Do Electricians Charge By The Hour?

Do Electricians Charge By The Hour?

If you need some kind of electrical work done on your home or commercial property then it is essential that you hire a fully qualified professional. There are a lot of electrical jobs in the UK that are not considered to be legal unless having been done by a certified electrician and attempting them yourself could be incredibly dangerous. 

Of course, a lot of people are worried about the cost of hiring an electrician and many aren’t sure how they’ll be charged and what the breakdown of the price will be. So, before looking to employ the services of an electrician you’ll want to know; do electricians charge by the hour?

Many electricians do indeed charge an hourly rate but this depends largely on the type of work they are doing. For smaller jobs, that may only take a few hours, you would expect to incur an hourly charge. However, for larger jobs that may take several days, many electricians will quote a daily charge. 

In the UK, you can expect to pay anywhere between £35 and £45 per hour for the services of a certified electrician. However, this charge will rise significantly when calling for an emergency service in which case, the national average comes in at around £80 per hour. 

Daily charges will vary depending on location and other factors but as a rule of thumb, you can expect to pay around £320 per day for electrician services. 

Do Electricians Charge VAT?

Not all electricians will charge VAT. This is something that you will need to find out from the individual you are hiring. 

The reason for this is that self-employed tradespeople do not need to register for VAT unless they are turning over £85,000 or more a year. Do keep in mind that this VAT threshold is set to change year on year but this figure is correct at the time of writing. 

Do Electricians Charge For Quotes?

Generally speaking, you would not expect to be charged by an electrician who is just giving you an estimate. But it’s important to realise that an estimate is not the same as a quote. An estimate is a rough cost that your electrician might expect to charge you for the work you are requesting whereas a quote is a much more precise figure that may end up being part of a contract. 

In order to supply you with a quote, an electrician may have to do some investigations as well as sourcing materials or equipment. This can be time consuming and so for smaller jobs, they may charge a fee for providing you with this quotation. 

That said, this doesn’t apply across the board and there are a lot of electrical companies out there that offer free quotes to all. However, for larger jobs, especially those that are being offered by commercial electricians, a quote will almost always be free in the hope of securing a large contract. 

Do Electricians Charge For Travel Time?

If you hire an electrician for an entire day then you might find that the first hour is charged at a slightly higher rate. This is usually because the electrician will be factoring in things like equipment, materials and travel time. 

When you are hiring someone to do a smaller job that might only take up to an hour, you will usually incur a call-out fee. Electricians do this to prevent people from calling up and asking them to come out to do a simple job like a plug change that takes just ten minutes. It simply would not be worth their time or effort to charge a ten minute fee after being called out. 

Moreover, if you call an electrician out for an emergency, you might expect the hourly rate to be twice or even three times as high as their normal rate. 

Do Electricians Charge More On Weekends?

As a rule of thumb, most electricians will not schedule themselves into work on a weekend. This job normally entails working a standard forty hour week. However, there may be times that work cannot be completed in the week and so an electrician may offer to come at the weekend. In this case, you will normally be charged a standard rate. 

However, this is rare and usually, when hiring an electrician at the weekend, it will be as a result of an emergency. Emergency call out charges for electricians will vary across the country but on average, you can expect to pay around £80 an hour for this. If you have an electrical emergency at the weekend, be prepared to fork out a lot more cash. 

Do Electricians Offer Payment Plans?

Problems with electrical circuits in your home can be incredibly dangerous and carry risks such as electric shock and electrical fires. For this reason, it is never a good idea to wait to have repairs or remedial work done even if the cost is high. 

The good news is that there are many organisations that offer financing options for homeowners in need of electrical work. You can spread the cost of the work over several years along with some interest, which is normal. Most electrician companies will also accept credit cards, so it may be possible to spread the cost that way. 

However, when working with a self-employed electrician, it is unlikely that they will offer a flexible payment plan, although it is certainly worth asking the question as this is by no means a hard and fast rule. 

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Conclusion

If you hire an electrician for a smaller job that will only take several hours then you will normally be charged an hourly rate. In the UK, this currently stands between £35 and £45 per hour but there are factors that will affect this. 

However, if you are going to employ an electrician to complete work over the course of a few days or more, then it’s more likely that you’ll be charged a daily rate which is typically around £320 per day.