We have been getting estimates for hardwood refinishing and installation. It occurred to me to ask the last guy we got an estimate about what they do with fridge and toilets, this is in an area that will be refinished to natural finish. It sounded like they were not going to remove them, but refinish around them. After further questioning they said they could help me remove them but that they were not plumbers so they could not put back. As I am new at this, I dont know if this should raise a flag. Is it common to refinish around appliances? These guys were recommended to me.

I always remove appliances,( except Dishwashers & Sub Zeros,etc.). I as well will not hook water or gas lines back up. I'm not a licensed plumber, and will not take on the liability.

agreed. I will remove but for me to put them back is an extra charge as I have to make another trip to do so.

if u remove them..u are just as liable..that is contradictory.. I dont disconnect or reconnect...im not being responsible for a gas leak,water leak..nothing..

We usually pull the fridge out..sand underneath...stain or seal..apply a coat and continue the work around it..Refroigerators are heavy, compress the wood and damage your own work..

If you want the area refinished completely,then have it removed and reinstalled without causing the floor harm after.

any appliances, furniture etc...is not "part of the job" as people like to think...
removing molding is not part of the job..installing molding is not part of the job..
these are all additional charges.....

Disconnecting a water line and pulling a toilet is not the liability of resetting.

Thanks for your responses, I was a little nervous about hiring contractors and my lack of knowledge not knowing what is standard.

So, how bad would it be to just refinish around the fridge. After all, the coating under the fridge cannot be very worn, so how different could it look since there is no staining involved.

Never heard of a Pro refinishing around a refrigerator.
It's up to you...but there will be a noticible difference in tone of the wood, finish sheen, and probably a sanding line.

We refinish around refrigerators and stoves when people want us to. We don't offer moving of appliances or furniture. So if the client does not want to move their stuff we will go around it. We generally take off the bottom plate of the frige and pull out the bottom drawer of the stove to get under them a bit further. I make them aware of the difference, but most say we aren't remodeling the kitchen so the appliances are going to stay where they are.