To tell you to do this when hiring a builder/trader

[trekking1]

Have your husband/partner do the hiring and communicating or if you do not have one, pretend you are a man 😂

The reason for this is because a lot of them charge more if hired by a woman. My brother-in-law is a builder and told us he charges women twice as much because apparently women are demanding and change their mind all the time 🙄

this definitely exists. It’s not because women are more annoying OP, it’s because your BIL perceives them to be more vulnerable and feels no way about taking advantage of that fact. It’s pathetic.

Same here .

Yes I have found this to be a thing.

Even hiring for the simplest of jobs, with no obvious way to 'be annoying or make changes', this has been my experience.

Also respectful communication online using my surname only, and then patronising bullshit once they meet me in person.

It is not about women being more annoying, I believe they see single women as clueless and desperate. A man knows his stuff, would know if you ripped him off or attempt the job himself.

I use personal recommendations, local people who are interested in repeat business, and get several quotes to see who rips people off.

Your brother in law is the problem, not the average tradie.

I hate that builders are so hit and miss

I am pretty sure it exists along with a they have no idea how to put up a shelf and a middle class tax.

My husband hired someone to clean and repair our gutters . When I came home from work the guy saw me , got down from his ladder and asked me for payment. I could see he had only done half the job and no repair, so I said I didn't have the cash on me and to come back later and my husband would pay him as he had the cash on him . We never saw or heard from him again .

This.

I assume OP never uses her BIL for anything.

Pity somehow if on some form of review website, a few comments cannot be made. Or trading standards alerted.

Postcode tax is a thing. We get quotes from within the village from various trades. They don’t rip us off as we all know them and they’re FB pages shows many satisfied local customers.

Ha, reminds me of this Fast Show sketch

To who though?

Don’t forget age tax too. Those doddery old folk won’t have a clue 😠 or so the tradie thought before I got involved and told him to piss off.

That still happens. Kwik fit did that two
me two months ago! Lucky I wasn’t taken in

I'd be amazed if any builder quoted a job without seeing it.

This is bilge.
I was a trades person before I retired (I'm a woman) and worked with many different trades people for years. I've never heard this and found most (not all, but most) of the tradespeople I encountered were honorable, decent people.

The trick is to get personal recommendations when possible - ask the older people locally who will have been using good tradespeople for years. They might even know semi-retired tradespeople who will be experience yet perhaps not charge as much. My electrician retired from the local nuclear power station so I think I can trust him to rewire my back bedroom😀

Use local established tradespeople (people who work locally don't want to get a bad reputation). Also, when you find say a good plumber, ask them for recommendations...they'll know all the reliable joiners, landscapers, electricians etc locally.

When you get a good trades person treat them well. Be clear about what you want, pay on time and a cuppa or cold drink is really welcome when someone is doing hard physical work. Trades people remember their good customers like customers remember their good trades people.

Another good way to find good trades people is to ask at your local volunteer fire station or lifeboat station. Lots of self employed trades people volunteer there (as they can just drop tools and dash to the station when on call) and you know you're getting someone who's been vetted and is a good community person.

All of the above applies whether you're a man or a woman.

What’s your brothers company name? We’d rather like to know who to avoid. Amazed you’re not entirely ashamed of him.

It’s not bilge. I work in property management and use trades for that all the time. Good relationships and fair prices.

If I get a domestic quote by myself and then compare it to the trades i use in business they are always significantly higher. I don’t think it’s to do with sex though I think it’s because they don’t think I know what I’m talking about.

This made my morning ... 😂

Please don't do this. One arsehole does not represent all builders and my DH would never do this. He works with lots of women. Female architects, surveyors, building control, structural engineers and project managers. Difficult clients are either male or female, as are great clients. He's expensive but doesn't discriminate and if anything single mum's and elderly clients would be more likely to get a discount than the other way round.

Your BIL represents a dying breed of man and is purely a scammer and preys on people he considers vulnerable. Get more than one quote when looking for a builder and don't be afraid to ask questions. The good ones are happy to explain their prices.

I think your brother in law must have been joking with you. How can he possibly know what other trades charge?

It’s usual to get several quotes for building works how would he ever get work if he does use his ridiculous two tier costing?

There used to be a program on Sky (I think?) called "Rogue Traders" & some of the things they caught on camera would curl your hair but I think they were more the exception rather than the rule

I know a lot of people including my OH who are in the Trades Industry & they wouldn't dream of being anything other than professional because with the exception of contractual work they rely on word of mouth, recommendations etc for their next job, that said it's awful for the posters who have received this sexist treatment be it with builders, mechanics or whatever 😡

,No way & from a franchise too?? I honestly, naively obviously now, thought that was a throwback to a bygone era, what utter arseholes 😡Good for you I'd most likely have been oblivious

I get this in motorcycle dealerships, car dealerships, garages (mechanics), builders, any other Tradesman. Until I tell them to cut their shit or they'll lose the business. Out of the two of us my husband is the indecisive one and pisses me off let alone Tradesman. Thankfully he is out at work whereas I'm at home and can deal with Tradesman and their questions.

The local independent garage has different charges such as WAT - woman added tax,
PAT - for Asian customers FAT - literally as it says

some places and people are still reminiscent of the 1970s