A campaign aiming to raise awareness of the benefits of using a legitimate plumber begins today (September 29th).
Organised by the Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors (APHC), Quality Plumber Week will run until October 5th, hoping to engage the public on how they can contact tradespeople who won't end up doing more harm than good.
The issue of rogue traders has long been an issue the APHC has been attempting to tackle, with the body having previously conducted and publicised research suggesting where members of the public might be going wrong in managing their risk of falling victim to potential conmen.
One of the main problems the study uncovered was that many people were "too embarrassed" to ask to see their plumber's credentials when asking them to carry out work, leading a proportion of so-called cowboys to take advantage.
However, Quality Plumber Week will aim to address this by pointing consumers in the right direction when it comes to sourcing legitimate tradespeople, using social media, leaflets and other outlets to promote the positive role that honest plumbers have to play.
"Rogue traders can seem to grab the headlines and tarnish the entire industry, and APHC is seeking to re-dress the balance by recognising the long hours, knowledge and skill behind the work of every quality plumber," said the organisation's chairman Graham Beevers.
The APHC isn't the only body currently targeting rogue traders, with national plumbing register WaterSafe also recently launching its own initiative to educate customers on how they can protect themselves.
Research conducted by the group found more than half (54 per cent) of respondents would hire a plumber based on their appearance rather than their qualifications, despite the fact such con artists have cost the UK economy approximately £2.6 billion in the last few years.
As a result, its TAP (Trust Approved Plumbers) scheme is directing people towards WaterSafe's own website, which contains the details of registered tradespeople.