How we choose and order Birmingham firms

Is it their everyday work?

We begin by asking what a firm actually does all week. A general builder who now and then lays a drive is not a driveway company, and a garage that will have a go at a gearbox is not a gearbox specialist. Firms that do precisely the work in the list title lead, and those who only dabble in it drop down or stay off.

Community lists follow the same logic. For Asian weddings we look for halls, caterers, photographers and videographers who work on them week after week, not a firm that has done one.

The record behind the name

Next we look at how customers speak of a firm online. A burst of glowing comments last month counts for less than years of steady ones, so a newcomer cannot leap over an established firm. The remarks that count most are practical ones: the electrician who came on the day promised, the invoice that matched the quote, the snag put right without a row.

In the firm’s own words

Then we read what the firm says on its website and social channels. Does it accept every job or turn some down? Where does it work in Birmingham, how does it price work, and what insurance, memberships or registrations can it point to? A firm that is open about all this is easier to weigh against its rivals, and easier to question later.

Money does not buy a place

Nobody can pay to get on a list or to bend the criteria. Order is an editorial judgement that is revisited from time to time. A firm that has made the cut may then buy Pro, which gives its page photos, prices and direct contact details, or Top, which seats it among the first three names. Both are labelled each time they appear, and every other firm stays where the editors put it.

Checks you can make yourself

Gas work, whether a boiler, a fire or a cooker, is legal only for engineers who appear on the Gas Safe Register. On the back of the engineer’s ID card you can read the types of gas work they are allowed to do. Electricians who belong to a competent person scheme, NICEIC or NAPIT for example, can certify notifiable work themselves. For windows ask about FENSA or CERTASS, and for bigger home improvements TrustMark. Extensions and loft conversions need Building Regulations sign-off and sometimes planning permission, which Birmingham City Council can confirm.

The General Dental Council registers dentists, hygienists and dental nurses, and teeth whitening counts as dental work, so it belongs with a registered dentist. Doctors and surgeons appear on the General Medical Council’s register. Registration for physiotherapists, podiatrists and dietitians is with the HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council), for opticians the General Optical Council, for osteopaths the General Osteopathic Council and for chiropractors the General Chiropractic Council. The title counsellor is unprotected, so ask whether the person belongs to a body on a Professional Standards Authority accredited register, such as BACP. Care homes, private doctors, dental practices and surgical clinics must register with the Care Quality Commission, whose inspection reports are public.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority keeps the register of law firms and solicitors, searchable through ‘Check a solicitor’s record’, and the Legal Ombudsman can examine a complaint the firm has not settled. Immigration advice must come from solicitors or advisers authorised by the Immigration Advice Authority, formerly the OISC. Mortgage brokers and financial advisers appear on the Financial Services Register, either with their own Financial Conduct Authority authorisation or as the appointed representative of an authorised firm.

Estate agents and letting agents in England have to be members of a redress scheme such as The Property Ombudsman, and letting agents must additionally hold client money protection cover. Many shared houses need an HMO licence from Birmingham City Council, which an HMO letting agent should be able to show. Driving instructors who are fully qualified carry a green badge on the windscreen, trainees a pink one. GOV.UK has a checker for the Clean Air Zone charge that applies inside the Middleway, useful before booking a van or removals firm. Gold, silver and platinum jewellery above a small weight must be hallmarked, and the Birmingham Assay Office in the Jewellery Quarter is one of only four UK assay offices, so ask a bespoke jeweller where a piece will be marked.

We have not carried out any of these checks for the businesses listed, so check each one for yourself before signing anything or paying.