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There I said it!
 
yeah that sounds about normal for most plumbers, however, the prices i quoted are the prices i believe that should be quoted, If you have 4/5 years training under your belt plus years of experience, then £80- £120 p/h should be the standard.

What other jobs do you need to train for 4/5 years before you can do your job.

Prime minister, doctors, surgeons.

The bankers have no training and millions of pounds in bonuses.
 
Well mate, I've been doing this for well over ten years...have many qualifications, and run my own business...so from what you're saying - I'm too cheap. Perhaps time to adjust my rates???
 
Oh and I think doctors train for about 7 years, but thats just splitting hairs. Course I'd like to earn more.

.....and I am booked up for a long time, so I don't want to rock the boat too much and lose my client base.
 
got introduced to estate agency(Finchley LOndon) ,there were looking for some one to cover there reactive plumbing/gas during normal hours and off hours !
send them price list £50-normal hours
of hours and weekends £90 and then £80
they got back to me i was to expansive , as they were paying £55 flat rate !
i did not get back to them with any comment , but they can weak up 2am and go fix there leak them self,
What a jokers .....Finchley is proper rich area ,they will charge customers £120 and then £55 flat rate to us
 
thats the biggest problem, price vs qualifications. If i went to a job and said i was gas safe registered, would the customer check or even care or do they simply check the price. (I would never do it as I do not want somebodies life on my concience)

British gas are busy, simply by being one of the biggest names. I hear that their boiler service are somewhere in the region of £120- £200.
It doesn't matter that some of their engineers do not know very much. every engineer charges the same wether they have been doing it for 20 years or 2 months.

So yes, in my opinion if you charge £80-£120 p/h then you will start to get better clients. however you could be sat at home for 3-5 years waiting for the phone to ring. Its all about the circle of friends. each customer you go to has on average 10 friends, your job is to stick in their mind so that when one of those friends needs a plumber, you are the first person they think of.

now if you charge £10 p/h he will tell his friends that you charge £10 p/h, however if you charge £100 p/h he will tell all his friends you charge £100 P/H.

If david beckham or richard branson called you to do a boiler service, how much would you charge?
 
£60-£80 standard ,but if big job to be done then different amount of 0,will apply to the quote !
 
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I charge everyone the same, rich or poor. I know some people won't believe this but I genuinely do.

Only people who would get a cheaper rate are those that I could see were in dire need and genuinely near the breadline, and elderly people, as they're often the most genuine people to work for, but in all honesty most of the time, they get charged my same hourly rate.

I wouldnt charge a struggling single mum the full wack, but Mr Branson would pay the same as Mr Average.

I find this makes life less complicated, and people know where they stand.
 
That's quite kind, and I do try, but the bigger jobs are harder as you can't really compare unless you charge day rate. Also people who are near the breadline are less likely to have had services, meaning you will be there longer, so it kinda works it self out? Just out of curiosity, how do you charge then? Per hour or per job? So for instance fitting an outside tap can take 15 minutes or 3 hours?
 
I charge by the hour on small jobs...takes as long as it takes. (garden taps, leaks etc)

Bigger jobs, I price and aim to earn at least £200 a day...then add on what I think I can and still win the work. (Boilers, appliances etc)

Even bigger jobs, like the one I'm on at the mo, I work by the same priciple, but as I have to emply subbies, it takes more working out. I'll earn off the subbies, and materials etc. It takes a while to get good at pricing. I pride myself on doing a pretty good job. (Full installs).

Underpriced my first job in a long time - Rainwater harvesting - which isn't a familiar job for me. Got caught out. Client got a cheap job, but on small jobs like that, you lick your wounds and move on. All just my opinion.

Think I'll raise my rates to absorb apprenices wage.
 
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yeah that sounds about normal for most plumbers, however, the prices i quoted are the prices i believe that should be quoted, If you have 4/5 years training under your belt plus years of experience, then £80- £120 p/h should be the standard.

What other jobs do you need to train for 4/5 years before you can do your job.

Prime minister, doctors, surgeons.

The bankers have no training and millions of pounds in bonuses.


If I charged that I simply wouldn't get any work,it's way too expensive for my area,doesn't matter how good you are.

To compare a plumber to a doctor or a surgeon is just not realistic.Those vocations require degree level education and the training cannot be compared to an NVQ.A surgeon literally has a persons life in their hands when they operate,of course unsafe gas work can be dangerous but it's not on the same level at all.

I agree that the trade is undervalued generally but I think a dose of realism is needed.
 
gas safe are only there to take money of the registered installer.its to much effort to chase the unregisterd,
 
you may be a great plumber honest and reliable,but how long will you be in buisiness if you do not charge properly.do you add up all you overheads.van,van insurence tax,cost of deisal,public liability insurence,fees to gas safe,ciphe,etc,work tools,cost of all this £ devided by hours you can expect to work in a week.and dont forget your pension fund you will not be young forever
 
Agree with most of the comments about what we should charge but even charging £25 per hr + vat for gas work in Yorkshire is normally followed by the customer saying ' how much !!!!!!!. We have idiots up here who will work for £80 per day never mind an hour. Picked up the local paper at the weekend and not one but three people offering to supply and fit a new combi for less than £900.
 
you may be a great plumber honest and reliable,but how long will you be in buisiness if you do not charge properly.do you add up all you overheads.van,van insurence tax,cost of deisal,public liability insurence,fees to gas safe,ciphe,etc,work tools,cost of all this £ devided by hours you can expect to work in a week.and dont forget your pension fund you will not be young forever

Yes, I had this with an accountant and he worked out I need to charge £185p/h!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Agree with most of the comments about what we should charge but even charging £25 per hr + vat for gas work in Yorkshire is normally followed by the customer saying ' how much !!!!!!!. We have idiots up here who will work for £80 per day never mind an hour. Picked up the local paper at the weekend and not one but three people offering to supply and fit a new combi for less than £900.

people are desperate for earning £ .......things will get worst
 
I got a free meeting!!!!

Something free? Off an accountant?

You must being doing well!!!

:D

In fairness to accountants though, they do not have the reputation that some others have, like solicitors, politicians, estate agents, etc and even then most of those stories are not telling the full picture.

As a footnote, I've been with my accountant (same person) for over 30 years, great service, very fair price and not one mistake from them yet.
 
I have friends who do this and the average cost seems to be between 80-90ph, hope this helps
 
I heard a chap telling a customer how to connect a gas pipe to a fire in the lounge of a home they justices into . I looked at him 16-17 years old ????? Er and fittings were there own brand plastic ..... I asked the manager he also explained how to connect a cooker !!!!!!!!! . I only went in for some turf.
 
Threads ,,, like they say you get what you pay for in life .
 
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