Why would any homeowner seeking plumbing or remodel work hire Home Depot?

A proposed new bill is being worked on that targets fraud in home improvement advertising. The bill has an emphasis on fake plumbers but is likely to include other trades and homeowner services as the bill is worked on throughout the year. Legitimate plumbers are quitting the business, trainees are starting plumbing businesses before they are licensed, out of state marketers are advertising plumbing services without any plumbers, builders are advertising and performing plumbing work without any plumbers, Home depot advertises plumbing services and subs the work out to a carpet installer that works in three states.

The fraud on the internet is capable of destroying the integrity of many necessary consumer services performed by skilled labor including locksmiths, florists and licensed construction trades.

It is time the consumer and the plumbers woke up and realized what is happening to an entire industry.

Check out the legislation here that can put integrity back into the residential plumbing industry in Washington State.

$240 "per lead" cost is typical when keyword "Plumber" is used on Google

The example below shows the top of the page results when "Seattle plumber" was searched on Google. What caught my attention was that nobody every heard of these companies and yet they were listed higher on the page than the local advertisers that were recognizable. With a little research it was discovered that the three companies listed were all owned and marketed by the same out of state corporation Pipeline Industries out of Colorado. All three listings use mail drop or non-existent addresses.

So the question arises: How much does it cost to place the top three paid ads on a Google Search? Take a look...

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SENATE BILL 6476
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Bob Oates Sewer and Rooter (Seattle) transformed itself into a "plumbing company" overnight by simply hiring a website designer. The transformation of this rooter company opened the door to attempted $1741.40 hourly rate of senior citizen.

The Underground Economy is a big deal. Unlicensed plumbers account for over

2.2 BILLION dollars a year just in Washington State - every year!

Take a look at the numbers...

A new bill was introduced in the 2nd Special Session by the Washington Dept. of Revenue the may have some beneficial effect on discouraging contractors from cheating on their taxes. It very well may help legitimate licensed subcontractors as a residual benefit if the bill is passed.

Looking for a lucrative business opportunity? Have you considered starting a sleazy plumbing company? Some knowledge of plumbing would be helpful, but it’s not essential. If you believe in business ethics, just stop reading right here.

Hi.  I’m an unlicensed plumber...

If you don't have a plumber license - put on a uniform!

Four new contractor registrations are actively advertising in the Seattle Market owned and managed by a Colorado company named Pipeline Industries Inc.  The company historically is an underground piping service that provided services to Roto-Rooter for years.

State Plumber Licensing Laws Ignored by Multi-State Companies intent upon using unskilled drain cleaners to perform residential plumbing work.

Thousands of individuals and companies are pretending to be skilled legitimate plumbers in internet advertising. Plumbers are licensed for good reasons. The residential plumbing service industry is overwhelmed with FRAUDULENT ads, unskilled con men, and nobody seems to notice. Corporate business models that allow any drain cleaner company to represent themselves as plumbers are now becoming the norm. The public is getting scammed by unscrupulous marketers and hustlers.

We need better laws than what we have. We need an emergency addendum which states that "ONLY PLUMBING CONTRACTORS CAN ADVERTISE PLUMBING SERVICES and ONLY LICENSED PLUMBERS CAN BE PLUMBING CONTRACTORS".

Please sign the petition located at www.badplumbers.org at the bottom of the homepage.

Something has happened to the image of the "plumber" over the years since rooter guys, handymen and trainees started advertising as plumbing contractors in Washington State in 2009...

Seattle Plumbing Company (Evan Conklin Plumbing & Heating Inc.) submitted an online letter to Rob McKenna, Washington's State Attorney General, (who is running for governor by the way), requesting assistance with contractor and plumber fraud.

It is estimated that 80% of all residential plumbing services here in Seattle are being performed by those that are unlicensed and fraudulently advertising as legitimate plumbers and/or plumbing contractors.

How can I get into the plumbing business here in Seattle in a hurry?

It is estimated that 80% of residential plumbing services today are performed by the unlicensed, the unskilled and the unscrupulous. Is that what we really want? Maybe so....

Last year (2010) at a meeting of the Plumbers Examining Board Eighty percent of the unlicensed plumbers are also general contractors says senior inspector in report to the board. The DA’s office does not have the money to prosecute unlicensed plumbers he stated.

http://www.maine.gov/pfr/professionallicensing/professions/plumbers/pdf/Minutes/2010/April%2014,%202010.pdf

This is a real case where the described situation is horrendous. A power vented water heater installation in a new townhouse had the exhaust vent dumping combustion gasses inside the house where the homeowner was living and sleeping. The homeowner is claiming that she was seriously harmed by carbon monoxide. There is a reason that we have licensing requirements for plumbers - to help protect us from the inattentive and the unskilled.

See the court filing in our News Section at http://www.badplumbers.org/woman-disabled-by-improperly-installed-water-heater

If you don't do anything - nothing will change