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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Greedy tradesmen (or women!)

185 replies

LolalovesLondon · 21/10/2020 22:05

Is it just me or are some people taking the piss at the moment? Everyone I contact is booked up for weeks so it’s not lack of work I don’t think...
Had a quote last week to get a gas oven installed - straight swop, no new pipes or alterations, cooker is the same as we have now just a newer model.
£195 installation only.
Is that normal nowadays? 🤔

OP posts:
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 11:45

The overheads account for the high daily rate some tradesmen charge but how the same job priced at nearly £200 by one and £69 by another? Both working for themselves, both very local...
One of them is taking the piss.

OP posts:
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 11:49

I also agree with others that trades should be better regulated.
So many dreadful tradesmen. When you get a good one you can really see the difference.

OP posts:
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 11:53

If you don't like it, go back to college & learn how to do it yourself.

Suck it up you mean? They can do/charge as much they like? Why would I train as a gas fitter?

OP posts:
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 11:53

or engineer?

OP posts:
Asterion · 22/10/2020 11:57

@LolalovesLondon

The overheads account for the high daily rate some tradesmen charge but how the same job priced at nearly £200 by one and £69 by another? Both working for themselves, both very local... One of them is taking the piss.
One of them didn't want your tiny little job.
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 12:00

One of them didn't want your tiny little job.
Then why did he chase it up a few days ago asking if I wanted to book it in?

OP posts:
Asterion · 22/10/2020 12:04

Then he did want your job, and charges what he wants to charge.

It's like houses - something is worth what someone will pay for it.

ThistleWitch · 22/10/2020 12:05

@JaniceBattersby

My husband is a self employed tradesman. He works six days a week, 11 hour days. His day rate is £400. He’s been in the business for 25 years and is considered to be one of the very best in his trade. He brings home £38k per year. Hardly a fortune.
self employed, £400 a day, is £2,400 a week (based on 6 days) say, 48 weeks, is £115,200

sure, out of that is insurances and taxes, but if he is only brining home £38K he needs to change accountants?

Butterer · 22/10/2020 12:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 12:08

something is worth what someone will pay for it.
True. If I was in a rush I’d have little choice. Maybe he thought he would chance it.
You win some you lose some.

OP posts:
Original poster
LolalovesLondon · 22/10/2020 12:10

Bayonet fittings for gas oven connections are a bit like a lightbulb fitting in terms of complexity.
My tenancy agreement states that a gas safe engineer has to do any disconnection or connections though. I'm personally fine with that.

I’m all for it being done by certified engineers but that is interesting!

OP posts:
IncandescentSilver · 22/10/2020 12:13

Asterion some tradespeople very much want customers who are stupid enough to pay well over the odds for small, non complex jobs.

Clearly someone expecting £200 for a small job that someone else can quote £69 for is expecting the customer to be a mug, especially if they then have to phone around chasing up work. There is a limit as to how much you can guild a lily.

It's the same calculation for any business. Sometimes it's a good idea to take on small, loss leading jobs as they might lead to bigger, more remunerative work and/or enhance your reputation.

Alternatively, if you're already wealthy enough to turn down work you don't fancy, then don't take it.

Butterer · 22/10/2020 12:17

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

areyoubeingserviced · 22/10/2020 12:18

I asked for a tradesman to come paint an averaged sized bedroom ( no plastering ) and my bathroom. He quoted me £4K.
I actually thought that he was joking
I eventually got it done for £1k .
Some tradesmen are quite greedy imho and very unreliable

RubyRedBerry · 22/10/2020 12:19

A friend of mine is a tradesman, he always says if he doesn't want a job he quotes a high price.

That does seem alot, mine charges £60 per hour as i recently asked how much it would be to move a hot water pipe and that's what he told me to work on....

ivfbeenbusy · 22/10/2020 12:21

To be honest this sounds like a minimum call out charge. It amounts to half a day which would include travel to your property. People are being a bit unrealistic when they don't factor this in - unless he lives next door of course!

Enoughnowstop · 22/10/2020 12:22

I was always of the understanding that it was time related - if they are with you for a couple of hours, they are charging minimum half a day, if not a full day, because they can’t necessarily fit in the next job in less than the full day/half day. The best you can do is develop a good relationship with a local handyman who charges by the hour, use YouTube and do it yourself, or maintain a good relationship with someone who did a big job for you at some point so they are happy to do the small stuff at minimum cost. I have a builder who did some major work for me, for example, who I referred to my mum and a couple of friends and he will pop round and do just about anything for me now for £20 plus parts. He even changed my mum’s lightbulbs for her at one point.

