Hiring an Electrical Contractor: 3 Things To Do

If you're going to wire a new room, make changes to an existing wiring plan, or even need repairs, you're better off hiring an electrical contractor than trying to do the work yourself. Working with your home's electricity can be dangerous, both to the person doing the work and to the homeowners after a job has been done poorly. If you do the work yourself, it puts you in double the danger. It's always tempting to save money, but this isn't the wisest place to do it. Here are three things you should do when looking for someone to hire.

Written Estimate

If you hire an electrical contractor with a trusted reputation for a small repair, it's usually not necessary to get especially insistent on the details of your estimate. You certainly want to have an idea of what you'll be paying, but you're unlikely to run into a major problem. If you're doing a major job such as rewiring or wiring a new room, however, you need to make sure you have a full written estimate before moving forward. Larger projects can get very expensive and you don't want to wind up footing an unexpectedly huge bill.

Licensing Check

Be careful about which electrical contractor you hire. If you stick with a nationally known company, you can be assured that they will bring with them the requisite licensing and requirements. It's when you find someone local (which isn't a bad thing by any means) that you need to be a bit more cautious. You can find plenty of great independent electricians, but you need to take that extra step and make sure they are above board in everything they do. If they are properly licensed by the state, bonded, and have the right insurance, they should take no offense by you asking about these important matters.

Check With Customers

Before you hire an electrical contractor, it doesn't hurt to find out what previous customers have to say about the work they do. If you can do this by finding people you know who have hired them, so much the better. You're sure to get an unbiased, truthful source. If that fails, check online for both rants and raves. Do a search through the Better Business Bureau to see if any customers have filed a complaint. Doing this gives the company a chance to respond, so you can also see their side of the story. If a company is doing things the right way, they shouldn't have a wall of complaints about their service.