2 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Plumber

Posted on September 4, 2019 by oozle

Having to hire a plumber can be stressful for any homeowner. You might check with friends to ask for recommendations or use Google or Facebook to check out their reviews. These are all good things you should do when looking for a plumber, but there are actually two questions you absolutely must ask your plumber before letting them work on your home.

Are They Licensed?

Lately, it’s been a huge debate in the plumbing world about whether or not plumbers need to be licensed. In the state of Texas, for example, plumbers will no longer have to be licensed, insured, or required to take continuing education classes starting in September of 2019. This scares plumbers all across America—not because of the idea of incoming competition but more so due to the potential for unskilled and untested DIY-ers flooding into the business and putting homeowners at risk.

In Nevada, plumbers must have the experience to back them up. Plumbers typically start out as an apprentice and then move onto a journeyman position. To qualify for a journeyman position in Nevada, the state requires plumbers to have gone through four years of a state-registered and accredited apprenticeship. This puts 8,000 hours of legitimate experience under their belts. The next step up for plumbers is typically as a master plumber which the state requires them to have their Nevada Board of Plumbing Examiners (NBOPE) certificate proving they’ve been licensed as a Nevada journeyman plumber for at least one year or have completed 2,000 hours.

In regards to plumbing licenses, the main question is this: would you rather have someone who doesn’t have proof of their experience working with your home’s pipes or someone who has a license that can give you more trust in their abilities? You should also take into consideration the fact that many of your home’s appliances are connected to your gas lines. Take your water heater which has gas venting, for example. If the plumber who is working on your water heater isn’t qualified and licensed, the gas lines might be tampered with in a way that could possibly lead to carbon dioxide poisoning. As you can see, making sure your plumber is licensed puts your safety and that of your family’s first.

For your reference, here is a screenshot of our license:

Do They Have Insurance?

Making sure your plumber is insured is one of the smartest steps you can take as a customer. Feel free to ask any plumber you are considering hiring for proof of insurance. However, you should know that typically licensure requires that plumbers have a general liability insurance plan. What this insurance does is protect you should damages occur on your property while the plumber is working there.

If you live in a state where insurance isn’t required, you could be held financially responsible if you were to hire an uninsured plumber who caused damages of some sort to your home. These damages could be anything from unnecessary holes and broken fixtures to using a type of piping that puts your home in violation of state housing codes—making it so they have to be replaced all over again. Every state has their regulations that determine whether or not plumbers need to be insured or licensed. Such regulations are in place to hold them accountable and to make sure all financial obligations are taken care of.

Thankfully, plumbers in Nevada should always be insured. However, it’s always a good idea to check. As of August 2019, ProServ is insured through the Platte River Insurance Company. You can see this on our surety bond information here.

Need a Plumber Now?

Give ProServ Las Vegas a call today! To name just a few of our plumbing services, we do pipe replacement and repair, water heaters, water lines, water purification, and other must-have plumbing services. We are committed to customer satisfaction and will work hard to make sure your issue is resolved in a timely manner. Go ahead. Give us a call!

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