MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Would you pay Brian the Builder in cash?

narcissa

We paid a builder in cash 6 years ago to do our drive ( we even supplied the bricks) he took the left over bricks!! It looked wonderful to start with, within 3 months it started to sink. We managed to get him back twice, he said he would be back with a thumper, which he said was all it needed!!! how stupid were we. Strangely we have never seen him since!! It would now cost us twice as much to put it right, so we live with a wobbly drive. So no I would not pay cash .because we have no redress.

slummymummyof3

I think there are 2 scenarios here - 1. if you know the builder and know their work etc its a far safer bet. 2. If it is someone who happens to be knocking on your door asking if you want your driveway done - its a different story. When it is a local tradesperson you are dealing with, they have to consider their reputation, if they do shoddy work, the word soon travels around a small community.

John_Stone

Given that the VAT threshold is £67,000 of supplies then I would doubt that he is registered and avoiding VAT. He has every right to desire to be paid in cash and whether he is avoiding tax or natioal insurence is not relevent whether he is paid in cash or with a cheque and invoice as records can be highly flexible as Madoff with his $50 billion fraud in the States has demonstrated.

pollypenny

This is a difficult one. Often if you need a small job done, the only way to get someone to do it is to pay cash. However, for a big job like this, which could fundamentally effect the value of the house, I would always pay a fair price and want a receipt and guarantee.

We had our drive done three years ago, choosing someone by personal recommendation. It looks ace! We paid a fair price. Ironically, we share a double drive with neighbours, who tried to beat the builder down so much he got cross with them and charged us less.

Ebenezer_Screwj

Yes, I would give him the cash with or without paperwork. Anyone doing work for me will either be recommended or well-vetted, besides I know the correct way to lay a path and I would be present while the work was being carried out. The onus is upon Brian the builder to declare his income and I would presume him innocent unless proven guilty.

Trow

It is £67,000 of gross sales - which includes costs of supplies passed on to the customer as well as profit he makes - builders that I have done work for have well surpassed that amount of turnover, while their profit is nowhere near that figure.

John_Stone wrote: »

Given that the VAT threshold is £67,000 of supplies then I would doubt that he is registered and avoiding VAT. He has every right to desire to be paid in cash and whether he is avoiding tax or natioal insurence is not relevent whether he is paid in cash or with a cheque and invoice as records can be highly flexible as Madoff with his $50 billion fraud in the States has demonstrated.

mikeos

MSE_Wendy wrote: »

Here's this week's hypothetical situation for you to cogitate on:

Would you pay Brian the Builder in cash?

Brian the Builder's been rebuilding your front path. His original written quotation was £1,500 including VAT. Yet the day before he's due to settle, he suggests "why don't you just give me £1,200 in cash tomorrow... then I needn't do any paper work, if you know what I mean?" Would you pay the non-VAT price, knowing he's probably tax evading, would you report him, or just pay the normal price?

Depends what he means by "no paperwork". As long as I get a receipt for the cash with a contact name and address, and landline telephone number. his tax returns are between him and the the HMRC.

lofty52

Everybody who's self employed will do"cash jobs" every now and again.. Don't forget that the builder only does a VAT claim once a year, so he will claim back his VAT. Also if he's not issuing a receipt he won't be declaring the earnings on his income tax at 20%. I'd go for a bigger discount than a couple of hundred quid!! (Yes I am self employed!) The "warranty" question could be avoided if the jobs faulty and the builder refuses to cooperate with an anonymous call to the VAT man or Inland Revenue!!!!

jacktaylor5

Of course I would accept. I have done this before, and found that any following problems have been sorted. I am willing to pay the price he offers, and its not my concern if he wants to evade either Income tax or Vat.

JollyJack_2

It depends on if I knew the builder or not. If I didn't know him then I'd pay the full amount and request a receipt. owever, if I did know the builder then I would definitely pay cash, with him pocketing the income tax and me the other £300. We are in a credit crunch aren't we??