Renegotiate quote after work has been done?

[FlossOnTheMill]

I had a quote for painting which seemed rather high, but I accepted it because I was desperate and needed to get it done. The guy subcontracted the work to a couple of handyman, which I wasn't told about until the day the work started.

They did an okay but not brilliant job. Left the house in a mess, i.e. did not move the furniture back, nor did they put the curtains back up.

I have worked out that, in terms of the hours worked, I am being charged over £42 per hour. Am I unreasonable to consider this excessive for basic painting, i.e. walls, doors and skirting boards? Would I be unreasonable to try and renegotiate the cost? What would you all do...

£42 pp or per hour in total? Did you supply paint, dust sheets etc?

decorating does not involve moving ur furniture or hanging curtains

£42 per man hour. I provided all the paint.

Every painter I've used in the past would move the furniture back.

The curtains were left on the rail - they just would have had to slot it back onto the supports.

Anyway, it's more about the cost - £42 per hour seems a lot for this kind of work.

So to clarify, 2 handymen - actually £84 per hour?!

If you’re not happy with the quality of the work get them back but apart from that curtains and furniture is your responsibility. Why didn’t you use previous painters if you were happy with them?

You contracted at that rate. You pay.

You cannot renegotiate the quote. You accepted it.

You can ask for them to make good anything they didn’t do properly. (Or they reduce the final price)

You agreed on the price beforehand for the work? If the painting wasn’t done correctly then ask them to come back and fix it. Moving furniture back etc is helpful etc but not what they were there to do.

If their work was shoddy, then maybe. However, you accepted the quote and they did the work, so I think you would be unreasonable to try to renegotiate.

Also, painting the interior yourself is quite an easy job. It involves some effort (cleaning and taping) but is quite satisfying. And cheaper.

I agree if they have done the job I would pay the agreed amount. You only take money off for bad/ incomplete work only.

But it wasn’t an hourly rate. It was a price for a job that you accepted so you should pay.

About 350 a day for a painter & decorator isn't unreasonable, but you didn't get a painter and decorator, you got a handyman. I might be annoyed at that, especially when the work wasn't quite up to scratch. If you're not happy with the work that's what you should be talking to them about putting right

Update

The boss came to check on the work, agreed that some of it wasn't up to the standard he would expect, and apologized for the place having been left in a mess. He offered to come back and fix the faults, but for several reasons I said I would prefer a reduction in the cost.

He offered 10% off, which I was happy to accept.

No you can't renegotiate the costs. Have you heard of a contractual agreement because you made one.