The Tap Doctor
Verified210 reviews
Needed a plumber urgently to attend cracked copper water pipe. Rang Tap Doctor and was put in touch with John who came within and hour and half. Very professional and did a great job. I thought the cost of $220 was very reasonable.
I booked Tap Doctor for an 8am Friday appointment to repair an exposed burst Hepworth/PB pipe near the meter. The pipe was already pre-dug and fully accessible. The plumber assessed the job and advised he would need to dig further to expose more of the pipe, quoting $350 plus parts. Based on that explanation of the scope of work, I agreed to the… Read more
price. However, the job was completed in approximately 20 minutes. No additional digging was carried out. The plumber simply cut out the damaged section and installed an Ezipex fitting.
When I queried the cost given the limited work completed, I was told that $350 is their “minimum first hour charge.” At no point during booking or prior to commencing work was this minimum first-hour charge disclosed. It is also not stated anywhere on their website. Their advertising references “On-budget,” “No call-out fee,” and “Up-front Pricing,” which I feel is misleading given that the minimum first hour charge was never communicated.
I requested to speak to a supervisor to discuss the charge and was told someone would call me back. No one did.
To make matters worse, while the original leak was repaired, I was left with a new leak at a copper join. A supervisor attended on Monday to repair the new leak. I explained that I accepted the quote based on the described scope of work. The supervisor confirmed that charging $350 for the first hour, regardless of the work, is their standard practice.
The lack of transparency around pricing, the failure to return my call, and being left with an additional leak is extremely disappointing. In my view, $350 to simply cut out the damaged section and install an Ezipex fitting is not “on-budget” and does not reflect the standard Perth market rates.
I will not use this company again.
Plumber came and fixed a leak which while expensive was a quality job. Had him return a few days later to install my laundry taps and cooper piping and he has forgotten to cap one of the connections and mixed the taps up so the cold is the hot tap and vice versa.
Reviews with attachments
Review for Tap Doctor Plumbing - Perth Very disappointing experience. The shower handle came off from the mixer one evening around 7pm, and I tried calling several plumbers who claimed to be “24/7” — but no one was available. Finally, I reached Tap Doctor. The lady who answered was polite and said she’d pass my details on. A plumber called me… Read more
back and promised to send someone the next morning.
Two plumbers from them arrived the next day and inspected the issue. They gave me two options: 1. A temporary fix that would stop the water leak but make the shower unusable, or 2. To chip the tiles and wall to replace the entire unit — for a quoted price of $1,379, excluding retiling, which I estimated would add another $1,000.
That’s a total of around $2,500 to fix a single shower mixer.
I decided to get a second opinion and called another licensed plumber. He quoted $275 to fix the issue — or $385 if a full replacement was needed. Within minutes he removed the part, went to Reece Cannington, found the cartridge, and completed the entire repair in about 30 minutes. He even fixed a small cistern leak at no extra charge.
So why was I quoted $1,379 for something that could be fixed professionally for $275? A person calls a plumber in genuine need, not for fun. It’s disappointing to see a company that promotes itself as local, professional, and experienced try to take advantage of people during stressful situations.
Please do your business more honestly — don’t rip people off. I’m sharing this experience so others don’t go through the same thing.
Very happy with the prompt and efficient manner that Jimmy, the plumber who came out early in the morning to assess my hot water system. Very polite and knowledgeable and was able to explain and show me the problem...thank you Jimmy
The highly recommended Plumber Service in Perth – We called Tap Doctor on the last minute because the previous plumber recommended by a friend missed his appointment to come. Therefore, in urgent replacement, we found Tap Doctor on the internet with good review and also they did not charge for the call out fee, which was a plus for us when we were not sure the problem and was on a tight budget.… Read more
The result was amazing and the friendly service was way beyond our expectations!! Not only did the Tap Doctor fixed our blockage issue but it also managed to fix our slow water flow from the hot water system!! The price was very good, and my mum even received a pensioner discount, which was so great for Tap Doctor to look after the old people in the time where everything became expensive and high expenses. We will now highly recommend Tap Doctor to all our neighbors as most of them were elderly people. Thank you once again Tap Doctor for making our day beautiful again !!
Very satisfied customer – Our water pipe had burst in the evening. Next morning early 2 guys came and in quick time repaired the pipe. I was delighted with their friendliness helpfulness and efficiency. They even left me with 2 photos of the before and after. Highly recommend.
