The quote sits in your notebook for a week
You measured up on Tuesday and the customer chased you on Friday. By then somebody else has already sent theirs. The job is rarely lost on price, it is lost on the four days nobody heard from you.
For plumbers
Plumbing estimates, written before you've packed the van
You priced the job in your head standing in the airing cupboard. The problem is the two hours at the kitchen table afterwards, turning that into something a customer will read. TradeScribe takes the note you actually wrote and gives you back a proper Word estimate with your logo on it.
Why estimating is the worst part of the week
Every merchant price is a moving target
You wrote 'boiler about 1100' three weeks ago and it is 1240 now. Retyping the whole estimate to change one line is why the old one gets sent instead, and you swallow the difference.
A text message does not win a bathroom
For a £180 tap change a WhatsApp is fine. For a £3,000 boiler swap the customer is comparing you against a firm that sent a PDF with a breakdown, and they will assume the tidier document belongs to the tidier plumber.
A real example
Combi swap and three radiators, Victorian terrace
On the left is what you would actually write down. On the right is what your customer receives.
Your notes
boiler swap worcester 30i, old baxi in the kitchen cupboard. wall hung not back boiler. flue moving to side wall approx 1.5m. mag filter + new prv. 3 rads swapped upstairs 2x 600x1000 1x 600x600 all trvs. lift boards on the landing, mind the pipe run. 2 days, apprentice with me day 2. old rads to the tip. chemical flush + inhibitor. gas safe cert and benchmark, notify building control. she wants it before the in laws come at half term
The estimate
| Item | Qty | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Worcester Bosch Greenstar 30i combi boiler, supplied | 1 each | £1,150.00 |
| Boiler removal and installation labour | 2 day | £640.00 |
| Relocate flue to side elevation, including making good | 1 job | £145.00 |
| Magnetic system filter and pressure relief valve, fitted | 1 job | £165.00 |
| Replacement radiator 600 x 1000 with TRV and lockshield | 2 each | £370.00 |
| Replacement radiator 600 x 600 with TRV and lockshield | 1 each | £135.00 |
| Chemical system cleanse and inhibitor dose | 1 job | £240.00 |
| Gas Safe commissioning, Benchmark and Building Regs notification | 1 job | £95.00 |
| Removal of old boiler and radiators, tip charges | 1 job | £60.00 |
| Total before VAT | £3,000.00 | |
An illustration using typical UK rates, not a price list. TradeScribe prices from the rates in your own notes and your saved day rate.
What we know about plumbing estimates
These are the lines that come up again and again on a plumber's estimate. Mention any of them in your notes, however briefly, and they come out properly worded.
- Combi boiler supply and installation
- Radiator swap, including TRV and lockshield
- Bathroom first fix pipework
- Outside tap with check valve and isolator
- Unvented cylinder installation
- Blocked waste or drain clearance
- Chemical cleanse or power flush, up to ten radiators
- Stopcock or isolation valve replacement
- Emergency call-out, first hour on site
- Landlord gas safety record (CP12)
Plumbing estimating questions
Should I charge for quoting a plumbing job?
Most domestic plumbers quote free for anything they can price from a look round, and charge for anything that needs the system stripped or tested first. If you have to lift a floor, drop a cylinder or run a flow rate test to price honestly, say so and charge a survey fee, then offer to knock it off the invoice if they go ahead. That is a fair trade and customers rarely argue with it.
Is plumbing work ever charged at a reduced VAT rate?
Standard domestic plumbing is 20%. The reduced 5% rate can apply to work on a home that has been empty for two years or more, and to conversions that change the number of dwellings. A straight boiler swap in an occupied house is not one of them, whatever the customer read online. If you think a job qualifies, get it confirmed before you price it in, because you cannot easily go back for the difference.
How do I price a job when I have not seen behind the boarding?
Price what you can see and put the rest down as a provisional sum with a stated rate, for example 'additional pipework, £45 per metre if required'. That is honest, it protects you, and it gives the customer a ceiling rather than an open cheque. Never bury the unknown in the headline figure hoping it will be fine.
Do I need to put my Gas Safe number on the estimate?
You are not legally required to, but you should. It is the fastest way for a nervous customer to check you on the register, and it separates you from whoever quoted them £400 less. Put the number in the footer alongside your public liability cover.
How binding is an estimate in UK law?
An estimate is your best guess and can move if the job changes; a quote is a fixed offer that becomes a contract once accepted. The word you use matters far less than what the document says, so state plainly which it is, what it covers and what would change the price. Silence on that point is what gets argued about later.
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