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Original poster

To be at the end of my tether with tradies

132 replies

hereismydog · 04/04/2025 18:06

I’ve had three occasions recently where I’ve needed a tradesperson to do some work in my home. Several have come out and had a look, said they’d be in touch with a quote and then absolutely ghosted me. Three have given quotes, arranged a date to do the work and then not turned up at all, or cancelled 10 minutes after they were due to arrive. One started the job, left a gaping hole in my roof (in early December, when I was 38 weeks pregnant!) and then went AWOL for a week. He also refused to speak to me and would only ever speak to DP, even though I would be the one at home to let him in. He would ring DP at work and ask him to pass on a message to me, even though he had my number Confused

I’m always very clear about the work I need doing so it’s not like I keep changing my mind and messing them about, and none of the jobs have been especially complex, nor too small to bother taking on.

Is it me? Or do I just live in an area with REALLY shit tradies? Not limited to one trade either; I’ve had similarly shit experiences with builders, roofers and plumbers so far!

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
DucklingSwimmingInstructress · 16/04/2025 11:01

It's absolutely rotten for old or disabled people who just can't do the DIY for themselves and don't know anyone.

alsohappenedoverhere · 15/04/2025 20:39

Chumpfriend · 04/04/2025 23:34

This is my current irrational rage.

We have a person in our family who wasn’t too invested at school. So left without real qualifications. Has, not unusually, realised that they now need some practical ones to better themselves. Can they get any kind of help or loan? Absolutely not.

So the country is crying out for properly trained electricians, plumbers etc and if you want to qualify you’ve got to fund the course yourself. Absolute madness - but don’t worry you can go to Uni and do a pointless course at 18 and get all the money you want.

Why on earth isn’t there some kind of learning fund available to those who weren’t or aren’t exams/university fodder, that is repaid in exactly the same way and delivered through approved providers? It would let them get the qualifications they need and provide a better qualified workforce.

This person is the hardest working person I know and is currently working 7 days a week - working overtime to pay for said course alongside their normal job. The sums required are minimal compared to to a degree but huge for young people having to self fund.

All trades are utterly unappreciated and undervalued. If we allow people to get better training and create a proper path into what is pretty essential work then things will improve for everyone.

Also hard agree about the current standards - it’s painful trying to get anything done!

Your family member will be better off in the end that they self funded with no student tax. Agree that it is outrageous that they have to though.

allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld · 15/04/2025 20:24

@hereismydog men dont always know though, do they? I once went into a plumbers merchant and asked if they had any undermount kitchen sinks!! the man behind the counter had absolutely no clue what that was and looked at me like I had two heads!!! my daughter who was with me just burst out laughing at his stupidity!

safetyfreak · 15/04/2025 20:17

My father in law is a carpenter and he recommends trade people to us, so they know to behave as they give each other buisness.

Mind you,my husband also good with DIY and watches youtube videos. I wish there were more life lessons taught at school.

I do wonder if what we need is a nation wide, buisness who hires all these tradies and so, remove the need for so much self-employment. Thats only way i can see it going back in favour of customers.

ohheckwhatnow · 15/04/2025 20:06

Whilst I realise many many are bad, I feel I need to stick up for some tradespeople, good ones do exist. My other half is a plasterer and has never behaved like some of these mentioned on here. He spends 2/3 evenings a week going out quoting jobs and then typing them up. He's never ever not turned up and the only time he's been late was when his van broke down and he was absolutely gutted. Alot of clients are repeat customers and he never advertises. He keeps his Facebook page and Google page updated and that's it.
He's good at what he does but I won't show him this, don't want him to get big headed 😂

Original poster
hereismydog · 15/04/2025 20:01

Supersimkin7 · 15/04/2025 19:22

The secret is YouTube.

See my update from this morning 😉

I removed a toilet and plumbed in a washing machine thanks to YouTube 😌 was asked by the delightful gentleman at Screwfix if I “was sure I knew what I was doing”, though 🙄 funny he didn’t ask the man he served before me the same, and he wasn’t wearing work clothes either!

OP posts:
Supersimkin7 · 15/04/2025 19:22

The secret is YouTube.

Drong · 15/04/2025 12:17

You have my sympathies we did a full gut reno. And it was exhausting. The excuses for doing poor work (“your dad has used the sink wrong” - eh??) and they all just slagged one another off (“the tilers bodged that hasn’t he”) etc. It really made me resentful. Totally unacceptable tbh. When you pay for a service you expect decent work done with integrity. Didn’t have one good experience. They had an excuse for everything - even the paint drops on the brand new wood floor. I’m very easygoing and try my best to be kind but they had me in tears on more than one occasion.

The low point was when we were left in a freezing house for an entire weekend because the builder didn’t drop off the hive thingy which he had assured us he would. Didn’t give a shit about my 85 year old stroke victim father. No text no phone call.

Original poster
hereismydog · 15/04/2025 12:10

Update…I spent a morning watching tutorials and did it my damn self Grin

OP posts:
Serendipetty · 08/04/2025 11:31

I am very very lucky that I have a great reliable electrician and plumber currently (I am a landlord) who I am very grateful for, however this hasn't always been the case.

I had an electrician come to my house following a flood. The heating system was broken, it was winter, I was freezing, lights not working and the house had just been sold when a lodger caused a flood. It was so so stressful. He did the job, left and everything went off about ten minutes later. He refused to come back too. Eventually agreed to two days later, didn't turn up.
I left him an honest review and he had a go at me for 'damaging his business'. I told him I'd take the review down if he finished the job. He never came back and I ended up having more expense to get someone else.

I've also had someone mess me around, saying he'd turn up then not, over several days, repeatedly during another stressful time due to a boiler failing. Eventually he told me he 'was a busy tradesman and these things happen' -well don't fucking say you'll do the job, then?!

I am at work but I have many more examples. I am rubbish at anything DIY-wise but I have taken to painting my own rooms, I am not great, but i am not bad-looks perfectly fine so it'll do.

ohtowinthelottery · 08/04/2025 11:12

@YachtMistress Shropshire.

YachtMistress · 08/04/2025 10:42

ohtowinthelottery · 04/04/2025 20:11

DS bought a house a few months ago which needed some work doing on it.
Job 1 - get locks changed. Rang locksmith the day of completion. He came the next day and changed front & back door locks. Very reasonable price and good job done. Not someone we'd used before - just local and good reviews online.
Job 2 - replace central heating system. Rang plumber we'd used 20 years ago! Turned up to quote at correct time. Sent quote within 3 days. Said he could do work in approx 1 month but possibly a bit sooner. Rang 3 weeks later to give start date the following week. Job completed on time and to good standard and house left tidy after completion.

Job 3 - plastering. Plasterer said he'd call to look at job when he was in the same town as DS's house. (He is hubby of someone we know through a hobby). Turned up to quote within a week. Gave quote immediately. Said he was busy but would fit it in as soon as he could. DS thought he'd be in for a long wait. A week later got a text as 7pm one evening asking if work could be done the next day. Work completed to excellent standard.

Maybe we're just lucky here but long may it continue.

Where are you????
Might move there 😂

YachtMistress · 08/04/2025 10:31

In these parts this is 'The Pembrokeshire Promise'

SodYouIllGoOnMyOwn · 08/04/2025 10:29

My DH is a tradie. He would not behave as you describe, but I know a lot do.

Cancelthebreak · 08/04/2025 10:26

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

Stop taking the mick, Mick.

IHateWasps · 08/04/2025 10:14

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

SummerDaysOnTheWay · 08/04/2025 06:22

IHateWasps · 07/04/2025 21:46

Do you know what irony actually is? It appears not.

I did not say that I find it offensive, just incredibly irritating but I have only ever heard of Australians using the term.I do detest Australian slang though. It is lazy, juvenile and unpleasant to the ear and it is disappointing to see it becoming increasingly popular in this country.

Show quote history

Get a grip love.

SummerDaysOnTheWay · 08/04/2025 06:20

New fence -2500 FFS

lavendarwillow · 08/04/2025 00:46

It’s a huge problem because we lost the traditional apprenticeships and technical colleges. Then, there was the boom in university places for all, rather than the workplace. The message was that to be a success, you needed a degree and a white collar job. We also were inundated with cheap Eastern European labour. All this happened over the course of a good 15 years, all at the same time. So, we are left with a lot of chancers unfortunately. The types of people that would never have been employed as a tradesperson in the past because they don’t have the brains or skills. Hopefully things will change as young decent people will realise there is a sensible and lucrative career to be had. There are some good ones out there though. Don’t fall for the trades who advertise all over social media either.

echt · 08/04/2025 00:32

*I did not say that I find it offensive, just incredibly irritating but I have only ever heard of Australians using the term.I do detest Australian slang though. It is lazy, juvenile and unpleasant to the ear and it is disappointing to see it becoming increasingly popular in this country8

How is it lazy? For that matter how is any slang lazy?

NonComm · 08/04/2025 00:15

i was badly affected by my experience with roofers. The first was clearly coked up to the eyeballs, then I was ghosted by another and finally manipulated into giving a large cash deposit to the last one. He didn’t do job properly and I had to get someone else in at huge expense. Oh - the second and third were related. I was too unsettled to let Check a Trade know as the roofers knew it would be me and that I live alone.

IHateWasps · 07/04/2025 21:46

Zov · 07/04/2025 20:11

Yeah I found @ThinWomansBrain 's comment about the term 'Tradies' being offensive really odd too. She hasn't even been back to acknowldge that she was wrong. (Because the word is not offensive. Loads of people use it.)

Now another poster is at it too! 😂

@IHateWasps · Today 13:38

You are being very unreasonable to call them “Tradies”. I have never heard anyone use that term in this country before. Please keep that dreadful Australian slang where it belongs.

LOL, are you normally this offended at nothing? And the irony of you slating people for using what YOU class as an offensive term, and then going on to bash and berate Australian slang! Just because YOU can't BEAR it, that doesn't give you the right to tell others they can't use it!

As for the OP's issue, I feel your pain OP. I have had nothing but trouble with tradies for the past 3-4 years, so much so that me and DH tend to do most stuff ourselves now.

Show quote history

Do you know what irony actually is? It appears not.

I did not say that I find it offensive, just incredibly irritating but I have only ever heard of Australians using the term.I do detest Australian slang though. It is lazy, juvenile and unpleasant to the ear and it is disappointing to see it becoming increasingly popular in this country.

Bluebells81 · 07/04/2025 21:28

I thought it was just me dealing with this! I've just had a toilet that was 'fixed' last week flood through a ceiling. A door won't close after some carpet was replaced. A painter sloshed paint all over a vinyl floor while painting walls. Then half painted a wall I didn't want painting amd made even more mess trying to clean up. Electrics that were quoted to take a week took 4 months. Rubbish left everywhere. Endlessly frustrating.

Cancelthebreak · 07/04/2025 21:27

Zov · 07/04/2025 21:01

You know when you've lost the argument, when you have to tell people that LOADS of people have 'liked' your post. 😆

I would like to see proof @ThinWomansBrain that a lot of people have liked your post saying 'tradies' is offensive and demeaning, but I doubt it will be forthcoming. My guess is it's less than 5. Especially as a heck of a lot of people have disagreed with you/told you that you're wrong in their posts! Wink

Edited

@IHateWasps and @ThinWomansBrain are clearly bonkers.

Zov · 07/04/2025 21:01

You know when you've lost the argument, when you have to tell people that LOADS of people have 'liked' your post. 😆

I would like to see proof @ThinWomansBrain that a lot of people have liked your post saying 'tradies' is offensive and demeaning, but I doubt it will be forthcoming. My guess is it's less than 5. Especially as a heck of a lot of people have disagreed with you/told you that you're wrong in their posts! Wink