Plumber call out fee - $350

[Ace in the Hole]

Just received latest statement from PM.
It's something I was aware of, but would like to get an opinion from others.
The tenant said there was a gas smell coming from behind the kitchen cabinets.
I realise businesses have costs and overheads to run, but this one seems a little high to me.
Property is a new townhouse in Brisbane.

Job is listed as:
Investigated gas leak.
Leak was detected on connection straight out of the regulator.
Charged $344.75

I'm waiting on an itemised invoice to see if parts were required.
Are there any plumbers who, or someone who has has a similar situation who knows if this is a fair charge.
I don't expect the fix would have been very difficult, as it is a brand new property and nothing should have been concealed or covered to prevent easy access.

Any chance the builder could be held partially liable to cover some/all of the cost?


Thanks

 

[buzzlightyear]

Parts aside, was it after hours or on a Sunday?

 

[Ace in the Hole]

No, not Sunday and not odd hours.
Just a regular weekday morning.

 

[weg]

Gas company detected a leak via the meter at my home, and put a clamp on my meter ( a plumber that presented a certificate could remove it... if i recall correctly).

Leak was so tiny, the first gas plumber was there for a couple of hours and couldn't find anything, so scheduded to come back and start digging.

Cost was over $200 and quoted it could be another $600.

Called in another plumber hoping to avoid digging and he found it after some investigating - all up about 3 hours work and about $300.

This second plumber showed me the leaks (2), but as they were so small his machine was only picking up the faintest of readings, sometimes.

Really annoying. I think they can be a #@gg*# and am not surprised at your charge.

 

[willair]

Just received latest statement from PM.
It's something I was aware of, but would like to get an opinion from others.
The tenant said there was a gas smell coming from behind the kitchen cabinets.

Just break the costs down,call out fee 60-80$,most work on 60$,time factor that depends on what was the problem,parts could be any number
of items,but just reading that the tenants picked up on the smell i would say you are very very lucky,i have seen from experience what Gas can do in a split second..btw does the PM think the price is upfront,or ring the Plumber yourself and ask the question..

 

[Plumber]

Job is listed as:
Investigated gas leak.
Leak was detected on connection straight out of the regulator.
Charged $344.75

I'm waiting on an itemised invoice to see if parts were required.
Are there any plumbers who, or someone who has has a similar situation who knows if this is a fair charge.
I don't expect the fix would have been very difficult, as it is a brand new property and nothing should have been concealed or covered to prevent easy access.

Any chance the builder could be held partially liable to cover some/all of the cost?


Thanks[/QUOTE]

Well .. without knowing the exact details, eg was the connection housing on the regulator faulty, I'm thinking it may be about right. With Gas leaks it is usually an urgent visit - and my gas kit has some detection equipment costing $8K - which I dont usually keep on the truck. I daresay that if I got a call, packed the gas gear, and then got on site and found it was it was only a loose connection I would probably still be charging about $240...maybe less if I didnt have anything doing that day or if the job was very close to base.

 

[wylie]

Hi Plumber. Do you work all over Brisbane, or if not, what areas?

Also, do you work alone, or have apprentices and/or other plumbers working for you.

My reason for asking is that plumbing seems to cost an arm and a leg these days, and I'm thinking part of that is that any job we have done seems to be charged out as two plumbers or one plumber and an apprentice.

I wonder sometimes why there needs to be two plumbers, especially when the job could be done by one? I know many jobs need two sets of hands but I often feel we are paying double what we really need to pay.

I'm wondering if finding a "Lone Plumber" might be the answer.

 

[Ace in the Hole]

Thanks for the replies.
Plumbing bills always seem to be the ones which surprise a little, as you don't usually see where your money went.
Money down the drain?

I'll look into it a little more, but from the replies, seems the price is not too far off, however, if it was inflated an extra $100, I'd still like to find out, one I get the itemised invoice.

