Approved Plumber Scheme

The Background

With effect from the 1 July 1999 the Government issued the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999, and revoked the Water Supplier's Byelaws for England and Wales. Technically similar requirements were introduced for Scotland from 4 April 2000, known as the Water Byelaws 2000 (Scotland).

For many years Water Supply Byelaws had been used to protect the public water supply on both domestic and commercial plumbing installations from waste, misuse, undue consumption and contamination of water. As Statutory Instruments, the Regulations replaced local byelaws with national legislation, increasing the profile of the subject and making the Secretary of State for the Environment accountable to Parliament for them.

Under the legislation, owners and occupiers of premises which have public water supply connections and anyone who installs or alters such plumbing systems have a legal duty to comply with the regulations and they can face prosecution for a criminal offence if they fail to do so.

Regulation 5 refers to notification of intended work, and requires that anyone who proposes to install new water systems (or, in non-domestic premises, to alter or extend systems) in connection with ay of the operations listed in the Regulations must give notice of the planned work to the Water Supplier, and shall not begin that work without the Water Supplier’s consent, which shall not be withheld unreasonably. One contractor has already been fined for failing to give notice and for starting work without consent.

What is an ‘Approved Plumber’

The Government is campaigning against ‘cowboy building’ in a number of ways. One way is to include in the new Regulations some useful concessions for an ‘Approved Contractor (Plumber)’, who will be competent in complying with the Regulations.

The Approved Plumber has been given a very useful concession in that he/she may start work without notification or prior consent on certain types of work, provided he/she issues the customer (and for some types of work, the Water Supplier) with a certificate of compliance of the work when it is completed. This can save up to ten days of waiting for the Water Supplier’s consent and reduces the paperwork of notification.

‘Appoved plumbers’ can be authorized by either the local Water Supplier, the Water Industry Scheme (WIAPS) or by an organization recognized by the Government (IOP/APHC/SNIPEF).

The Water Industry Approved plumber Scheme (WIAPS)

WIAPS is funded by most of the Water Suppliers to administer an approved plumbers scheme for them. In order to become a WIAPS member, a plumber has to show he has been suitably trained as a plumber, that he has adequate knowledge of the Regulations by passing an assessment and that he has sufficient public liability insurance cover.

There is no membership fee for a plumber who wants to join WIAPS but there is a charge for taking the assessment of regulations knowledge through WIAPS.

Water Suppliers often get asked by their customers to recommend a plumber. On request, they will provide their customers with details of Approved Plumbers. The details are also freely available to the public on this website.