Call out fees

purplerose0602

My electric underfloor heating doesnt work. Spoke to an electrician who advertised as an underfloor heating expert. And then I was told that his call out fee is £75 even if after diagnosis he decides that he is not capable of  fixing the problem. Is this reasonable?

Thanks

comeandgo

Bit on the high side but does this include any work, one of my contractors has call out of £50 but that also includes first hour work.

purplerose0602

No work will be included. So even if he thinks that he is not capable of repairing it after the diagnosis, I will still be charged for £75

comeandgo

purplerose0602 said:

No work will be included. So even if he thinks that he is not capable of repairing it after the diagnosis, I will still be charged for £75

What are the charges if work is needed?  The contractor I use would charge me £50 to tell me it's not possible to repair but why would your contractor not be capable of a repair? You say you are using an expert.

fenwick458

seems a bit high to me I'd charge £50 but you don't say a location.
you can have the biggest expert in the world on electric UFH but if the mat has failed then it's not possible to repair it, you just need to take the floor up and replace the mat.
if you're lucky it's a supply fault to the thermostat, a faulty thermostat, or a faulty floor probe. they can be fixed

Risteard

Perfectly reasonable. Many charge £80+VAT or higher for call-outs. Of course you need to pay even if it's not something which they can sort for you. They can't know that without going to try to diagnose the issue, and time/travel isn't free.

joeypesci

Most people charge like that to stop time wasters. I used to charge a call out fee with IT work even if I couldn't fix.