Thanks

 

[six20aus]

My in-laws had a leak in the upstairs bathroom recently - water was dripping down the wall in the hall underneath the upstairs bathroom. MIL called a plumber to come and find the problem - the plumber she called said, "Before I come out there I charge a $500 call-out fee to find the problem". MIL asked how long would it take to find the problem, answer was could be 10min - could be 2hrs.
With water dripping down the light globe in the ceiling of the hall of course she said 'ok'.

Plumber turns up and has a look upstairs and in 2mins finds the grouting in the upstairs shower was shot hence the leakage.

Something is wrong when a tradesman can charge these kinds of amounts for the 'service' provided.

This is in inner Melbourne for the record.

 

[Plumber]

Hi Plumber. Do you work all over Brisbane, or if not, what areas?

Also, do you work alone, or have apprentices and/or other plumbers working for you.

My reason for asking is that plumbing seems to cost an arm and a leg these days, and I'm thinking part of that is that any job we have done seems to be charged out as two plumbers or one plumber and an apprentice.

I wonder sometimes why there needs to be two plumbers, especially when the job could be done by one? I know many jobs need two sets of hands but I often feel we are paying double what we really need to pay.

I'm wondering if finding a "Lone Plumber" might be the answer.

Hi wylie,

I work around the Mt Gravatt area and out about 8 klms from there.

As regards the cost of plumbing - or any casual trade work for that matter - a tradie needs to be making at least 1500 a week for himself given his overheads are likely to be about $500 per week - even more if he goes out with an offsider.

Personally I would prefer to have someone knowledgeable about Plumbing working with me - an extra set of hands can often save jobs from becoming big dramas and or dragging out. Usually though I go out by myself and assess the job.

My average casual hourly rate is about $70 plus I charge for petrol.

But In the case above where someone has called in about a gas leak I would like to have someone with me. You never really know what to expect sometimes. Had I been called to that situation I would have preferred to have someone with me , especially if the gas smell was detected inside the house.

And when you do find an offsider who works well with you, then you sort of have to keep them by your side by at least offering them regular income. My offsider is a semi retired guy but still has his ticket. He's not as nimble as a young apprentice but does he know his stuff !! Occassionally I learn new tricks from him !! He's happy to work with me for $30 an hour on a part time basis.

So in the above example where I give a price of $240 I'm assuming 2 hrs @ $100 for us both + $40 petrol/incidentals.

 

[Plumber]

My in-laws had a leak in the upstairs bathroom recently - water was dripping down the wall in the hall underneath the upstairs bathroom. MIL called a plumber to come and find the problem - the plumber she called said, "Before I come out there I charge a $500 call-out fee to find the problem".

This is in inner Melbourne for the record.

Yeh that does sound a bit .. rich !! I've never been game to give a ridiculous call out fee! I usually just say I can't do it !

 

[Ace in the Hole]

There's an honest plumber who places a high value on his time, even if morally wrong.

MIL probably should have called another plumber to confirm fees before comitting.

If you think you are worth $500/hr and there are people willing to pay, then there will always be a market for these high charging service providers.

My in-laws had a leak in the upstairs bathroom recently - water was dripping down the wall in the hall underneath the upstairs bathroom. MIL called a plumber to come and find the problem - the plumber she called said, "Before I come out there I charge a $500 call-out fee to find the problem". MIL asked how long would it take to find the problem, answer was could be 10min - could be 2hrs.
With water dripping down the light globe in the ceiling of the hall of course she said 'ok'.

Plumber turns up and has a look upstairs and in 2mins finds the grouting in the upstairs shower was shot hence the leakage.

Something is wrong when a tradesman can charge these kinds of amounts for the 'service' provided.

This is in inner Melbourne for the record.

 

[wylie]

Personally I would prefer to have someone knowledgeable about Plumbing working with me - an extra set of hands can often save jobs from becoming big dramas and or dragging out. Usually though I go out by myself and assess the job.

I understand what you are saying. I don't begrudge a second person when needed. But sometimes I just think we are paying double when we need not be doing so.

Will keep you in mind...

 

[vaughan]

There's an honest plumber who places a high value on his time, even if morally wrong.

Agreed, except for the "morally wrong" part. I don;t understand that at all.