Hot Water Leak – Incredibly grateful for work carried out to rectify issue. Punctual, high quality diagnoses and repair. Nathan was an exceptional tradesman whose constant feedback help ease concerns I had. A very satisfied customer.
Latest follow-ups
ZERO STAR IF WE HAD THIS OPTION! Extremely irresponsible people. I called them a few days ago and book them to see the job and get a quote. The plumber called me to come earlier so I had to leave my job to get there to meet him. He saw the job and… Read more
we agreed on the price , but he never called me or reply to my text or at least to let me know he won’t help! It’s really shame . Wasting my time and our work had to be done with a few days delay . DO NOT USE THEM . Absolutely wrong people are there .
Follow-up · He saw the job to give me a quote till next day and never heard of him although text him a few times. I asked for some water drain in our driveway and alfresco before pouring concrete. Waited a couple of weeks . Never replied , even not able to do the job to let me go for someone else.
Positive reviews
Warren from The Tap Doctor Joondalup was absolutely outstanding. He went above and beyond to make sure our dishwasher was installed smoothly in our new home. His pricing was fair, communication was clear, and the service was top-notch. We wouldn’t consider going anywhere else now. Thank you so much, Warren — we’re truly grateful!
Ontime attendance – Steve was on time and was very personable to deal with. The only downside in my opinion was the cost as the job took no more than about 10 minutes at the most.
Great plumber – The tap doctor Changed my tap it as a difficult task as very old fitting but he accomplished it easy enough was polite clean workmanship and friendly. The quote was cheaper that other plumbers in the area.
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Negative reviews
Don't ever use this company - poor workmanship and ridiculously high costs. Rang Tap Doctor to fix a leaking toilet at the outlet of the bowl to the sewerage system. Two options were offered by the "tradesman!"; remove the perished rubber ring and apply a wax collar or remove the toilet completely and replace the whole system. The wax collar… Read more
would cost $330.00, and the total replacement would be $1400.00. Consequently, I opted for the wax collar. He did advise to collar alternative would not be long lasting (approximately on to five years.). Two days later the toilet was leaking in the same place. Contacted the company. The actual tradesman advised that a full replacement was needed. He did so without offering to return to redo the job but suggest a time when a full replacement could be done. A wax collar was not an ideal "fix" but it should have lasted longer than two days. I declined his offer of a full replacement. I researched on "Youtube" how to do the wax collar fix. I bought a wax collar for $25.00 and have successfully replaced it myself. $330.00 service to replace a $25.00 component that lasted for two days. What a ripoff. Never again.
Although the website states ‘no call out fee’, on arrival of the plumber I was advised a ‘minimum fee’ would apply for small jobs (which it was). The plumber could/would not provide me the price of the part (a small flexible hose), nor the minimum fee. The call centre should have informed me of the ‘minimum fee’. So for a 30 minute visit and a simple flexible hose -$242
I feel sorry for Greg R paying $720 an hour for these guys as we only paid what was likely between $500 to $650 an hour for 2 hours work depending on how much the hot water system really cost and of course the cost of other legitimate misc charges. Yes the best paid plumbers this side of the equator we reckon. We were in a situation that needed… Read more
help immediately no hot water, sick kids at home and these guys were the only ones that could come in on the day.
I found a range of prices from other plumbers after the fact. The particular system they installed had a price range from $900 to $1200 for system and $1200 to $1600 supplied and installed with other plumbers. But these guys they issued a supply and instal receipt for $2550 with no other details that means about 1300 to 1600 for just under 2 hours labour and misc costs. I verbally asked these guys for a detailed breakdown receipt first , and they scoffed at me and said no reputable company does that. They changed their mind when I finally brought Australian Consumer Law facts into it and they cobbled together a receipt and sent it to me with labour costs separated out and then also included in with certain items and charged for certifications etc.. Though at the end of the day apparently according to Consumer Law it is not actually illegal to charge what they like (and get away with it). And we accept we got suckered in by our circumstances and we paid immediately thinking we always pay immediately and that the cost was because we got a high end system fitted until we did the research after the fact . Anyway WARNING stay away from the Tap Doctor North franchise unless you want to pay closer to the $1000 an hour end of the scale for your plumbing work. Coincidently I heard good things about Hilton plumbing from a lot of our others, that's where we will likely go next time for service.
Update Yes just as an example of dubious charging practices from this outfit I told Tap Doctor that… Read more
Recent reviews
We had problems with our Rheem Solar hot water system not heating. The thermostat and another element had burnt out. Matt the plumber couldn’t be faulted but the overall cost was painful. Mainly due to the electrical cost. This was not a weekend call-out and it all cost nearly $1100 We agreed bcoz we’d been without hot water for 2 days and getting another quote quickly would be difficult. If you can shop around first, do it.
