HOW TO HIRE THE BEST PLUMBER POSSIBLE

Finding the right plumber for your Austin, TX home is about far more than searching for the most competitive prices. The best plumbing companies have longstanding reputations for consistently delivering superior workmanship, strong supplier relationships, and an adequate workforce to meet the demand for their services. They also have valid licensing and insurance. Read on to find out why carefully checking a plumber’s license is such a critical part of the hiring process.

SELF-PROMOTION ISN’T SUFFICIENT PROOF OF LICENSING

It’s not uncommon for plumbers to publish their insurance certificates directly on their professional websites. When it comes to licensing, adding license numbers to all marketing materials is actually legally required. However, even when plumbing companies have done both of these things, this doesn’t mean that they’re actually licensed and insured. Plumbing licenses can be lost or suspended for many reasons. Likewise, insurance policies can be canceled or terminated due to:

• Excess risk
• Too many claims
• Nonpayment
• Loss of professional licensing

While you might think that checking for a plumber’s license number is doing your due diligence, this part of your pre-hire research should actually go quite a bit further. Beyond determining that a plumber was indeed licensed at some point in time, you want to make sure that these companies have valid professional licenses right now. This is also true for insurance policies. The only way to find out for certain is to ask the issuing authorities directly.

COMMON REASONS WHY PLUMBING LICENSES ARE SUSPENDED OR TERMINATED

Plumbers with suspended or canceled licenses may or may not have made serious professional missteps in the past. Professional licenses can be canceled due to:

• Criminal convictions against the license holder
• Failure to disclose a change in business location
• Employment of an unlicensed and unqualified team member
• Failure to renew a license that’s been expired for more than two years

Administrative oversights and personal legal issues aren’t necessarily an indication of professional incompetence, but they’ll still leave consumers without the benefits and protections that hiring licensed and insured contractors provide. And there are many professional actions and events that can result in the loss of official licensing. For instance, plumbers with criminal convictions have a higher likelihood of permanently losing their licenses if their crimes are plumbing-related.

Plumbers in Texas can also lose their licensing for performing work that lies outside the scope of their license types. In Texas, there are four types of plumbing licenses that professionals can hold. Once licensed, professional plumbers in this state must only take on projects that they’re specifically licensed for. To expand their service offerings or work independent of licensed companies as private contractors, they must apply for additional licensing.

WHAT ARE THE FOUR PLUMBER’S LICENSE TYPES IN TEXAS?

All Texas plumber’s licenses are issued by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE). This agency has been responsible for processing licensing applications, verifying training, and administering certification exams since 1942. To work as apprentices, plumbers in training must contact the TSBPE to obtain apprentice licenses. To work as a professional for hire, a plumber must have one of these:

• Tradesman Plumber-Limited license
• Journeyman license
• Master license

Qualified plumbers can also obtain Plumber Inspector licenses from the TSBPE if they have already obtained a Master or Journeyman license and have met other eligibility criteria. However, a Plumber Inspector license does not enlarge the scope of work that a professional plumber can complete in a for-hire capacity for either residential or commercial clients.

When checking plumbers’ licenses to make sure that they are valid and active, you’ll need to contact the TSBPE directly. When doing so, be sure to have the plumber’s:

• Advertised license number
• Company name
• Current company address

If you’re hiring a plumber to complete a large-scale project, you’ll also want to verify that the company or contractor you’re hiring has the right license type based on the scope of work you want to be performed. A professional with a Tradesman Plumber-Limited license can only complete repairs, installations, renovations, or construction work on single-family dwellings, under the supervision of a Journeyman plumber. Tradesman Plumber-Limited licensing does not qualify a professional to complete work on their own. If you are shopping around for a plumbing professional using online classified sites, social networking sites, or niche-specific home improvement forums and come across a licensed party with highly competitive rates, make sure that they are not a tradesman plumber employed by a large company but “moonlighting” by finding side jobs on their own. Hiring this type of professional is akin to hiring a plumber with no licensing at all.

THE LICENSING CONFUSION OF 2019

Texas homeowners were subjected to a fair amount of confusion in 2019 when the licensing requirements for being a Texas plumber suddenly went away. This highly politicized move was an effort to remove licensing responsibilities from the TSBPE and install another regulatory authority in its place. However, the authority of the TSBPE was extended by the Texas governor until 2021 and fully reinstated in 2022. Thus, despite any arguments that you see or hear to the contrary, all professional plumbers working within the state of Texas must have and share valid licensing information.

WHAT CAN HAPPEN IF I HIRE AN UNLICENSED PLUMBER?

The consequences of hiring an unlicensed plumber or a licensed plumber who chooses to move beyond their legally accepted scope of work are almost too numerous to list. The first and most important thing to know about professional licensing is that contractors and companies cannot get insurance without it. Insurance companies view unlicensed “professionals” as being too high-risk to cover. Thus, if a once-licensed plumber has had their license suspended or terminated, they’ve lost their insurance as well.

• The cancellation of your own home insurance policy
• Voiding of all relevant home, product, and other asset warranties
• Costly premises liability claims

Mistakes that are made by an unlicensed and uninsured party will have to be paid for out of your own pocket. Legally, unlicensed and uninsured parties who are hired by homeowners are considered the employees of homeowners themselves. This is done for liability purposes. As such, if an unlicensed plumber that you hire is injured while on the job, you will have to pay for their damage. Worse still, if any agent of this person sustains injuries while working on your project, these will also be your responsibility.

LICENSING AND INSURANCE ARE INDICATIONS OF TRUSTWORTHINESS

It takes effort and considerable investment for plumbers to obtain professional licensing and insurance. As per the TSBPE, even a Tradesman Plumber-Limited license requires at least 4,000 hours of relevant work experience and the completion of an apprenticeship or a TSBPE-approved course. Journeyman plumbers must have at least 8,000 hours of relevant work experience, and Master plumbers even more. When professionals invest this much time and effort in their craft, they care about what they do, and they’re committed to doing it well.

If you’re looking for the best plumber in Austin, TX, S & D Plumbing is the company to call. We’ve been a licensed and fully insured provider of reliable plumbing, leak detection, and drain cleaning services since 1980. Get in touch with us today to request a quote or schedule an appointment.