Using a car for plumbing jobs

[jstevens]

Hi

Do you think it would be fine just to use my car to get to and from plumbing jobs? All i would be taking is tools as i will just be doing maintenance jobs. Van Insurance is £4500+ as im 17.

 

[Howsie]

A car will be fine if you have scoped the job correctly. If you take the right tools with you, it'll be OK. The plus for having a van, is that you've all the things you need should the scope change. BTW, the scope always changes...

 

[tamz]

No i havent ill try them now

I can recommend the vanilla and red Cinnamon ones but everyone there is a flavour for everyone

















Volare obviously.
Buckfast is just buckfast












I really should know better and shouldn't be encouraging such things but it is the weekend

 

[villa_tom]

I've got a Merc Vito £356 a year fully comp commercial policy.

Mine goes down massivley soon, I have 0 years no claims at the moment, but my insurer accepted a letter off the firm I previously worked for that said I had driven for 5 years with no accidents. So at the end of this policy I will have 6 years no claims, so they reckon it'll ne about £500 or so this year. Insurance is a minefield and if you justtake things lying down they will screw every last penny out of you. I was prepared to pay alot more than I currently am and until I said "i'll think about it" they never told me that I could give them a letter stating my years of driving on a company vehicle.

 

[AWheating]

i got a simular deal as you tom, 2 years ago i got 06 vw transporter with 0 years ncb for £560 cus i had full no claims on my car and it got me a huge discount.

 

[jstevens]

Just looked on bewiser to insure FORD ESCORT 75 1.8D, 1753cc w reg £600 the insurance is £7138! Ill be working to buy for insurance. Might just have to do it in car and hopefully itll go down when i get older.

 

[kay-jay]

you will find it difficult to fit lengths of pipe in a car. i can just about manage in my estate but its far from ideal.
incidentally when i went self employed and declared it to the car insurers (churchill) i got a rebate. of £60

try asking your car insurer what difference it will make to your premium if you declare as self employed

good luck

KJ

 

[MickBrown]

Planning logo for side of van when I can afford one, do you think this would be good?

 

[kay-jay]

Planning logo for side of van when I can afford one, do you think this would be good? View attachment 2652

very funny!

 

[dontknowitall]

Excellent!!!

 

[Guest123]

I get more in my Mazda Premacy (estate car) than in a Renault Kangoo sized van, but I insure it under commercial insurance. At 17 this will cost you mate!

 

[WHPES]

I use an estate car for most jobs now. £100 to fill up the van, £40 to fill up the car, same mileage for full tank...........you do the sums. You don't need a van full of everything just to fit a loo! When fuel was cheap we thought nothing about whizzing about in the van all the time but it can now be up to £100 difference in a weeks work!

For larger jobs I often use the van to begin with and once I am started off I use the car. My electrician uses an estate car too and there is plenty of room for all his kit in there.

I have a number of tote boxes (the heavy plastic ones with the folding lids), one for each type of job (eg oil boilers, general plumbing (with silicone, cordless drill and fasteners), Pipe fittings etc, fasterners, waste pipe fittings and traps, and so on, plus one tool box for plumbing tools and another for oil boiler tools. For example if I am fitting a basin I grab the plumbing toolbox, the plumbing tote box and the wastepipe tote box in the back of the estate - therefore everything I am likely to need all together.

As long as your car is clean and tidy. If you use the car for leisure then seat covers are a good idea.

 

[carpstu]

you can buy an astravan with a 1300cc petrol engine it should be cheeper to insure

 

[Guest123]

you will find it difficult to fit lengths of pipe in a car.

I got round this by making a pipe rack out of a 3metre length of 110mm pipe with a screw on end cap attached to each end and fitting it to my roof rack. I keep all my copper, plastic pipe and waste pipe in it and the pipe rack is easily removable.

 

[GQuigley67]

I used to do boiler installs from my astra, its easy enough as long as you get the materials delivered

on the subject of insurance, its a total rip off for young people I had to get third party fire and theft only on my transit as it was a 2.2 turbo diesel, fully comp was £3000
The thing is though, with my astra although it was a smaller engine, it had better bhp so it seemed much faster, and I was only £1200 fully comp.

 

[jstevens]

Yeah insurance is a rip off. I have an 02 clio 1.1 and the cheapest insurance i got was £4700 third party!

 

[Toddyplumb]

Just renewed my van insurances . Original quote had gone up 25.8% 9 years no claims on 2 vans . Have just saved £500 from last years price shopping around

 

[GQuigley67]

when I was 17 I was quoted at £3500 for a 1.6 astra so you must be doing something wrong mate try fully comp instead of third party and reduce your anual mileage or something, also get your parents onto your insurance brings the price down

 

[carpstu]

Yeah insurance is a rip off. I have an 02 clio 1.1 and the cheapest insurance i got was £4700 third party!

4700? how old are you an where ever do ulive to get that sort of price

 

[jstevens]

Im 17 and i live in Essex

 

[carpstu]

Im 17 and i live in Essex

where in essex essex is a big place
i use to live nr halstead which is in essex and i never paid that nor anyone younger i worked with for that matter

 

[jstevens]

Harlow

 

[REDSAW]

Planning logo for side of van when I can afford one, do you think this would be good? View attachment 2652

one or two of us around with that on

 

[PlumbBobBob]

putting your parents on your insurance to lower the price didn't work for my son last year. W reg 1.25 fiesta £4000, and that was the cheapest known insurer. cost the same with or without me or his mother on it. although it should be about £900 this year.

 

[cjg]

when I was 17 I was quoted at £3500 for a 1.6 astra so you must be doing something wrong mate try fully comp instead of third party and reduce your anual mileage or something, also get your parents onto your insurance brings the price down

that is what i said in earlier post lol

 

[gamage]

I can't believe some of the prices people are paying for insurance!!! you must be getting ripped off as when i was 17 (4 years ago) insurance on my first car which was a 2001 Rover 25 1.6 16v, fully comp was £94 a month (roughly £1100 a year), now 21 and insure a 2003 2.0 Turbo Renault Laguna for £65.35 a month with 3 years no claims!!! Van insurance on a 1.7CDTI Astravan for me is around £1,900 with no claims bonus as they are on the car policy... always worth shopping around =D

 

[Blackcatgas]

Ok but not ideal, a perfect way to wreck your car in under 6mnths, vans looka a bit more profesional too (my opinion anyway).

 

[GQuigley67]

are you insured with sheilas wheels by any chance ?

 

[WaterTight]

so is van insurance always much more expensive than car insurance?

 

[Mikey456]

Try a dobló 1.3 engines and fairly sized

 

[dontknowitall]

My van's insurance is £304 for fully comp. (Powerful 07 plate transit). I've years of no claims bonus and suitable old ...