How to choose a plumber in Phoenix

Arizona licenses contracting businesses, including plumbing companies, through the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC). The ROC record is the main statewide check. The ROC's license classification list shows which licenses cover plumbing:

For work on your home, look for a residential or dual classification. A license that only covers commercial work, such as C-37, is not the right fit for a house.

Arizona's handyman exemption is in A.R.S. 32-1121, paragraph 14. An unlicensed person may do work on one project only if the total price, including labor and materials, is less than $1,000 and the work is casual or minor. The exemption does not apply if:

• the work requires a local building permit;
• the job is part of a larger project, or has been split into contracts under $1,000; or
• the person advertises without the words "not a licensed contractor" in the advertisement.

So a handyman can replace a faucet cartridge, but a repipe, a sewer line replacement, a gas line or any job a city permit covers needs a licensed contractor. In Scottsdale, for example, the city requires a permit even for a water heater replacement. Paragraph 5 of the same statute lets owners work on their own home if it is not intended for sale or rent.

1. Ask for the company's legal name and ROC license number. Arizona contracts over $1,000 must include it anyway.
2. Search the ROC site by name or number. Confirm the license is active and that the name matches the company on your estimate.
3. Confirm the classification fits the job, using the table above.
4. Read the whole record, not just the status line, and ask about anything you do not understand.
5. Ask who will pull any permit, and get that in writing.

For any contract over $1,000 between a contractor and a property owner, A.R.S. 32-1158 requires in writing at least:

• the contractor's name, business address and license number;
• your name and mailing address and the job address;
• the date of the contract and the estimated completion date;
• a description of the work;
• the total price including taxes, any advance deposit, and any progress payments with the stage when each is due; and
• a notice, in at least ten-point bold type, that you have the right to file a written complaint with the Registrar, with the ROC's phone number and website and the complaint deadline.

The contractor must give you a legible copy of everything you sign and a signed receipt for any cash you pay. A plumber who will not put these items on paper is a red flag.

The BBB's tips for hiring a plumber recommend contacting several plumbers for detailed written estimates, checking whether an estimate is a flat rate that includes materials or charges materials separately, and being cautious of unusually low or high estimates. The BBB also suggests reading reviews and complaint history, and asking before you buy your own fixtures whether the plumber will install them.

If a contractor sells you the job at your home, the FTC's Cooling-Off Rule (16 CFR 429.1) generally requires the contract to tell you that you may cancel at any time before midnight of the third business day after the sale, and to include a notice of cancellation form. It applies to home sales of $25 or more. The definitions in 16 CFR 429.0 exclude a bona fide emergency when the buyer initiated the contact and gives the seller a signed, handwritten statement describing the emergency and waiving the three-day right, so read anything you are asked to sign during an emergency call.

• Pressure to decide on the spot, or a "today only" price.
• A request for cash only or for the full price before any work starts.
• No license number on the estimate, or a license under a different company name.
• A refusal to pull a permit for work your city requires one for.
• A large repair recommended without evidence, such as a sewer replacement without camera footage or slab demolition without a located leak.

You can file a written complaint with the ROC against a licensed contractor. Under A.R.S. 32-1162, the complaint must be filed within two years after the project is completed (or, for new home builds, within two years after the earlier of close of escrow or occupancy). For homeowners who live in the home as their primary residence, A.R.S. 32-1132 establishes the Residential Contractors' Recovery Fund, which can compensate eligible owners damaged by a licensed residential contractor's violations. Hiring an unlicensed person usually means you have neither option.

You can still look up a license on your phone in two minutes once the water is off. Our emergency plumbing guide explains how to stop the damage first, and the Phoenix cost guide shows typical prices so you can judge a quote.

We are an independent guide, not a licensed contractor; we do not perform plumbing work. To reach a plumber, call one of the licensed contractors listed on this page or see all listed contractors. If you prefer, email us your question. Run the checks above on anyone you hire.