If water is getting into the building, the first job is to stop it — then get help on the way. Turn off your internal stopcock, keep water away from anything electrical, and send us the details. We will text you within 15 minutes and start looking for an available local plumber — out of hours jobs handled, subject to plumber availability.
Send your postcode, what has happened and a number we can reach you on. If it is easier to talk it through, call or message us instead — the buttons are above.
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Vofix is a matching service that connects customers with independent local plumbers. The plumber will confirm availability, pricing and the scope of work directly with you before work begins.
Availability varies by area and by day, so attendance is always subject to plumber availability. Vofix does not set or control the prices plumbers charge.
If you smell gas, call the National Gas Emergency Service immediately on 0800 111 999. Open doors and windows, avoid flames and electrical switches, leave the property if advised and only use an appropriately Gas Safe-registered engineer for gas work.
Almost every plumbing emergency gets less serious the moment the water stops moving. Your internal stopcock is usually under the kitchen sink, in a downstairs cupboard, under the stairs or near the front door; turn it clockwise to close it. Then open the cold taps to drain the pipework down, which takes the pressure off the leak.
If water is anywhere near sockets, switches, downlights or a consumer unit, do not touch them. Turn the electricity off at the consumer unit only if you can reach it safely and dry, and keep out of rooms where water is coming through a ceiling — a saturated ceiling can come down without much warning.
Move what you can out of the way, put buckets under the worst of it, and take a few photographs before you start mopping up. Insurers usually want to see the damage as it was.
It is worth being straight about this, because it affects how quickly anyone will realistically attend and what it costs. Losing heating or hot water is miserable, but on its own it is not normally an emergency — it is an urgent repair that is usually better booked for the next working day at a standard rate than attended at midnight at a premium. The same goes for a dripping tap, a slow-draining sink or a toilet that flushes weakly.
Where that changes is when there is a vulnerable person in the property, when a fault is causing damage, or when the temperature outside makes a lack of heating genuinely risky. Tell us the situation and we will treat it accordingly.
Anything involving a boiler or a gas appliance must be handled by an appropriately Gas Safe-registered engineer, not a general plumber.
Vofix is a matching service that connects customers with independent local plumbers. The plumber will confirm availability, pricing and the scope of work directly with you before work begins.
Out of hours jobs are handled: evening and weekend enquiries are taken and worked on rather than left until Monday, and we will text you within 15 minutes whenever you send one in. What we cannot do is guarantee immediate attendance. The plumbers in our network are independent businesses with their own diaries, so overnight and weekend availability is more limited than during the working week and varies by area. We prioritise genuine emergencies, and we tell you plainly if we cannot find someone quickly so you are not left waiting on us.
If the situation is deteriorating and nobody can attend, contact your insurer — many home policies include an emergency assistance line — and your water supplier if the problem is on the mains side of the stopcock.
Vofix is a matching service that connects customers with independent local plumbers. The plumber will confirm availability, pricing and the scope of work directly with you before work begins.
Availability varies by area and by day, so attendance is always subject to plumber availability. Vofix does not set or control the prices plumbers charge.
Three steps from telling us about the job to speaking with a local plumber directly.
Share a few quick details about your plumbing job, big or small.
We look for a plumber in the Vofix network covering your area.
Speak directly with your plumber and get the job sorted.
No, and we will not pretend otherwise. Attendance is always subject to plumber availability. We do handle out of hours jobs — your enquiry is worked on whatever time it arrives, and we will text you within 15 minutes — but the plumbers in our network are independent businesses and out-of-hours cover varies by area and by night.
Usually not on its own — it is an urgent repair rather than an emergency, and is normally cheaper and easier to book for the next working day. It is treated differently if there is a vulnerable person in the property or if the fault is also causing water damage.
Out-of-hours attendance across the Midlands typically starts around £135 and rises with the time of day and the work involved. Vofix does not set prices — the plumber will confirm the charge with you before attending.
See typical emergency costs →If there is a tank in the loft, closing the valve on it will stop the flow to anything it feeds. Otherwise look for an outside stop tap under a small metal cover near the boundary of the property, which usually needs a stopcock key. Your water supplier can help locate it, and in a serious escape of water they can isolate the supply.
Yes, if there is damage to the property or your belongings. Many home insurance policies cover escape of water and some include their own emergency assistance line. Photograph the damage before clearing up.
Stop the water, then send us the details. We will start looking immediately for an available local plumber — subject to plumber availability.
What to do for the specific problem you are dealing with.