Plumbing projects are the number one diy disaster in UK homes

Survey reveals that plumbing professionals are called in more often than any other trade to fix a botched DIY job

A new survey has confirmed that plumbers are the UK’s most used tradespeople when it comes to fixing problems caused by ‘have-a-go DIY-ers’.

Water Regs UK compared a range of typical jobs that are carried out in UK homes and recorded how many people have tried but failed to complete the jobs themselves.

Over 2,000 people across the UK were asked which home maintenance jobs they or a family member or friend had attempted, only to end up calling out a professional to fix the problem.

Almost a fifth (18%) of those surveyed said that they had called in a plumbing professional to complete a job they had tried to do themselves.

Plumbers were the most called upon trade, followed by electricians (15%) and plasterers (10%). The top five trades called in to fix botched DIY jobs were, according to the Water Regs UK study were:

1. Plumbers
2. Electricians
3. Plasterers
4. Roofers
5. Tilers

Julie Spinks, Managing Director of Water Regs UK, believes just calling in a plumber isn’t always the answer to the problem. The advice from Water Regs UK is to make sure the plumber is properly qualified.

She said:

“Sometimes trying to fix a problem in the home yourself can make that problem worse and, when it comes to water in the home, the temptation is to call for help from the first plumber you can find – but often those plumbers have no official accreditation.

“Water Regs UK is working hard to educate homeowners that they really should only turn to approved plumbers, if they want to be sure that installers are committed to working to quality standards.”

“That why Water Regs UK always recommends seeking a professional plumber, such as one approved by WaterSafe. All WaterSafe approved plumbers are trained in the Water Fittings Regulations and Byelaws – which help prevent the risk of contamination of drinking water from poor plumbing practices and sub-standard fittings and products.”

“That’s why the WaterSafe register is the only one in the UK supported by all water companies and the drinking water regulators.”

For more information and to find an approved plumber, visit the WaterSafe website: watersafe.org.uk