How to choose an electrician in Melbourne's west (without getting burned)

Every suburb Facebook group has the thread: “anyone know a good sparky?” — followed by forty tags and no way to tell them apart. Here are the five checks that actually separate professionals, from someone who’s spent thirteen years being compared to the cheapest quote.

1. Look up the licence — really

Victoria runs a public register through Energy Safe Victoria. Search the business (Flowsmart is REC 20672) and the individual’s licence. Sixty seconds. Anyone cagey about their REC number has answered your question already.

2. Written quote or no deal

“Should be around eight hundred” is not a quote — it’s an opening bid you’ll renegotiate on the invoice. A professional puts the scope and the number in writing. On bigger jobs, be suspicious of anyone who quotes fast: one Flowsmart customer’s review specifically praised a 45-minute quoting walkthrough, because that’s what a real fixed price requires.

3. Ask what certificate you’ll get

Notifiable electrical work in Victoria comes with a Certificate of Electrical Safety. The right answer to “will I get a COES?” is an unhesitating yes. It protects your insurance and your resale — and its absence protects the person who cut the corner.

4. Insurance, in numbers

Public liability should be stated without squirming ($5M is standard for a serious operator). If they’re on your roof or in your ceiling, this is not a detail.

5. Watch the response, not the reviews

Reviews matter — read ours — but the strongest predictor of how your job will go is how the first 48 hours feel. Did they answer or call back fast? Confirm the visit? Show up when they said? An electrician who is sloppy while trying to win your work will not get sharper after you’ve paid a deposit. (Flowsmart’s standard: Calls answered or returned within two business hours, seven days a week.)