Plumber repaired leak in roof and fitted pressure valve without issues, but cost extra $60 on top of the bill to purchase and replace roof tiles that he had broken
Had a plumber out to fix a leaking shower tap. Started a yarn about the possible causes and ways and means to repair it, with a quote. All that was required was a replacement of the cartridge (<$20 a piece) in less than 20 minutes. Cost for the job? $300 (bulk of the cost is his professional expertise). Utter lack of professionalism and unethical. Tap Doctor again? Not a chance.
Great work, friendly guys – Contacted Tap Doctor for leaky tap in Retail store Cannington WA. Quick to respond and book an appointment. They arrived early which was great, inspected the issue, quoted which was accepted and promptly completed the job.
NOT HAPPY – I had a Tap Doctor come out to our house in Bellevue / Perth this after noon . I needed a tap relaced in the shower .A strait forward job half an hour at the most . He Quoted $.280.00 dollars' to do the job . Said it was not strait forward and difficult to fix . WHAT a load of rubbish . and a RIPE off . I will never use them again .
Excellent service – Excellent service. Friendly and professional. Reece was able to get the job done quickly and effectively, he was friendly and communicated well. It was also great to be able to tack on a few extra jobs on the spot and Reece didn't mind at all. There was one issue left behind in the end and I was able to contact Charlie who arranged for Reece to come back and fix the issue ASAP, no dramas at all. Will be a return customer for sure Show details
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Hot water system – The following morning after a thunderstorm I found my hot water system was out.I called the Tapdoctor ar 7.15am and they came at 8.00am what service.A diagnostic was carried. out and it was found the motherboard was fried.This required a new system.Price was given and new system installed. Jimmy and James very efficient This firm is 10/10
Poor communication, basic manners are missing – Was expecting a written or verbal quotation after inspection, dripping shower mixer. Now two weeks , nothing. Rude and poor communication. Will find a better company with core values.
[Name Removed]- yes. Tap Doctor - not so much – No callout fee, easy booking system, over an hour late but was kept updated so that's fine! I've got no real basis for comparison but I feel like the price was a little out of control. $270 to change a small part in the toilet cistern?! No complaints with the plumber though. [Name Removed] (I think? according to the quote) was efficient, friendly and very helpful. Would like to recommend him but not necessarily the company lol. Show details
Washing machine tap replacement – We needed to replace our washing machine but discovered we couldn't turn off the taps at the wall. The new washing machine was to be delivered within hours, so we knew that we had to act quickly, so phoned The Tap Doctor. Jimmy D and Jim were there within the hour and had it all replaced and finished 15 minutes later!! Friendly, clean job and very… Read more
efficient. Great team effort from admin to technicians, and all at a very good price. Would recommend for any plumbing needs. Thank you very much.
Terrible – Plumber out twice to unblock drains paid $753… drains still blocked & charging us again as it’s not guaranteed. Will never recommend Tap Doctor.Absolute rip off.
I wasn't present, husband was – Had a leak in the roof after heavy showers which dripped onto the tiles. I have had numerous roof tilers/plumbers over the years and the problem still exists. Tap doctor came out the same day and was punctual. Charged $250. I have paid more. Don't know if the job has been successful until we have heavy rains again.
Below par – Usual rip offs red flags They would not give price straight away expected me to pay any figure after work was done . charged me $750 for a usual $300 job to drain blocked toilet . Called them again said they would fix for free charged me another 250 I had no choice I was sick and had no car Now it's blocked again so I will go to a plumber I was… Read more
referred to by good friend If your disabled single old sick vulnerable person avoid these vultures Avoid Avoid
Never again – Rang Tap Doctors because my regular plumber couldn’t get to the house for 3 days. My hot water system (solar) stopped working! A very nice young guy came out and told me I needed a new solar system and it was $5000. I wanted hot water so I paid a deposit. Then my husband rang them back and asked them to quote for a gas system. They came out again… Read more
and quoted a similar price. Then we called the solar company that we had and they fixed it for $200. When we canceled the order with tap doctors they charged us $700 for their quotes. All because I didn’t wait three days for my regular trustworthy plumber. Learnt my lesson the hard way. Never use tap doctors again.
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I should admitted that price was roughly and he said till tomorrow I’ll let you know exact price ,… Read more