Emergency Plumbing in Fulham

A plumbing emergency is anything where water or heat loss is causing damage or danger that cannot wait until a normal working day. That includes burst or leaking pipes, uncontrolled flooding, a boiler that has stopped in freezing weather, a toilet that is blocked with no other toilet in the house, and sewage backing up into a lower-ground flat. A slowly dripping tap is not an emergency, though it is worth fixing soon. If you are unsure, ring us and we will help you decide whether it can wait.

In most Victorian terraces in SW6 the internal stopcock is under the kitchen sink or in the hall under the stairs, and in houses converted into flats it may be in a shared cupboard or the basement. There is also an external stop tap in the pavement under a small metal cover, which belongs to Thames Water and should not be touched by householders. If you cannot find or turn your internal stopcock, tell the call handler, because the partner will bring a replacement valve. Turning it off is the single most useful thing you can do before help arrives.

Generally not if there is an active leak, because even a slow drip into a ceiling void can bring down plaster within hours. If you can isolate the leak at a local valve or at the stopcock, do so, and live without that supply until the repair. If the leak is on the heating circuit, switch the boiler off first so it does not pump more water through. We will tell you on the phone whether it is safe to wait until the morning or whether someone should come out immediately.

Published 2026 London rates for emergency plumbers show daytime call-outs of roughly £80 to £150, evenings £120 to £200, and night-time £150 to £250, with bank holidays higher still. After the first hour, hourly rates are about £60 to £80 in the day and £80 to £120 at night. Total costs for common jobs are typically £150 to £300 for an accessible burst pipe and £250 to £500 for a boiler fault needing parts. The partner gives you an exact written quote for your job, so these are only a guide.

As a general rule, the person whose pipe or fitting is leaking is responsible for repairing it, but a leak affecting your flat from above usually needs the neighbour or the managing agent to be told and the source isolated. A partner plumber can often stop the leak inside your flat, for example by isolating a feed, and identify where it is coming from. Tell your freeholder or managing agent early, take dated photos and tell your own home insurer about it. Responsibility for repair and any compensation depends on your lease and the cause.

Treat the gas as the emergency. Do not switch lights or appliances on or off, open windows and doors, leave the property and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 from outside. Only once the gas supply has been made safe should you deal with the water. We are happy to arrange a partner company afterwards, but gas comes before everything else.

Our line is open 24 hours and the partner network covers out-of-hours work, so a genuine emergency is dealt with when it happens, not postponed. We always ask whether the problem can be contained so that a morning visit is safer and cheaper, but we do not push you either way. Night-time call-outs cost more than daytime ones, with published London call-outs of about £150 to £250 overnight, so containing a leak to wait until morning is sometimes a sensible choice.

We do not promise a time, because it depends on which partner company has a plumber free closest to your address when you call. What we do promise is that we start looking immediately, tell you who is coming and send you a text with the company's name before they arrive. In SW6 the roads around Craven Cottage and Stamford Bridge can add delay on match days, and we will say so if that applies. Ring us back if you have not heard within the time we quoted.

The partner should stop and tell you before carrying on, and give you a revised written price for the extra work. Old Fulham pipework sometimes reveals more once it is exposed, for example a corroded section behind a bath panel. You are free to accept, to ask for a cheaper stopgap, or to get a second opinion, and you should not be pressured on the spot. If you feel pressured, ring us.

We cover Fulham, Parsons Green, West Kensington, West Brompton, Sands End, Imperial Wharf and Hammersmith, which is the SW6, W14, SW5 and SW10 area in practice. Each of the first four has its own page on this site with local detail. If your address is slightly outside, ring anyway, because the nearest partner company may still be able to reach you. Tell us your postcode at the start of the call so we can confirm quickly.