Several years ago, I noticed a leak in the cabinet under the sink in a small second add-on bathroom that came with the house I had recently bought.
I was a young senior woman living alone. New to the area, I found Bill The Plumber's name in the phonebook anc called them.
They have fancy trucks that look like emergency medicals vehicles. (I guessed they had high overhead)
I was told that I needed to replace the faucet. The faucet was a very inexpensive one-that I later priced at Home Depot for about $20. I asked what it cost me for the work. He gave me two estimates for the job--both included the price of the faucet. One was for about $450 and the other was $500. That seemed a bit high to me. so I asked how much the faucets cost so that I could deduct their costs to determine what the labor charge was. Please note: It took less than an hour to do the job when I had it done by an honest plumber. He said he didn't know the price of the faucet.
I imagine that many seniors -especially women-with little or no experience hiring plumbers, would have gone ahead and hired this thieving company. And although I had never had to hire a plumber before, my instincts told me that I was being way overcharged and that their unwillingness to reveal cost of the faucet itself indicated that their labor charges were outrageous (and possibly illegal)?
I immediately called other plumbers and learned that I was correct.
The most expensive would have charged my $80 for labor-and allowed me to purchase my own faucet (which I did for $22).
However, a neighbor handyman charged me much less than that. It was a simple job that took him less than an hour -and he wasn't even a professional plumber.
So Bill The Plumber was charging at least five times as much as every other reputable plumber in the area.
I reported this to the Better Business Bureau but never heard from them
It makes me sad to think how many unknowing victims they have taken advantage of over the years.
Bill the Plumber Reviews
Several years ago, I noticed a leak in the cabinet under the sink in a small second add-on bathroom that came with the house I had recently bought.
I was a young senior woman living alone. New to the area, I found Bill The Plumber's name in the phonebook anc called them.
They have fancy trucks that look like emergency medicals vehicles. (I guessed they had high overhead)
I was told that I needed to replace the faucet. The faucet was a very inexpensive one-that I later priced at Home Depot for about $20. I asked what it cost me for the work. He gave me two estimates for the job--both included the price of the faucet. One was for about $450 and the other was $500. That seemed a bit high to me. so I asked how much the faucets cost so that I could deduct their costs to determine what the labor charge was. Please note: It took less than an hour to do the job when I had it done by an honest plumber. He said he didn't know the price of the faucet.
I imagine that many seniors -especially women-with little or no experience hiring plumbers, would have gone ahead and hired this thieving company. And although I had never had to hire a plumber before, my instincts told me that I was being way overcharged and that their unwillingness to reveal cost of the faucet itself indicated that their labor charges were outrageous (and possibly illegal)?
I immediately called other plumbers and learned that I was correct.
The most expensive would have charged my $80 for labor-and allowed me to purchase my own faucet (which I did for $22).
However, a neighbor handyman charged me much less than that. It was a simple job that took him less than an hour -and he wasn't even a professional plumber.
So Bill The Plumber was charging at least five times as much as every other reputable plumber in the area.
I reported this to the Better Business Bureau but never heard from them
It makes me sad to think how many unknowing victims they have taken advantage of over the years.