Warning Pimlico Plumber only fix bath leaks for average size customers

[Lisa46]

I know now people have complained about Pimlico Plumbers on here before, but stupidly I didn't check on here before I used them.

They came to fix a leak on a bath - met the tenant and said the bath was not supported but for £1600 they could fix it (they resealed around bath and dug a groove for the waste so that it wasn't pinched when someone stepped in bath) and guaranteed it wouldn't leak for a year. I knew it was expensive but thought if they guaranteed it, everyone would have peace of mind.

One month later it leaked. When they were called out the same plumber came and was v stroppy and stripped of all the sealant he had put on and resealed, he said it wouldn't last because the bath wasn't supported and the size of the tenant wasn't average!! I asked why he issued a years guarantee then (he had met the tenant and he knew the bath wasn't supported before he did the work) and he said he was stupid and shouldn't have done it. He said we would have to call office. Office had gone home at 4.50pm Fri so I would have to wait til Monday. I wrote an email only to be told by customer service that I was told from the start that the lack of support to the bath and the tenants size made it not possible to guarantee it. I sent them a copy of the invoice with the year guarantee - they then said we'll fix it if it leaks again but you need to have the bath refitted - if you want - we'll give you a discount on that if we do it! I asked about my guarantee she said they would come out if it leaked (which it would). I asked for my money back as they had taken it under false pretences - they promised a guarantee that it wouldn't leak but only give a guarantee that they will come back when it does (always having the possibility of saying it's something new causing the leak and charging again and each time it leaks damaging downstairs). That is not what I paid for but they say the case is closed!!

So you paid 1600 for some silicone ... wow

I thought I paid it for peace of mind and to protect more damage to downstairs.

Why isn’t the bath supported? Surely it would cause the silicone to flex & crack if the lightest person stood in it if it’s unsupported?
We had an awful bother with ours repeatedly leaking because the legs were flexing so much the silicone kept cracking. I weigh under 9 stone!
We had to add additional support to stop it happening.
But £1,600 is a ridiculously over inflated price to charge, even with a guarantee!

The first I knew that it was unsupported was when we got the leak!! Now, it needs taking out & fitting properly which is what should have happened when it first leaked but Pimlico told me they could fix it.

Just get a better plumber to sort it once and for all.

Better get a bucket

Start by getting everything in writing. Say, that under the consumer act they are required to abide by the guarantee. If they refuse, you will get the work done elsewhere and then take them to small claims to recoup including costs.
Then you need to get a couple of quotes to get the work done.
send them the bill with 28 days to pay.
If they don’t pay, just take them to small claims.

It's weird because unless the person weighs 100s of pounds, the weight of water in a bath is likely to be more. A full bath with a human in it is around 500-1000 pounds anyway. People who are larger presumably have to fill less because of volume anyway. Archimedes, innit.

I used Pimlico once for an emergency call out as the cistern broke on our only toilet. Was quoted a rate on the phone, charged (I think) by the minute. I went out and bought a new cistern, so it was a very simple job of turn off the water from the tank in the loft that fed the toilet, change cistern, turn water on again.

When the plumber arrived and saw I already had a new cistern, his face dropped. I think he was expecting it to be a bigger job.

He went into the loft to turn off the water and, oh no! The isolation tap snapped when he was turning off the water. How unfortunate. So he had to go out to buy a new part - I was told they would charge me for the time he spent going to buy the part, up to an hour.

Fortunately I have a plumbers merchant literally at the end of my street so I assume this will take what, 15-20 mins tops?

After 59mins exactly the plumber returns. Apparently had to drive half way across London to get the part.

He disappears up into the loft. For ages. It’s ‘a bit fiddly’ apparently. Eventually it’s fixed.

Then he fits the new cistern which takes all of about 20 minutes. I end up charged for about three hours.

Maybe the tap did break. Maybe he could only get the part from somewhere that was a 59min round trip and not from the well stocked plumbers merchant 2 mins walk away. Maybe fitting a new tap really was fiddly. But on the other hand, maybe not.

What difference does the size of the person in the bath make? A full bath weighs the same whether it's full of water or full of person surely.

I found an answer on a nerd website. People are less dense than water so volume for volume weigh less. So a bath full of person weighs less than a bath full of water. Therefore the plumber's argument against guaranteeing the work is scientifically illiterate.

I agree about the weight. The only slight caveat is that stepping into the bath would put weight in one place. It's a long shot though!

Small claims - do not let them get away with it!

No joke but this post is why I stay on Mumsnet. Bravo!

Could the side panel not be removed and support put in that way without having to pull the bath out? A few battens of wood would do it surely?

I thought that too but I’ve had two plumber round since & they both said the space is too tight to work in and to be done properly the tiles need to come off!