Aibu to not want to pay the full amount?

[gingerginger2]

We had a quote for some work in our garden, which was £1300. we agreed to it, mainly through inexperience I think.

The Gardner’s came to do the work today and it took 3 of them 4 hours.

Given that materials could be bought for £300, aibu to not want to pay them £300 each for a half day?

I‘ve questioned the invoice and they said they estimated it would take a day, and they only quite by days.

We did agree to the quote. But it feels like a total rip off.

The work they did is ok. Sufficient. No above and beyond, just sufficient.

My next question... When you are new to getti g quotes.... How do you know what is reasonable.... Yes I knoe get several quotes... But in a world where many massively over quote its pretty impossible to know what is a reasonable amount for the job

If you get several quotes, then this will give you a really good idea of the likely cost of your job. How difficult is that?

A job is worth what people are willing to pay to get it done. You can charge what the market will support. Quotes are the only way to get an idea of that. Some might deliberately quote really high because they don’t need or want the job. You get a few so you can work out a fair price range.

”Chatting to my Gardner he said he often over quotes on jobs he doesn't want to put people off but quite often they still ask him to do the work”

Then he’s not overquoting, he is quoting what he is worth, which is what he should be doing.

They're not quoting in hours they're quoting for the end result however long it takes them, what is difficult to understand?!

Goof gardeners are a precious commodity. You can get people to mow and edge the lawn and you can get people to do specific projects like putting up fencing or digging through fertiliser but getting someone who is reliable and doesn’t dig out the plants you paid good money for because he thinks they’re weeds is hard.

Good even. I’d take a goof one if he’d leave my bloody foxgloves alone.

They quoted saying it‘d Take a day for 3 men. Which didn‘t sound unreasonable.

I did get a few quotes . They were all different as I said before. Sadly I had to go with the quickest as the job is time pressured. I think i‘ll Just need accept I pay a haste tax.

Wish I‘d had time to do it myself.

My ex husband is a builder. You would be amazed how many clients try and pull this crap.

You quote for a job, you compete the work then they try and get out of paying the full cost, or think they are paying the builders by the hour and ask them to do load so of extras for free.

He would also price for the materials required, but sometimes have to buy more (for example pavers). If clinets saw anything left over tried to keep the extras even though he explained over and over again he hadn’t charged them for it.

I wouldn’t have the patience to deal with this.

It’s not a hassle tax😂😂😂😂

It’s what you agreed to pay.

I‘m freelance too. I‘d never dream of invoicing for more hours than I actually worked. If I overestimated in my quote i‘d Be embarrassed and modify the invoice.

Maybe you should reconsider how you charge. I quote a freelance job as an overall project fee, (but use my hourly rate to calculate that fee, but the client does not know the hourly fee). It is up to the client to accept the contract of not and that is the contract.

3 people working would obviously get the job done 3 times as fast. Would you still be on here questioning the fee if it had been one person taking 1 and a half days? Did you specify you wanted 3 people on the job?

OP
They quoted saying it‘d Take a day for 3 men. Which didn‘t sound unreasonable

This is why I don’t think the OP is being unreasonable. I don’t know if they intentionally misled the OP or not but if they said the work would take a whole day presumably they cost the job based on that. Seems unprofessional/dodgy to give such inaccurate information while giving a quote.

Raised beds aren’t complicated to make. I’d be surprised if any decent gardener/landscaper couldn’t work out how long they would take to make roughly.

Op also said earlier that they told her they always quoted by day. Which is not the same as it will take a day.

Op agreed to the price, the job was done, she chose the company that would get it done in her preferred time frame, and now wants to quibble.

Why would you punish them for completing the work quicker? Would you have preferred they worked slower and slacked off a bit so that it would take all day?

They completed the job in half a day but you are paying them for a full day. They will have allocated this day to you and can't exactly pop off to another job afterward if it isn't booked in. The fact that they finished quicker is irrelevant really. That makes their wage £41.5ish which is entirely reasonable.

