Paying for materials upfront when having building work done??

[Flowers665]

I've just been massively stung by paying for materials upfront when I was going to have my bathroom done. So a question for people who have had kitchens/bathrooms done, did you pay for materials upfront? Did you pay a deposit? Basically how does payment normally work when you are having a bathroom renovation or that type of thing? Thanks

When i got kitchen redone, we agreed the price and i paid i think 50% upfront. I had all the units and aplliances and tiles ready and bought them myself beforehand. Any additional expenditure i covered daily (if there was anything) and builders provided receipts. Final 50% paid upon completion.
My builders were recommended by a friend and did stellar job.

When you say stung do you mean overcharged or that the builders took off with your money and never came back? Companies usually require a deposit of some sort, otherwise they could be left without payment.

We're having bathrooms done at the moment. I bought the materials upfront and we paid a 30% deposit for labour. The team have had to buy some additional bits and pieces which will be added to the final bill.

I offered to pay my plumber upfront for materials when I had my bathroom done, but he said it wasn't a problem, and he'd rather stick it all on the invoice at the end. I bought the tiles, the top for the vanity unit and the flooring myself, though, so I could be sure they were exactly what I wanted.

He emailed the invoice when the job was finished and I paid online straight away. He prefers online payments, says it makes it easier for him to do his accounts.

He's been my plumber for several years though, I was one of his first customers when he started out on his own, so he knows I'm trustworthy! I can understand tradies wanting money for materials up front with new customers who are an unknown quantity, or if a customer wants something very specific that they can't get on account from their usual supplier.

We recently had our bathroom done. It worked very similarly. We bought the main items - bath, shower, sink, loo, taps - plus the tiles ourselves. We paid the contractors half at commencement and the remainder once we were happy with the finished work.

The only difference in our case was that the quoted price included all the miscellaneous other materials in our case, so there were no additional expenses to cover. I suppose there could have been something if there'd been some unexpected issue with the existing building that couldn't reasonably have been foreseen.

I try and get them delivered so at least they are on my premises! Or pay by credit card (hope that works I've never had to try claiming luckily!)

Exactly. What do you mean.

It really depends what it is.

I might buy some items myself, good online deal. Things like howdens it's better for trade to buy then I reimburse

We are awaiting a court date for a tradesman who was paid for materials and then never seen again. The advice from everyone since then has been that when paying upfront for materials an honest tradesman should be happy for you to make payment direct to the place he has ordered from

What do you mean stung? Did the tradesman run off with your money?

When we had work done in our garden, we paid for fencing and materials upfront that were then delivered directly to our home. We paid the rest to the builder on completion. I think this is fairly normal tbh. We did employ builders who had a good reputation locally so felt safe in doing this.

If I am having any work done I source and buy the materials myself. I have also had my builder ring the builder's merchant, order what he needed, hand the phone to me and I paid with my credit card. That way the materials all belong to me. My builder invoiced me for his labour every week and I paid the money there and then directly into his bank account.

I would not want to pay someone for materials because it is hard to get your money back should things go wrong.

I gave him the money to order the parts, he ordered them and then the order was cancelled, he was refunded and I can't get my money back.

I'm beginning the small claims court process. Sorry this happened to you too.

Yep

You pay as per the signed contract (which you should have in place). Paying up front enables the contractor to secure all equipment and potentially functional costs for the works. Not unheard off, but doing it in cash and with nothing to hold them accountable is risky

Had our bathroom done recently. The quote included materials and labour excluding floor tiles, which we purchased separately. We payed the plumber half the day they started the work and half on completion

Builders often need payment upfront for materials so they can buy them knowing they are going to get the money, of course once they get the money they may become rather illusive, buying the materials yourself is a good compromise. Then staged payments as work is completed.

Oh, that's awful. Hope you get your money back OP.

It obviously not normal for a tradesperson to run off with your money. But it is normal to pay upfront for materials. I pay my contractor 50% before the start of the project and 50% upon completion. My ex partner is also a builder and if he works on a long-term project, there is usually a payment plan so he gets 20% upfront and at agreed points throughout the build until the final payment on completion. This means that he is not spending his own money while not getting paid for 6 months until the project is complete.

Bathroom - pay for material 2 weeks in advance and 25% to be paid on the day they started.

Having our bathroom done at the moment. Almost completed and we haven’t paid a penny. It’s payment upon completion, provided we are satisfied with everything.

Chose a reputable local company recommended via our very trusted Joiner. Excellent reviews on line., But the recommendation meant more.