Your Plumber Brought a Sidekick. Is the Sidekick Licensed?

I’ve had sidekicks work on my toilets before. It was a mess.

I called back because the toilet was making a weird noise. Turns out the little dangly chain inside the tank wasn’t even connected. So now I’m paying for a second visit to fix the first one.

I wish I had asked a few questions up front.

Look, apprentices have to learn somewhere

I’m not trying to be horrible about this. Apprentices are learning, and the only real way to learn a trade is on the job. Every good plumber was a helper once.

But there’s a difference between a helper working next to a licensed plumber and a helper showing up alone to figure it out on your toilet.

Here’s something I found while checking the rules. In Suffolk County, the law describes a licensed master plumber as someone who does the work “by himself or by journeymen under his supervision.” So the license usually belongs to the boss, and the people on the truck work under it.

That’s normal. The question is whether anybody is actually supervising.

Why the helper ends up at your house

A lot of shops run more than one job at a time. My guess, and it’s just my guess, is the licensed guy goes to whichever job pays the most. The little stuff gets the helper.

And for a small job, like a toilet that won’t flush right, they’re probably running to Home Depot for the part anyway. Honestly, there are plenty of tutorials for that kind of fix. You might be able to do it yourself.

But if something’s leaking? That’s when you want someone who knows what they’re doing.

What to say when you call

Ask before anyone even gets in the truck:

“Is the person coming here licensed to do this? Because if this leaks again, I don’t want to be paying three or four thousand dollars to fix it.”

They’ll get the picture.

And while you’re on the phone, ask what they usually charge before you mention your address.

What to say at the door

Be nice about it. You don’t have to yell or make it weird. Something like:

“I’m sorry, I’ve just been burnt before. We’ve had people come in and it got worse. Do you mind telling me whose license this job is under, and how long you’ve been doing this?”

A good company won’t be offended. A good plumber gets asked this all the time.

How to check a license on Long Island

You can look it up before they ever show up. Check their website for a license number, then verify it.

• Suffolk County: plumbers are licensed by the county’s Office of Consumer Affairs. You can search licenses on the county’s online portal or call Consumer Affairs at 631-853-4600.
• Nassau County: plumbing licenses are handled by the town, city, or village, not the county. The Towns of Hempstead, North Hempstead, and Oyster Bay share a “Tri-Town” plumbing license. To get it, a plumber needs a master license from one of those towns plus liability insurance and workers’ comp. Call your town’s building department to check.
• Ask for proof of insurance either way. If somebody gets hurt in your house, you want it on their policy, not yours.

Bottom line

Helpers are fine. Helpers working alone on a leak, with no licensed plumber checking their work, is how you end up calling twice. Ask whose license it is, look it up, and run through the Clean Boots Checklist when they get there.

And if the toilet keeps clogging, it might not be the plumber. It might be what’s going in it.

Sources: Suffolk County Code, Article XI: Electricians and Plumbers, Suffolk County Consumer Affairs, Town of North Hempstead, Tri-Town Plumbing License Requirements.

Related: Not sure whether to take a flat rate or pay by the hour? Here’s how I decide.