Day In The Life Of A Franchisee

David McVicker of gas-elec

My day begins the night before when I check the online bookings system to see what jobs the office have arranged for me.

I know exactly how many appointments, where and what time, in advance, which is a great help. I can also check the specifics of each job before I start my day online or with a quick call to the office.

Early start

I tend to leave the house around seven in the morning. Sometimes I deal directly with residents in rented properties, although often I work with lettings agents or landlords with regards to gaining access and the logistics of getting each job done.

I also have customers who own their properties, which means the range of clients I work with is quite varied. I have been a gas-elec engineer for over 10 years now and am happy to say I have built up a strong, loyal client base, who trust my advice and ability.

I could be coming back each year to check gas meters, cookers or boilers and it’s dealing with the client that makes the job enjoyable. Every day is different and I can honestly say I still find my work exciting.

I prepare paperwork for any followup repairs that might need to take place. I send these to my local office, who then liaise with the relevant suppliers and issue quotes direct to the customer. My level of paperwork and administration would be far greater without the support I get from my local office, as well as the head office.

Issuing certificates

At the end of each day, the first thing I do after making a much needed cup of coffee is to log onto my computer to input data collected from my visits. As long as everything I have inspected meets current safety legislation, I can issue certificates.

These are made instantly available for customers to download, which is a godsend for busy landlords.

I then ring the office for a quick chat about how my day went. Then it’s almost time to see what’s been booked for me for the next day and the process starts over again.