Who's BU? Paying for a messed up order

[CalaBallas]

We are purchasing a new build property and we sourced quotes for granite worktops in the kitchen and the utility. We decided against ordering for the utility due to cost and went ahead with just the kitchen.

I had an email from our sales rep this morning to say that the wrong quote was actioned, and granite for both the kitchen and utility has been delivered. Our original quote to add it on in the utility was for £875, and they've said as a good will gesture if we want the granite they will only ask to recoup £375 towards it.

I'm happy to pay, we did want it and just didn't want to pay out that much more for such a small room. £375 seems more reasonable for the size of our utility - might aswell?

Dh is insisting it's their error, we've ordered a specific granite that's useless to the developers and wants to fight to get it for free. I'm worried in doing so we'll sour our relationship with the developer and possibly get the granite in there at all.

Who's BU?

Horray! Enjoy your worktops :)

I would think that it's 300 quid to get what you want but didn't ask for. I'm sure that if you make a massive issue our of not paying and sour your relationship with the developer then you'll be paying that 300 quid somewhere else in the build. To me relationships are worth investing in.
If you can afford it pay it, if you can say sorry take it back with can't stretch to that.
Trying to force them to give you something worth £875 for free will sour relationships. There will be lots of snags with a new build, to me compromise is worth it.

I'd pay the £375 and get it if I had the money, you'll be always thinking 'I wish I'd done that when we had the chance'

I'd just pay for it.

I know a professional who works with granite etc. He's walked away with materials that clients won't pay for and crafted them into something else. It's not unusual to see him make things like granite top coffee tables to sell online out of unused stone. A good stone mason can make something from even the oddest dimensions.

I think if you go with your husband's suggestion you'll lose the granite they incorrectly ordered.

Id pay for it. If they're developers a lot of the houses they build will 'match' and they will sell the granite worktop to another family happy to pay for it. Plus it seems like a fair price!

@CalaBallas

Thanks all, have emailed and accepted their offer

Very sensible!

I'd be ever so chuffed that the worktop I wanted had luckily suddenly come into my price range instead of having to make do with a lower quality one.

@CalaBallas

Thanks all, have emailed and accepted their offer

I missed that when I posted. Glad you get to have the worktop counters you wanted.

I work in the construction industry. In the developer's situation if you started asking for it for free I'd offer the spare granite worktop to another client for the full value. I presume there are other houses on the development with utility rooms the same design as yours. Or I'd put it in the show home, which I'd be planning to sell for a premium. Or I'd let one of the staff/ contractors have it for £375: easy enough to cut it down to fit another space.

Pay the £375 and enjoy it.

You told them you didn't want it. They ordered it anyway. They should pay for it.

It is their error and they are trying to recoup the costs from you. That's not acceptable. I wouldn't worry about them choosing not to install it, it's more hassle than its worth for them to return such a small amount of granite and it will be useless to them for anything else.

Stand your ground.

I'd offer the spare granite worktop to another client for the full value.
Nobody is going to pay extra for a granite worktop in their utility room only.

For all those saying that the developer would be able to reuse it - very unlikely unless they have an identical house and identical layout. All granite worktops are templated on site for the house it is being put into.

Just asked DD (works in kitchen company) and DH (kitchen designer same company) and they both said you've got a good deal and grab it. Otherwise likely that the developer will remove it.

I have read the thread and see that you accepted their offer - I think you did the right thing OP

@MintyMabel

I'd offer the spare granite worktop to another client for the full value. Nobody is going to pay extra for a granite worktop in their utility room only.

You'd be really surprised. Some people can sell anything to almost anyone and a lot of people jump at what they perceive as a bargain.

OP, I'm pleased to see you accepted the offer and I wish you joy with your dirt-cheap granite worktop! I think that was a very wise decision, given it's a small development by a local developer. You might otherwise have found yourselves waiting ages for snags to be fixed and future problems to be sorted. Goodwill is valuable and good of you to understand that. Life doesn't have to be dog-eat-dog.

Thats really cheap for granite, we paid over £3000 for both kitchen and utility so I would bite his hand off and accept.

Good decision. Your dh sounds grabby. No way would you have got this for free.

I think you are crazy not to accept it - they won't give it to you for free. They give it to someone that works for them and they'll have it cut to size or they'll sell it. Get a quote on the granite yourself and see how much you will save!

Oh and were now thinking about our next kitchen in a couple of years and were going to sell the granite worktops.

I’d jump at it and buy the developer a drink because he’s probably fitting it for free now.

I think pay the half because you will have an ongoing relationship with the developer for a while to sort out any snagging etc. If you play hardball now they may be less amenable when it comes to sorting out other issues which may arise going forward. Realistically would your DH rather sour that relationship for the sake of £375?

I would definitely pay. You wanted it in the first place anyway, but couldn't afford it, and here is your chance to get it at a reasonable price.
Your husband is being arsey and unreasonable.

Good decision OP.

Great decision OP.

Is your husband normally so unfair and short-sighted?

I would say if you want it anyway then I would be happy to pay, it was their error, but they have taken what I would say were more than reasonable steps. Presumably if you said you didn't want it, they wouldn't charge, and then you would be in the same position as you would have been had the order been placed correctly- so they're not trying to pull a fast one. Although that's assuming you feel that the price of the work in the room that you did commit to was reasonable as well.

@Confusedandshaken

Why not compromise? Tell the developers that at £375 it's still out of your budget but could manage £250. That way your husband will feel he has 'won' and you get what you really wanted.

Of course if the developers stand firm and £375 as low as they'll go then you will have to rethink but I bet they won't.

That sounds like an ideal compromise which allows both sides to "win".

Quotes are an approximate price. They’ve offered you a big discount, which you’re lucky to have and expecting to have it for free is grabby. I’d be too embarrassed to expect it for free, if I’m honest. We’ve had quotes for work that are rarely accurate. Just pay the difference.