Inner City Plumbing

Leaking Pipe [Content Removed] – There was a leak in our water pipe system: I could not contact my regular plumber (he was on leave) so I checked the internet and selected Inner City Plumbing (ICP) , in Abbotsford, due to the reviews it received and to the fact that it could detect and fix leaks within the hour. After almost 3 hours, two plumbers arrived. ICP charge a call-out fee of $120.00 and then $280.. per hour thereafter. This should have been the "red flag". I broke my rule:- I didn't get a quote or fixed fee beforehand! (I was more concerned with the leak) Nevertheless, what should have taken one competent plumber one hour or so to detect and fix, took the two plumbers almost 3 hours which included 45 minutes (for which I was charged) for BOTH plumbers to go to buy "the materials needed". It is concerning that plumbers who claim to repair leaks do not carry even short lengths of piping or even fixing clips in their vehicles! This was another "red flag". The cost :_ Almost $1600.00 for something that should have cost around $400.00. The $1600.00 included almost $700.00 of "materials"( which one could purchase at Bunnings for about $45.00!). Rather than "fixing" the leak, the two plumbers decided to "re-route" the pipwork and so, whilst the leak was "fixed', I was, nevertheless, [Content Removed] and luckily for the plumbing company, as always, the authorities (including the VBA on the basis of "unprofessional conduct" by the plumbing company) are not concerned about this. It is good to know that there are so many authorities "looking after our interests". A simple rule (which I also broke!) is:- beware of any company that charges by the hour and won't give a fixed fee before commencing because you just never know how many hours it would take to complete a 5- minute task! And when I endeavoured to complain, to the owner of the company, about the cost of "materials", he tried to justify the cost by stating that he had sent out two plumbers (which I didn't ask for) and, thus, he needed to re-coup the costs! Lucky for me he didn't send out 5 plumbers (to do what one plumber could) or, otherwise, the cost of "materials" could have been $5000.00! At today's cost of water, given that the leak was relatively minor, (about 5 litres per hour), it will take some 12 to 15 years to pay off the cost of repair! A certificate, as required by law, has yet to be issued, if at all! As a point of interest, even though plumbing works (particularly in this case) are part of "the building", insurance companies do not consider "repair to plumbing" as "repair to building" and, hence, will not cover the cost of repairs.