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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

My builder just took my fireplace

342 replies

Designjunkie · 27/02/2021 09:09

I am currently having some building work done and a fireplace in the bedroom had to be removed. It is a very pretty tiled Victorian one. I had intended to sell it but with lockdown and not having any place to store it I told my builder to get rid of it. At 07:30 this Saturday morning my husband answers the door to one of the builders saying he needs to take some stuff from our site. He doesn’t say what he is taking. We weren’t expecting them today although they usually work on most Saturdays so we weren’t surprised to see one of them. It’s only when my husband sees a van from a fireplace specialist outside that he clicks that the builders have sold our fireplace. By then it is too late to go and stop them as they leave before my husband can go talk to them. AIBU to be annoyed my builder didn’t tell me what he was up to or am I being ungrateful as I told him to get rid of it ? I feel it was a bit underhand as it just happened without my knowledge. Should I say anything to my builder or let it go ?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Aprilx · 27/02/2021 09:10

You told him to get rid of it, that is what he did.

Lougle · 27/02/2021 09:10

"I told my builder to get rid of it."

He did what you asked him to.

JayAlfredPrufrock · 27/02/2021 09:10

You told him to get rid of it.

He did.

JohnLapsleyParlabane · 27/02/2021 09:11

Yes you call your builder and tell him he owes you the price received as it wasn't his to sell

Lemonlemon88 · 27/02/2021 09:11

You told him to get rid of it? So he did 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Radishesandcake · 27/02/2021 09:11

You told him to get rid of it and he got rid of it. I don't think you have any reasonable grounds to be annoyed at him you need to let it go.

Sparklfairy · 27/02/2021 09:12

You told him to get rid of it Confused he did. I'm not sure what else you expected?

SquirtleSquad · 27/02/2021 09:12

Are you joking? Is this a reverse? Are you the builder trying to figure out if your client is in fact completely bonkers?

SchrodingersImmigrant · 27/02/2021 09:12

Don't tell people to do something and then be upset when they do it

MissBaskinIfYoureNasty · 27/02/2021 09:13

He literally did what you told him to.

OhCaptain · 27/02/2021 09:13

Wtf? You literally told him to take a beautiful Victorian fireplace and then he took it??

This isn’t real.

wombat1a · 27/02/2021 09:13

You told him to get rid of it, he has. What is the problem?

Angel2702 · 27/02/2021 09:14

You are annoyed because he sold it to be reused rather than just dump it? You asked him to get rid of it so how was you expecting him to dispose of it?

harknesswitch · 27/02/2021 09:14

I'm afraid you've short yourself in the foot here. You told him to get rid of it so he did. You didn't say he could t sell it, or if he did sell it you want a % of the sale price back. You'll know better next time.

If it's a cast iron thing then you've potentially lost £100s

JosephineBaker · 27/02/2021 09:14

He followed your instructions and you’re annoyed about it?

You couldn’t be arsed with selling it, you told him to remove it, he did AND he could be arsed selling it. Smart guy.

What did you think would happen?

CuriousaboutSamphire · 27/02/2021 09:15

Erm! You gave your builder an instruction... he did as you requested.

Why the hell didn't you ask him if he could sell it for you?

Daft all round!

lioncitygirl · 27/02/2021 09:15

Confused you told
Him to get rid of it.

SchrodingersImmigrant · 27/02/2021 09:15

@SquirtleSquad

Are you joking? Is this a reverse? Are you the builder trying to figure out if your client is in fact completely bonkers?
I thought that too but it's a real poster.
Walkerbean16 · 27/02/2021 09:16

you could have sold it yourself but you couldn't be bothered so you told him to get rid, now you are annoyed at him for it?! YABU

Jackie2022 · 27/02/2021 09:16

I don’t know why you’re angry, he sold it very quickly yes - but so could you! You just decided that you couldn’t be bothered to sell it. It obviously wasn’t as difficult or time consuming as you thought. You’re really just annoyed that the builder had the sagacity to do what you couldn’t.

Lindy2 · 27/02/2021 09:16

You told him to get rid of it so he did exactly as you asked.

If it's a nice Victorian fireplace I'm very glad he sold it so it will be preserved and reinstalled in someone else's house. It would have been dreadful if it had just gone on the skip - but it sounds like you think that would have been ok...

You could have sold it yourself but you chose not to. He doesn't owe you anything and he doesn't need to be spoken to - unless you really want to piss your builder off unnecessarily mid job.

SmidgenofaPigeon · 27/02/2021 09:17

Then you shouldn’t have been so lazy and done it yourself. Personally I think you’re mad not to keep it, they look lovely.

Thank god he’s sold it where it’ll hopefully be restored rather than dump it, at least one of you had some sense.

EmmaGrundyForPM · 27/02/2021 09:17

YABVVVU
You told him.to get rid of it. He did. What is your issue? Presumably that he has made a profit on it. You could have done the same- contacted a fireplace firm or put it on ebay/marketplace but you cba. Which is fair enough but you then TOLD him to take it away.

EveryoneRevealsThemselves · 27/02/2021 09:18

Seriously?

Bluntness100 · 27/02/2021 09:18

Um..,do you really need to ask if you’re being unreasonable ? How can you be pissed when he did exactly what you told him to do?