Alternatively, pay the insurance costs for plumbers, electricians etc through the likes of British Gas Homecare. But that won’t solve carpet fitting.

unmarkedbythat · 22/10/2020 12:26

People will pay what they will pay. I know people who spend £200 on a hairdo. Not my choice (even if it were in my budget!) and I don't think any hairdo is worth £200- but some do and will pay.

Anyway. Ime, a ridiculous overquote is a way of saying "I don't want to do this job but if you're willing to pay me silly money for it I will overcome my reluctance". Like when car insurance companies offer you cover for £6k when you can get the same for £600. They don't actually want you, but they're not going to turn you down if you're daft enough to pay it.

WizWoz · 22/10/2020 12:27

We had a quote to replace a brick wall that some numpty knocked down with his car. They wanted £6k! The next guy wanted £2k but he’s not available to do the job till next summer. I guess that’s why he’s fully booked and the others aren’t!

Sugggs · 22/10/2020 12:28

£195 is a reasonable day rate around me and I’m not in London. Id expect to pay up to £250. A small job attracts a premium as essentially it’s the whole day written off, not just the time it takes to complete the task.

Like PP say you’re paying for expertise, overheads, tools, time taken to source materials/components, industry standard memberships etc.

If you can do it yourself, safely and would rather not shell out then do. If not employ a professional. This says more about your lack of respect for tradesmen and their skills than them.

PolytheneHam · 22/10/2020 12:30

My husband is a tradesman and sometimes people are surprised by how much he charges (although it isn't close to anything quoted on this thread!)

What people don't realise is that they're paying for 25 years experience and an insane number of tools, as well as the renting of a workshop. His main machine cost £7000.

He certainly isn't raking it in, though. We live in a little inner city 2/3 bed terrace, although we have no mortgage.

Mustbe3ormorecharacters · 22/10/2020 12:50

I found the exact opposite recently, I paid for some roofers to fix a leak in my mums roof.
It took two of them a couple of hours and they only charged £125. That was including the tiles.

LoopyGremlin · 22/10/2020 13:00

Self employed tradespeople set their own terms and conditions. They can charge £20 an hour or £2000 per hour. If you don’t want to pay it, then don’t. It’s as simple as that!

Ghouliet · 22/10/2020 13:04

I’m getting the guttering and soffits replaced on my house. The local tradesman charged my next door neighbour £2k but had to charge me £2.4k because he needed scaffolding at the back because of my conservatory. He was quite apologetic. I don’t mind paying for his skills or the risk he takes on the height and he chucked in some extra little jobs for free.

However, I did get a door to door salesman offering to do the work for £5.5k, knocked down to a ‘generous’ £3.5k but no mention of scaffolding and the extra little jobs weren’t thrown in.

Even better was two chancers dropping leaflets through the doors offering to do the same job for a bargain price of £12k!

I guess it’s how comfortable you are with the price and if you feel it’s too much shop around to see what others say. It’s hard at times to know the value of things. If it’s similar then that’s the usual price, if you find a tradesman cheaper then that’s ideal.

wonkylegs · 22/10/2020 13:10

@IncandescentSilver
lots of inaccuracies in your posts
Your electrical engineer brother would be able to do the work you describe perfectly legally under the BRegs - certain minor works are exempted from needing to be Part P registered
Basic plumbing and plastering may be easy to learn but you still have to learn how to do them, nobody magically can just do them . That takes time, you might not want to pay for that time and you are happy to do that yourself but others can’t or won’t do need to pay for that. Having the right tools to hand - costs money.
Women tradespeople whilst in the minority are a growing part of the market and can be found if you look - I have a female arbourcultralist, my MIL was a female plumber (now retired), I’ve used female plasterers, joiners, decorators, plumbers and brickies
Doctors are allowed to set up companies and they do - obviously for private work outside of the NHS
Dentists are often companies

What you describe isn’t about fetishising trades but explaining that there’s often more to self employment (whether that’s a trade or a professional) which a lot of people who have a PAYE job just don’t think about.

Yes some tradespeople take the piss but so do some professionals

At the moment there is a lot of demand for trades as people have been at home a lot so have decided to finally fix, upgrade, replace the things they hadn't previously had time to do or think about doing - (I've never had so many enquiries) and this is on top of all the work that usually gets booked in.
Insurance costs in construction have also gone up massively this year (mine almost doubled 😳) and it's not optional. I don't make enough profit to absorb that so I have had to pass that on.
I'm a professional who works with trades so I can kinda see both sides of the equation.

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