To be fed up with builder for lack of communication?

[Missnearlyvintage]

Hi everyone,

Our builder is due to start work on Monday 4th March. We've already had issues with him wanting a 50% deposit before work starting, but I have negotiated a smaller materials payment upfront when they start instead.

We have used messenger to communicate mainly as it easier than trying to get hold of him on the phone in the day.

I have put sent two messages to him, one on Monday 25th Feb, and one yesterday to ask what time he is going to be here on Monday, (I have the school run to do so need to know), and what payment reference I should use on the initial payment we have agreed.

To me this is straight forward, and it is vexing me that he has not responded. Both messages are marked as read.

AIBU to expect that he should have responded to these messages?

AIBU to think that I shouldn't have to be chasing him again today to see if he is actually going to turn up?

He doesn’t view it as being an urgent thing to respond to. Probably he doesn’t know yet what time he will turn up. You’re being a bit picky about the payment reference, just put your full name! Or first line of your address!

Sounds like you haven’t paid the deposit yet and also sounds like you have lost confidence in him before work has even started. Is it a big job? If it is I’d be inclined to tell you to cancel. You’re letting yourself in for a stressful ride.

As for the deposit, I’ve used three different builders in the last year and all have wanted 50% before work starts. You will have lots of old fashioned advice about not paying anything but modern life is not this way everywhere anymore.

By the way I do completely sympathise. Most builders I’ve emplpyed have no sense of urgency to responding to messages. Even getting a quote is hard sometimes!

And don’t chase again. If you don’t get a response don’t bother and go with someone else!

Thanks YoungChrone.

This is the second builder we have instructed, after a the first kept us waiting for 4 months and then completely ignoring us.

We have had awful work and awful service even by tradespeople who have been recommended by friends and family in the past, so I find having any tradespeople in our house pretty nerve wracking now at the best of times.

We have been advised that we used the wrong payment reference when paying someone in the past, which is why I like to check now. Though you are right that that isn't really so much of an issue - though I won't be paying anything unless I get a reply. I would've thought that clarifying this would be a no brainer though seen as I am trying to pay them money.

I won't chase any further, thank you, though I don't know whether to pack all our stuff away downstairs or not, (the work will be dusty and will be in all ground floor areas).

For any tradesperson doing a course on their trade I really think there should be a customer service module if there isn't one in their course already. I wouldn't be content to book an appointment at a hairdressers for a specific day, not to be told the actual time of the appointment, yet this kind of poor communication seems standard with other trades.

I’ve cancelled the builder now. I waited until 4pm today and there was still no response as to whether/when specifically they were turning up.

IMO the builder then showed his true colours by sending a snotty message within ten minutes of us cancelling, saying that he had already messaged me to confirm a time last night. I haven’t received anything to my knowledge.

He then sent another message ten minutes after that in a more pleasant tone saying he is still interested in the job and can come another day if that’s convenient

It’s a shame as I really wanted the work done, and I don’t like taking away his income - but if he wanted to job he could’ve just messaged me back at any point this week!

I feel your pain! We've been trying to arrange for someone to do some work in our house, wanted to use this person as we knew that they had a good reputation. To begin with it was 'I'll give you a date in a couple of weeks'. Three went by and we heard nothing, so I messaged again simply asking for a date so we can get some prep done before hand. Reply was are we desperate for the work? Well not really but would just like to know when things are being done. So I said would just like a date to work towards. Read but no reply, so have someone else coming to quote us on Sunday. You would think they'd want the work!!

@Cobblett36 - sorry you’re having issues finding a tradesperson as well, it’s rubbish. The previous one we had tried to book to do our work was just like the one you described - a good reputation, and lots of promises that he would be available to complete our work soon, followed by him ignoring us completely.

I’m half regretting cancelling this latest one now incase it all would’ve worked out ok in the end, but then I don’t think I would’ve liked to be on the receiving end of anymore snotty messages if we had an issue with any of the work they would’ve done, or if I had paid their materials deposit and they hadn’t turned up...

We have always had the same issue. I've said the same in the past 'it's like they don't want the work!' It drives us mad. We have always been willing to pay whatever the going rate was for a job. I remember needing a new boiler years ago. We rang 10 different people and only had 3 get back to us/arrange to date and time and of those three only one turned up! Thankfully he was good and replaced the boiler - although we would have like a change to a combi boiler, a week before Xmas he refused and said we had like for like or nothing. As our boiler was broken we didn't really have much choice.