*rate, not wage

You need to pay up, you agreed to the full quote

I have had several jobs done in my garden. The last one was removal of a tree. They did it while we were away. We came back to a neatly turfed patch where the tree had stood. As far as I am concerned they did the job to a high standard and I have no idea how long it took. I paid up because I was happy with the result.
Incidentally it isn't always true that if they come quickly they are no good.
They had finished another job early, as in OPs case. Removing my tree was a small job (to them) so they fitted it in in the time they had left from the previous job.

Why do you keep on about hourly rates OP? They did not charge for more hours than they worked, they charged for the job (whether it took 5 minutes or 5 years) Yes, you really are in the wrong fucking job if you can’t understand this. Have you thought about going to college? Maybe an education is what you need..

I imagine someone asked already, but if they had ended up needing 2 days would they still have only charged 1300? I think a quote is different from am estimate and you stick to a quote.

Some people are so rude. You wouldn’t dare talk to people in real life the way you’re talking to OP.

Yes, folk can be rude but tbh as long it doesn‘t get completely out of hand then I can take it. 10 years plus posting on AIBU i always appreciate the honesty when I have absituation like this. The straight talking has probably saved me being a numpty on many an occassion.

Just one last question though.

If I understand the jist of it, the reason it‘s ok to do a job quicker than you‘ve said you‘d do in your quote and not amend your invoice is because other jobs take longer, and days can be lost to bad weather/complications?

See i‘ve Always thought that‘s why tradesmen have a high hourly rate, to allow for and cover that element of risk?

I‘ve also always thought of a quote as an estimate, and opefuöly a pretty accurate one as you‘re paying for someone‘s expertise in knowing how long things take. But then after the quote you have good communication with your client and let them know any significant divergence as you go along . (Small divergence is absorbed)

This is the third time i‘ve Used a tradesman. Both other times (plumber fitting bathroom and joiner fitting kitchen) the costs raised significantly during the project and the final invoice reflected this ( which we paid as we could see that it had taken longer) .

I also as a self employed person will give people a quote, and generally it‘ll be accurate and I pride myself on that. And if it‘s the odd hour hear and there i absorb it. But it it‘s significantly difference I keep in touch and let the client know. That way they know they can trust me and I get repeat business.

This Gardner will not get my business again, because when I see them leaving at lunchtime leaving ubfilled beds and slabs in a pile I feel they‘ve not been honest .

I‘m Amazed really that the majority think differently, but grateful for the schooling! It’s good to know the rationale and be aware of it for the future.

They did the job you asked using the topsoil you provided.
If you wanted them to relay the slabs you should have mentioned this when talking about the work.
An estimate is just that
A quote is what has been agreed.

You just aren't getting it are you. Did you ask them to move the slab when they gave you the price for the job? Did you specify the top soil to be dug etc? If it wasn't on the quote it's not their problem end of. You are being very unreasonable. You asked for a job done, they said a price, you said yes, they did the job, you pay. It's irrelevant if it took 5 minutes or 5 hours. If they didn't complete the whole job as agreed when they quoted then you should have explained what still needed doing. It wasn't an estimate (which if given an estimate for a job the price may change) it was a quote, fixed price for the job. You agreed.

What did you want done with the left over slabs op? Sorry if I’ve missed it?

A quote is different from an estimate, estimates are fluid and are to give a rough idea of the cost. A quote is the cost they will charge for the project. Costs can increase or decrease during a project, based on material changes, issues that arise during works that are unforeseen (finding asbestos for example that couldn’t be seen during survey) or choices made by the client but this should all be agreed as works progress.

You’re very focused on the hourly thing, they were focused on the project, they quoted for a project and said they would complete it in a day, they did just that, in fact getting out of your hair earlier in the day than expected! I would see that as a bonus.

If your window cleaner tells you it will take an hour to clean your windows and he gets it done in less would you feel the same or would you consider the job done as all of your windows are clean?

I always find it curious when some people only consider the cost of materials when determining the value for money of a job. As if paying for the labour and skills required does not count.