Kitchen and bathroom fitters

What to put in your job description

• Kitchen or bathroom, and roughly how big.
• Whether you have bought the units or suite, or want the fitter to supply them.
• What stays and what comes out.
• Whether anything moves: the sink, the toilet, the cooker, the boiler.
• When you want it done, and how long you can be without the room.

Don't put your name, phone number or address in the description: every trade who covers your area reads it. Your name, phone, email and address go only to the trades who take the job (3 at most).

Questions to ask before you hire

• Who does the plumbing, the electrics, the tiling and the plastering?
• If gas is involved: who is the Gas Safe registered engineer?
• How long will I be without a kitchen or bathroom?
• How are payments staged?
• Do you have public liability insurance?

Registers and schemes to check

There is no register for kitchen and bathroom fitters. The parts of the job that touch gas must be done by an engineer on the Gas Safe Register, and new circuits or new electrical work near a bath or shower by an electrician in a competent person scheme. Ask the fitter who does those parts. We don't check this for you yet.

What the job usually involves

• Taking out the old kitchen or bathroom and taking the waste away.
• First fix: moving pipes and cables while the walls are open.
• Plastering, then fitting units, worktops, the suite, taps and appliances.
• Tiling, flooring and sealing; then testing everything.
• Gas and electrical parts done by registered engineers and electricians.

How quotes and visits work

A fitter needs to visit and measure. Ask whether the quote covers only fitting, or also supplying units, the suite, tiles and appliances. A written schedule of work, room by room, makes quotes easier to compare.

Ask for a written quote (a fixed price) rather than an estimate (a guess that can change), and for what it includes. If you agree a job in your home, you usually have 14 days to cancel under the Consumer Contracts Regulations; if you want work to start sooner, you may have to pay for what has been done.

Safety

• Gas appliances and gas pipes must be connected by an engineer on the Gas Safe Register.
• New electrical work near a bath or shower, and new circuits for cookers, should be done by an electrician in a competent person scheme.

Insurance and TrustMark

Ask for public liability insurance before work starts. It covers damage or injury caused by the trade to you, your home or someone else. Ask for the insurer's name and the cover's end date; you can ask to see the certificate.

TrustMark is the government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around the home. Its registered businesses agree to its code of practice, and you can look them up on trustmark.org.uk.

Guides for homeowners

• Planning permission and Building Regulations: the difference
• How to compare quotes from local trades

We take jobs from anywhere in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Trades choose the postcode districts they cover.

Kitchen and bathroom fitters by town and city

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland