Am I being precious or is this bloke out of order?

[NorthernComfort]

We rent and the landlords were recommended a local handyman to fix a problem with the roof which is leaking and turning the ceilings upstairs black.

He randomly turns up unannounced and expects access to the whole house at 8am when people are trying to get dressed and ready to leave the house. They've only just managed to finally pin him down to do the work and we asked that he didn't turn up until 9am as mornings are not a good time. He turned up at 8.10am anyway and then saw his arse a bit because I wouldn't let him go upstairs where DH had just got out of the shower and was getting dressed.

He left his stuff and went somewhere about half an hour ago, and has just come back, let himself in - as well as some random man who I came down and found in the yard with him.

I'm in with my two and four year old boys and I'm not particularly happy about him wandering in and out without telling me what he's doing and bringing god knows who in.

AIBU?

I can't believe how many people are saying the OP is being unreasonable.

She pays to live there, it is therefore her house and deserves to be introduced to anyone in it, especially when she has young children.

He turned up 50 minutes earlier than arranged, and got in a strop that he couldn't go upstairs to where her DH was naked!

I'm sure she realises that 8am in a usual start time for trademen, but she had arranged for him to arrive at 9am. He shouldn't change this without asking.

If I'm ever early for work, I will knock on the door or phone to ask if its convenient. If not I would read a book in my car!

People on here giving perfectly reasonable OPs a hard time are unreasonable!

My DP is a builder and works in domestic houses. Mostly for home owners but has done some work for tennants, makes no difference to him.

It is a pain in the arse but he will accomodate people in the mornings, will arrive after nine first morning and then depending on the work being done and how disruptive it will be, will want to be there as early as possible. If he was to turn up after 9 every day he wouldn't make any money.

I get so bloody cross at the attitudes of some people towards trademen. They are doing a job that you can't - a bit of respect would be nice.

As to having other people arrive on the job? What is the problem with that? My DP will often bring other trades in or "help". He wont ask permission first, if he trusts them and the clients trust him there is no problem. He will introduce because he is polite.

Is this man working for you or the landlord, as in, who will he report his findings to?

Oh and FFS make him a cup of tea, i judge clients big time on whether they make my DP a cup of tea.
He has just done a job for someone that involved him working against clock, doing 12-15 hour days, did she every make him a cup of tea? Offer of a sandwhich? Did she fuck. Other people, and they tend to be more working class types, will proffer tea, buscuits and often offer DP lunch, which he refuses. Like you say, these people are in your house, make them welcome.

My DP is a builder and works in domestic houses. Mostly for home owners but has done some work for tennants, makes no difference to him.

It is a pain in the arse but he will accomodate people in the mornings, will arrive after nine first morning and then depending on the work being done and how disruptive it will be, will want to be there as early as possible. If he was to turn up after 9 every day he wouldn't make any money.

I get so bloody cross at the attitudes of some people towards trademen. They are doing a job that you can't - a bit of respect would be nice.

As to having other people arrive on the job? What is the problem with that? My DP will often bring other trades in or "help". He wont ask permission first, if he trusts them and the clients trust him there is no problem. He will introduce because he is polite.

Is this man working for you or the landlord, as in, who will he report his findings to?

Oh and FFS make him a cup of tea, i judge clients big time on whether they make my DP a cup of tea.
He has just done a job for someone that involved him working against clock, doing 12-15 hour days, did she every make him a cup of tea? Offer of a sandwhich? Did she fuck. Other people, and they tend to be more working class types, will proffer tea, buscuits and often offer DP lunch, which he refuses. Like you say, these people are in your house, make them welcome.

Posie, i read your second post first and thought stuck up mare, then i read your first post about the smoking and thought, how restrained, i would have murdered him for smoking in my house - i would not be held responsible.

As to tea, i think it is common courtesy to offer a cup of tea to people if you are making one yoursself, however if there is a troup of them thats a bit different.

Had one client, who wasn't even living in the house at the time, ring my DP and tell him not to use their toilet, even for a wee Some people eh. Downstairs loo, not like he would be traipsing shite everywhere and no, he never does a poo in someone elses house.

Why do people have such a bad attitude towards workmen?

If I were you I'd be thinking that your landlord didn't tell him about the 9am thing. This has happened to my DP several times when he's been booked by landlords/managing agents. He'll arrive at a job to an irate client and he's not been told the right details.

Posie, if that guy had worked for my dad he would been sacked. You NEVER smoke in clients' houses, ever.

sands88 thank you.

Sunshine - I think you might be venting your wrath at the wrong woman here. I am not the person who didn't make your husband a cup of tea.

The guy turned up at the wrong time and was arsey. He went off for his lunch and when he came back he just walked into my house without knocking and went up the stairs - I actually thought it was DH as he'd just left and I thought he'd come back to get something, it was only when he didn't come in and say something to us that I realised the bloke had just let himself in without telling me he was back after over an hour away. That's pretty fricking rude in my book, it's one thing if he's in and out for tools but he'd been working outside the whole morning, then away for an hour, then just let himself in.

And to make things worse he painted over the damp patches, didn't cover up, covered my stuff in paint and then pissed off leaving the job half finished, so I'm not sure why I shoudl be showign this man any respect as he sure as hell didn't show any to me. AND I DID MAKE HIM TEA!

Anyway, it's done now, despite the fact that he's not quite finished and we'll just have to hope we don't have to deal with him again.

So the succint answer to your question "Why do people have such a bad attitude towards workmen?" is: because some of them are utter arseholes.

Don't even get me started on the ones who did out loft conversion a few years back, brought all the refuse through the house trashing all the walls/carpets, ripped us off for several hundred pounds and actually stole things from our house.

I did mean to point out northern that i know you didn't not make him tea - to be fair, from what you say, this guy sounds like a fecking disaster. My DP always knocks, even if he has a key , he is not in his own home.

How it looks to me is, your landlord is using cheap labour and well, if you pay peanuts you get monkeys. Damp patches should have the damp plaster removed and repainted, the source of the damp identified and dealt with otherwise he is just making the problem worse.

His age has nowt to do with it - sounds like a shoddy cheap job, and i think i would have "seen my arse" over that!

But Northern, MOST of them aren't! Just because there are a few bad pennies don't judge a book by its cover. Some clients can be utter arseholes to, its a good job i don't judge everyone by that standard otherwise we would never have any work.

Yeah, I'll be having a word with them, I don't think they'll be using him again...