There is no moral wrong in setting a charge for your time, advising the client of that charge, then charging what you agreed. In fact, that plumber sounds honest.

If the plumber had come around and then paid on the $500 charge unannounced, then yes, that would not be right. However the client should have asked the cost up front. Never hire without asking the cost up front!

 

[westminster]

Plumber went out to my IP this week after my tenant reported that the HWS wasn't working. Fee $99
The problem? Tenant hadn't applied for a gas account with Alinta therefore the gas had been turned off after the initial connection that was set up by me in April.
Me laughing on the floor? Priceless

In the Tenants defense, the gas was working when they moved in. It ran the HWS and the gas hotplate then one day 4mths down the track it didn't work so they reported it. I bet they felt mighty silly.

$99 billed to me will be recouped from the Tenant.

 

[RandR]

Just received latest statement from PM.
It's something I was aware of, but would like to get an opinion from others.
The tenant said there was a gas smell coming from behind the kitchen cabinets.
I realise businesses have costs and overheads to run, but this one seems a little high to me.
Property is a new townhouse in Brisbane.

Job is listed as:
Investigated gas leak.
Leak was detected on connection straight out of the regulator.
Charged $344.75

I'm waiting on an itemised invoice to see if parts were required.
Are there any plumbers who, or someone who has has a similar situation who knows if this is a fair charge.
I don't expect the fix would have been very difficult, as it is a brand new property and nothing should have been concealed or covered to prevent easy access.

Any chance the builder could be held partially liable to cover some/all of the cost?


Thanks

As plumber has already stated, in this instance, even if the cause was only a leak from a flared nut/copper pipe connection from the regulator. Which might have only taken all of 5 mins to find and fix with a bit of soapy water. The plumber would (im assuming) have pressure tested the pipework throughout the property before giving it the ok. This could have easily consumed an hour on site without even requiring any parts to fix the fault.

 

[willair]

, "Before I come out there I charge a $500 call-out fee to find the problem". MIL asked how long would it take to find the problem, answer was could be 10min - could be 2hrs.
With water dripping down the light globe in the ceiling of the hall of course she said 'ok'.

Plumber turns up and has a look upstairs and in 2mins finds the grouting in the upstairs shower was shot hence the leakage.

Something is wrong when a tradesman can charge these kinds of amounts for the 'service' provided.
.

I bet he sleeps well at night that person,$500.00 just too turn up never ever heard of something like that not even during the floods in Brisbane
.

 

[Truly Exotic]

I have a similar story for a $341 fee for a quote from an electrician!

got recommeded by the managing agency for a quite a big job, $4000-$6000,

I ask them to come and have a look at it, they send their 2 young apprentice looking guys, got told, yep, your wiring has gone, and we have to switch all the power off,

I responded, can you leave one power point, since I need it, they said, no we have to switch them all off,

ok ill put a put a powerpoint in the fusebox and you can use that

15 mins later, ok, all done, boss will send you a quote

a few days later, the quote arrives, another week llater, invoice for a $350 quote fee!

obviously they wont be getting the job

 

[Dazz]

They need to take lessons off solicitors.

They are as bald as brass when it comes to notifying charges upfront. You get one chance to refute the outrageous amounts (up to $ 100 per unit, a unit being defined as 6 minutes or part thereof.....a 7 minute phone call = $ 200 ).


The fees charged by plumbers reminds me of a recent joke....

Some Dr has a leak in is hand basin. Calls plumber. Plumber comes out and fixes the problem in 15 minutes and hands him a bill for $ 200.....callout plus time plus parts.

The Doc says "you were only here 15 minutes, I could never charge my patients that much".

The Plumber says "yeah I know mate, that's why I gave up my practice years ago and got into this game."

 

[joanmc]

So true Dazz!
last year we had a leaky tap in one of the houses.
Handyman goes out $50 "you need a plumber"
Plumber goes out $180 changes ceramic washer (didn't bother to reseat it though)

Hubby looses his ***** and goes out to do the job himself.
Now we have a handyman business. we sell ourselves on the fact that we are landlords, know what they want. will actually get the job done etc etc.

We are now run off our feet.