Choosing an electrician, or any tradesman for that matter can be quite a daunting task. You want someone who's going to do the work they quoted for and someone who will treat your home with respect and this ultimately all boils down to trust. You need to be able to trust your electrician so with that in mind, whether you're thinking about having some bathroom spotlights installed or you need new mains powered smoke alarms or even a fuseboard upgrade, here are 5 things you should check before hiring an electrician. 

Checking their registration

We are registered electricians, this means we are checked for electrical compliance every year. An assessor will come out to meet us and check our paperwork is in order, E.G. Insurances are in place and qualifications are correct for the work being carried out. We are registered with NAPIT and our registration number is 52682. If you're not sure if your electrician is a registered electrician you can easily check yourself using the electrical competent person register. Don't be afraid to ask for their certificates, any good electrician will have these on hand. 

View their work

If they have an online presence you can generally see the quality of their workmanship. If it doesn't look like you'd have it in your home, then move on to the next electrician. In this day and age where most people are on social media I don't think there's any reason NOT to showcase your work online. It certainly isn't the case for all trades but if they're not willing to show their work to the public, you have to ask yourself why. 

Warranties

Find out about what sort of warranty they offer. Most electricians will offer a 12 month warranty on parts which means if an item they supplied fails within 12 months they usually replace it free of charge. Our warranty is for the same duration as the manufacturers warranty. Some lights we install (especially with new downlights) come with a 5 or even 7 year warranty, giving you much more peace of mind should they stop working. 

Communication

Is communication with your electrician fluid? A lot of electricians are busy and sometimes communications can and will be a bit slow but they shouldn't be non-existent. A good electrician should be responsive to your messages and be clear with their replies, good electricians DEFINITELY don't shorthand like 'c u tmrrw'. For larger jobs some electricians will give you updates throughout but if they don't communicate very well at the enquiry stage it's unlikely you'll get much else out of them. Finally, a good electrician will be upfront and clear regarding the work being carried out and the costs involved. Anyone being vague about the price should definitely be avoided. 

Availability

It's usually they less reputable electricians that are free at very short notice however, I do understand that cancellations and postponements happen and days do become available at short notice. Depending on the sort of work your electrician does, you should expect to wait at least 2 weeks. Generally speaking we're booked up around 2-3 weeks in advance, most of our work is small domestic jobs so we don't get booked up as far as people that only do re-wires or commercial installations. Some electricians running a more professional business will have set working hours instead of working all hours of the day and weekends, again, some people are working full time whilst starting their own business so do have to work weekends and evenings to build their client base. Do your due diligence!