Finding a reliable plumber, gas engineer or electrician

Katerina Galkina · EN · 07/10/2026

Identify the job and who commissions it

Describe the fault precisely: a leaking sink connection, a tripping circuit breaker or a boiler error code. Prepare photographs and the appliance model. General plumbing, electrical wiring and gas installations require different expertise. An advertisement promising to “do everything” is not evidence of qualification.

In rented accommodation, notify the landlord or agent first and establish who will commission the repair. Booking independently without agreement can create a reimbursement dispute. For an urgent incident, explain the emergency and retain your attempts to make contact. Do not dismantle dangerous equipment to diagnose it.

Check registration for the specific work

Gas work requires a Gas Safe engineer with the appropriate categories of competence. GOV.UK confirms Gas Safe requirements for landlords’ gas equipment ↗ and links to the register. Check the individual attending, rather than relying on a company logo.

For electrical work, check a registered electrician. The government guide to competent person schemes ↗ explains when scheme members can certify compliance with building regulations and links to the electrical register. Scheme membership must cover the work being commissioned; it does not automatically authorise every kind of alteration.

Obtain a clear price

Send the same description to two or three contractors. Ask about the call-out charge, minimum booking, hourly rate, VAT, parts, parking and evening supplements. Establish whether the figure is a fixed quotation or an estimate, and how extra spending must be approved.

Do not choose solely by the lowest headline figure. Check the contractor’s legal business name, liability insurance, experience with similar jobs and procedure for correcting defects. Reviews describing a comparable repair are more useful than comments about a quick initial response.

Accept the work with its paperwork

Before paying, ask the contractor to show and, where safe, demonstrate the completed repair. Obtain an itemised invoice, warranty information and required certificates. For work handled through a competent person scheme, the compliance certificate is normally provided within eight weeks, according to the government guide.

Keep the original quotation, correspondence, photographs and documents. If the fault remains, describe it to the contractor in writing and request their correction procedure. Before another contractor removes evidence, ask for photographs and an explanation of the original defect.