So you think this estimate is too much?

[Blodauwedd]

Hello . I recently had a quote for extending my front path to meet the pavement with maybe block paving ? The quote was a lot more than I thought it would be . I’m not sure what a fair price would be for the work ? Would anyone be able to advise me ? I have attached a picture . I got quoted 4 thousand pounds to do the work

That quote is absolutely insane! We are having our patio done soon. It's 30sqm and we are using slabs that are a variety of sizes and colours. We are also having a drain raised by the kitchen and a new drain cover which will blend in with the paving pattern. Still way less than that even after we have paid for the materials. It's a local company that we have used for other garden work in the past so we are happy that they will do a good job.

Theyve accidentally put an extra zero, should be £400

Quoting £4k for that means they don’t want the job, but if you’re stupid enough to pay it they’ll happily take your money.

Get more quotes. Or as others suggest look at doing it yourself. Pretty straight forward.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/garden-inspiration/garden-types/front-gardens

maybe have a look on here for inspiration and ask some landscapers rather than builders to give you some ideas. It would cost way less than your ridiculous quote.

Depending on the the type of materials, and how they are laid, there is a world where it could cost that much. However, if you wanted to replace like for like on the path, I’m guesstimating about 12-15m2 over all, the concrete slab is going to cost about £500 in materials, add in geotex and bedding sand, there’s another £100. A granite or porcelain slab could be as much as twice that cost just for the materials.

Labour you’d assume about £350 per person per day. They usually work in pairs so £700 per day would be about right. How much time it takes depends on the material and pattern. Monoblock paving takes longer and has more material wasteage. To monoblock that is probably about 3 days’ work. That’s how you would get to 4k for the job.

For concrete slab paving, you’d be 2 days’ max. 2 guys could probably do it in a day.

Materials = £500
Labour = £700
Skip (if needed) = £150

£1400 - £2000 would be a fair price.

that is just going to the other pointless extreme. Materials cost would eat most of that £400

Crazy price. It’s a simple matter of digging down 6 inches, adding 4 inches of rubble and two inches of sand. Then laying blocks next to each other. Given it’s a path, they don’t even have to be cut. Or you could use gravel but place plenty of decent sized slabs up the space to walk on . That would be easy.

It's the sort of thing I did for my friend when I was out of work & she needed outside stuff doing, turfing, concrete breaking up, path fixing etc. We agreed a daily rate she bought the stuff & I cracked on & got a sun tan, end result both of us were happy.

I agree the groundwork is simple
OP's photo suggests she wants the path to curve so blocks will need to be cut.
You also have the issue of what pattern,

• blocks next to each other at right angles to each other on a curving path would need a lot of cuts
• blocks laid in the typical "herringbone" pattern would accommodate a curve better but also need a lot of cuts.

OIP's photo suggests 4 paving slabs from front door
Assuming they are "typical" 450 x 450mm slabs, then a path from door to pavement would be 8 - 9 slabs long so about 3.6 - 4 meters long x 450mm wide.
Laid in a straight line, with blocks at right angles to each other, a path of 4m would need 100 blocks minimum.
But she needs the path to curve, so you'd need more blocks to allow for cutting to shape

Depending on where she buys them, and any delivery charge she'd be looking at £80 - £100 for "cheap" blocks then add on sand + sub base material + an edge restraint (cement mortar or a proper edge kerb) + kiln dried joint sand.

Digging out and cutting to shape needs time and equipment. Not knowing the location I'd say closer to £1,000 may be a ballpark cost

i don't know, I agree it's probably both.

im the same with things I've done v had people in to do. I just wish I could still just do it myself, but having to accept I can't ' given it's been over a year now, that's not likely to get any better anytime soon 🙇🏻‍♀️

i suppose we just have to try to find better tradespeople as we go & accept its not going yo be perfect. Hard though.

Get more quotes and don’t tell anyone that you’ve already had a quote or that you are getting other quotes.

That sounds like a lot. I would get 2 more quotes just to see and then give us an update. Now I am curious as well😂

I was coming on to say this - that really sounds like someone who doesn't want the work. It's possible if you've gone for a big landscaper that they feel it's too small a job and they could earn more working on a bigger project in that time.

I think it’s much better if people know they are competing for the job. You just don’t tell them what the other quotes are. I recently had 3 quotes for a loft conversion. Two were almost identical, one a bit more expensive. I’m actually going with the more expensive one because it’s a builder I’ve used before and trust, whereas the other two were loft companies who’ve done a few round here and none of my neighbours have them particularly good reviews.

I’d just put some heavy plant pots on the areas you want to stop people walking on. It would be far cheaper.

That wouldn’t work because people would just walk around them.

Those 2 pesky pieces of grass will be annoying to mow if you pave as you have sketched. Will you dig them out and create a flower bed or plant a shrub in each? If not id be inclined to just pave that whole side as one wide path.

I would just extend the tarmac over, which would be cheaper and maybe widen out the drive to 2 car and add value. You can keep dividers between the two sets of tarmac.

I think the block paving is unnecessary.

Can you not buy a few non slip exterior large pavers and spot them a step apart from each other until they reach the other pathway? Delivery people will have no need to walk on your grass.