has sprung a leak, or even worse a pipe has burst, and god forbid your sewage pipe backs up.  Your home isn’t the only thing that is at risk.  You are risking every single one of your valuables near the plumbing emergency if you don’t get the problem fixed ASAP.

In Toronto, the number of homes flooded stays fairly consistent throughout the years.  Everyone knows someone who has had their home flooded in the past or has had a different plumbing emergency.  

When a plumbing emergency happens, you can’t call 911, so who do you call?  An emergency plumber.  An emergency plumber can fix sinks, drains, pipes, prevent flooding, and so much more.  Most emergency plumbers are available 24/7 and can usually reach your residence within a few hours.  The timing and availability of plumbers can make or break attending, or avoiding home damage.  But while time and availability are crucial to selecting an emergency plumber, there are some other things you should think about first.

  1. Verify insurance
  2. Ask for recommendations from friends and family
  3. How is pricing determined?
  4. Licensing
  5. Know the estimated costs associated with your issue
  6. Warranties or guarantees
  7. References

Verify insurance

The only thing that may be worse than a house leak is a lawsuit.  That is why you will want to ensure that the emergency plumbing company you hire has valid insurance coverage.  The two kinds of insurance that a plumbing company should have are workers insurance, and liability insurance.

Workers compensation insurance covers any injuries sustained while working.  This insurance covers if a loose pipe hits them on the head or if they slip and hurt themselves.  This way the blame is not on the homeowner.

Liability insurance works this way:  say the plumber makes a mistake and dents the floor of your home, liability insurance will cover the cost to fix it and for any backup necessary.

Without either of these insurances, you are putting your home, and the plumbers at risk.  It may seem like an unnecessary step seeing as the majority of plumbing fixes go as planned, but this isn’t a risk you should be wanting to take.  Now you may be wondering if the insurance coverage will reflect in the price of your emergency plumbing, and i’m here to say that it will.  But you can never be too sure in an emergency situation that the job you are getting done is safe.

Ask Around For Recommendations

As mentioned before everyone knows someone who has had a plumbing accident or emergency.  If you don’t know a reliable plumber you can call, one of your friends, neighbours, family members or co worker will, guaranteed.  Even if you can think back to a time where you have heard someone talk about a plumbing company, check them out.  There are so many plumbers who are happy to help you, why not consult as many as you feel is necessary.

Getting a recommendation can also be great because you’ll know what to expect from their service; the pricing, the customer service, efficiency, and the service quality.  Be sure that the recommendation is not a biased one of that the person recommending doesn’t have hidden interest.  Afterall, this is your home’s plumbing, not just a restaurant recommendation.

Leaky pipe

How is the Pricing Determined?

Before you dive into a contract with your plumber, find out how their pricing is determined. The last thing you want is to have your plumber arrive and find out that because it was an emergency it’s now going to cost you an arm and a leg on top of the original price to fix the issue. The average plumber costs between $125 – almost $400, it is nice to know if your plumber works at a fixed rate or an hourly rate. Here at Rooter Team, we give you a fixed rate and that rate never changes. If you have an emergency we are more than happy to fix that for you and give back your piece of mind.

Licensing

It may seem obvious to some, but you’d be surprised. Before you hire a plumber, ensure that they have a license to practice. Not just practice any business but that they are able to run a plumbing practice. When working with your home, you don’t want to mess around, trained professionals have all the tools to complete plumbing tasks safely and efficiently. Faulty plumbing could lead to a failed examination or worse, the need for a different plumber to come and fix mistakes left behind by the unlicensed one.

Know the Estimated Total Cost of Fixing Your Plumbing Problem

Before you even call a plumber, you can do some research on your own to find out how much the average cost to fix the problem you’re experiencing is.  Have a leak? Look up the average cost of fixing a leak in your city.  A burst pipe maybe? Look that up as well.  It’s never a bad idea to have a ballpark in mind when searching for a professional.

Unfortunately in some circumstances you are limited to an over the phone quote, but whenever possible have a plumber come and inspect the problem to receive the most accurate quote possible.  Try not to rely solely on email and phone quotes because the plumber has not had access to the problem area.  This means the problem could be a lot bigger or smaller than they anticipated.  Additionally when given a quote, confirm with your plumber that the quote includes not only labour but needed parts as well, you don’t want to find a surprise on your bill.

Water service upgrades and repairs

Warranties and/or Guarantees For the Repairs

Warranties and guarantees are very valuable in plumbing.  They can save you extra money should something go wrong with your plumbing again.  Always ask your plumber about any of the guarantees or warranties that they provide included in the service.  It can be a red flag if they are hesitant to mention any of their warranties and guarantees.  This may allude to the fact they are not confident in their work or the parts that they use when fixing issues.  As a homeowner peace of mind is something that cannot have a price value, that is why at Rooter Team we offer a satisfaction guarantee, if you are not happy with the job that we have done, give us a call so we can change that!  When you are looking for a plumber, only go with a team that offers guarantees or warranties on their service.

Are There Any References?

Does the company that you hire have any references from past clients? Always ask your plumber if they can provide you with testimonials in the form of written, photographic, of video evidence of previous work. This way you are able to see their previous standards, if the work looks messy, the references are bad, they give you fake references, or cannot give you references at all, it may be time to keep looking for a different plumber.
Water service upgrades and repairs

Conclusion

While you may be in a rush to find any plumber who can fix the mess, it is best to take a few extra seconds or minutes to make sure they meet the mentioned criteria.  A bad plumber could cost you more than a few extra dollars, it could cost you your home.
In Toronto with so many different plumbers to choose from, surely one will meet your standards.  Why not let that company be the Rooter Team?  Our team of licensed and experienced professionals are always making steps to achieve and overachieve to the highest plumbing standards.  Give us a call today to get your free quote.  Emergency plumbing is no joke, let us restore your home back to its natural beauty