On 13/03/2014 21:46, tony sayer wrote:

Landline number and divert that to the mobile when not in the orifice...

Isn't that very expensive?

However, I agree that a landline gives confidence. As does a name and
address on your adverts.

Looking at TMH's website, he charges for time taken, although he may
give quotes as well. I assume that for small jobs it simply makes no
sense to give a quote. As an example, even a simple job such as
replacing a tap washer can take 5 minutes or it can take hours. It
depends… Is there an isolation valve? Is the tap head easy to remove?
does the mains stop cock work? It seems to me that the only sensible
approach is to charge for the callout and the time taken. There is no
way that you can rely on the customer to answer those questions so you
can give an accurate quote. Once you have a reputation for being a
decent workperson and acting fairly, people will trust you to turn up
and just get the job done as economically as possible.