overheated light fitting
I had to smile today at the term 'bungling' as I was reading an article on the web about trades people who create shoddy and dangerous work in peoples homes. Although the term 'bungling' might raise a few smiles, it is actually a serious situation.
As an electrician in Nottingham, I receive calls of many different natures. I work as a commerical and domestic electrician which means I work in both homes and businesses. One day I could find myself working in an office block and the next in someone’s cellar – its what makes my job as an electrician so interesting. However, one of the most common types of calls I receive is to repair an electrical job that has been carried out incorrectly.
What type of dangerous jobs do I come across?
Contrary to popular belief, I do not come across DIY electrical work so often. However, it is very common for me to make good electrical work that has been carried out by a bungling electrician – that is a person claiming to be an electrician who may well be unregistered and unqualified. Unfortunately this situation means my customer is essentially paying twice for the job. The average cost to rectify sub standard work is £600 according to a ComRes survey.
According to a recent survey of 2000 home owners carried out by ComRes, the responses revealed that a quarter of owners don't know where to find impartial information on choosing a trades person and a quarter of respondents rely on family and friends for recommendation.
I have in recent weeks come across several potentially dangerous scenarios in both domestic and commercial settings.
Light fittings
Without any doubt, the most common problem occurring in homes is incorrectly installed light fittings. The light below overheated and could have caused a serious house fire or electrical injury.
Business owners
You should still expect the same high quality service and installation as found in domestic properties. However I have come across poor practice in commercial businesses in the Nottingham area. I have found domestic certificates issued for commercial work. This is a concern of course. It is important that your commerical electrician has the right knowledge to work in these environments.
Why are the jobs going wrong?
The main problem found is that credentials are not being checked before the electrician begins work. If you are looking for an electrician in Derby and surrounding areas, always check qualifications for both domestic and commercial jobs before work commences and for domestic jobs, always verify registration details. According to the survey, 57% of home owners fail to check that their electrician is qualified and registered. Indeed, when I discover the resulting dangerous work, it is certainly technical incompetence that has lead to the poor standard of work.
In another survey commissioned by TrustMark of 300 tradesmen, the problems encountered by home owners – and also business owners do not come as a surprise.
- Six per cent (or 1 million households) in the UK select the cheapest quote. In response to this, 84% of trades people agreed that the main reason for a bad job was because of a cheap quote.
- Two thirds of home owners do not know where to go if there is a problem. The fact is, all electrical work carried out by an electrician should carry a lengthy guarantee.
How to find a suitable electrician to work in your home
Here at Stator Electrical Solutions, I take pride in ensuring my clients from Mansfield, Nottingham and Derby areas are able to find me easily in a non-biased way. I take pride in being on the TrustMark register for this very reason – it is the only Government endorsed register for electricians and I recommend that all searches for trades people to work are made through this register. There are a few other checks that I recommend you carry out before agreeing for work to be carried out.
- Check qualifications and registration if applicable
- Check that the work will be guaranteed
- Before accepting the price, be clear about what is included in it
By following this advice, you will avoid bumping into a bungling electrician and will find an electrician who has been properly checked, trained, registered and therefore competent to carry out the works you need.
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