How to spot Rogue local builders and local tradesmen

Whilst the vast majority of local builders and other local tradesman in this country are reputable professionals who take a pride in their work, there are, unfortunately, a small minority of rogue builders and tradesmen or "cowboys" who tarnish the reputation of the industry as a whole. This is important when you are trying to find a builder or find a tradesman



Fortunately these individuals are quite easy to spot if you look out for the following tell-tale signs;



They may be reluctant to provide too many details of their business or company, often providing just a telephone number (and a mobile number at that).



They want to be paid in cash only, usually in advance. They may also be reluctant to include VAT in their quote.



Very often local builders and local tradesmen will approach you first, perhaps cold calling in your neighbourhood. They will usually be quite "pushy" and claim to be available to start the job immediately; but ask yourself; why are they so apparently eager for work? Most good builders with good reputations are too busy to do this.



They will be reluctant to provide references of previous work they have done. Mmm!



They will tend to shy away from providing anything in writing and try to persuade you that a contract is unnecessary.



They may want to be paid on a day-rate basis rather than agreeing to a fixed price.



They often provide a quotation which is based on only a basic understanding of the work to be done, perhaps without even inspecting the site.



Their quotes may be suspiciously low, just to win the business.



Having even a basic knowledge of these tactics, however, will help you avoid being the victim of such an approach and to deal only with reputable individuals and companies. In this respect, be guided by the following recommendations



Do your research. Ask friends and others about the reputation of any local tradesmen you are thinking of hiring.



Get at least 2-3 tradesmen to quote for your business. Make sure that each of them is given the same brief so that their quotes can be compared on a like-for-like basis.



Get references from each of the tradesmen you are thinking of hiring, and follow them up verbally by telephone or in person. Ideally, go and see the work that has been done for these references, and talk to them in detail about how the tradesman performed. Check their credential etc



Get written quotes, detailing materials and labour and other important aspects such as start- and en-dates for the work to be done. Don’t be afraid to negotiate and ask for discounts.



Once you have selected your preferred local tradesman make sure they provide a written contract summarising what they have agreed to do.



Do not pay more than is necessary in advance. It is quite normal and proper that a tradesman will want part of the total fee agreed in advance in order to pay for materials that need to be ordered before work can start. However, this should be subject to the following constraints



Use stage payments for larger jobs



Keep a "retention". This means holding over some of the total price (typically 10%) until after the work has been finished and any snagging problems dealt with to your satisfaction.



Bear in mind that the tradesman will often pay his supplier on 30 day terms.



Keep records



Don’t (keep) changing the scope of the work you have specified. If you do this your local tradesman has every right to adjust his original quotation.



Keep in close touch with your trusted tradesmen whilst the work is being carried out.