A Tradesmans rant

hartcjhart

I find that most people want 'rolls royce' for 'mini' money especially in the car trade.
£20 ish an hour is not expensive IF a good job is being done

nexuss

That is utter garbage.A lot of tradesmen charge cheaper to be competitive not because apparently they have a chip on their shoulder as big as yours it seems mr.chippy.A lot of expenses you list above are paid adequately by tradesmen earning £80-£100 per day.

thechippy

nexuss wrote: »

That is utter garbage.A lot of tradesmen charge cheaper to be competitive not because apparently they have a chip on their shoulder as big as yours it seems mr.chippy.A lot of expenses you list above are paid adequately by tradesmen earning £80-£100 per day.

I don't have a chip on my shoulder mr.clever!
What sort of living do you have on £80/100 per day after expenses?
I have a perfect right to make a decent living. I feel my charges are perfectly in line with my skills and standard of work and afterservice.

I get peeved with people wanting a rolls job for mini money all the time.......:rolleyes:

andyhop

I do agree with Chippy

As a time served plumber i quote at £200 per day for 8 hrs work,have the best of tools and large stocks in my van,There is very rarely a time that i have to leave a customers house during the working day

I get comments like your too dear, or you not competitive

I can work for a agency for £15 per hour, No awkward customers,Just turn up, do a little, go home, switch off.No paperwork,quotes,calls at all hours,weekends disrupted

Unlike being self employed,6:30 start,collect any material from suppliers outside of customer time,arrive on time,Do 8hrs hard graft,drive home,shower and shave,back out for quotes, arrive home at 8pm

Yes theres plenty of cheap labour,a lot of foreign labour,Locals who have been laid off as sites have shut up due to reccesion,do these have insurance for there customers? Or are they just putting food on the table

We all have to make a living so can understand why others quote low to secure,Most will be unskilled and unqualified,hence why they have to work for themselves as there credentials wont allow them to be employed by a firm or agency

You are not just paying for a tradesman time, you are paying for there vast experience and knowledge

Theres also two sides to every story, you generally hear about the tradesman who turn up late, never get back to you etc.I always give a 15min time span in which i never turn up late,If im running behind a little a quick call or text to check its still fine.Quotes are given within 48hrs either by email or letter.You would be suprised at the folk who cant even be bothered to reply to a follow up call or email

kiddy_guy

I can buy Mars Bars from Poundland or Waitrose. Both do the same job, but one is cheaper.

If Waitrose want my custom they should reduce their prices, as I shop to attain the best price.

If you feel that £180 is value for money, some people wont. Don't come here moaning about it - either live with it or reduce your prices. Every other business out there competes on a price basis, and so should you.

andyhop

kiddy_guy wrote: »

I can buy Mars Bars from Poundland or Waitrose. Both do the same job, but one is cheaper.

If Waitrose want my custom they should reduce their prices, as I shop to attain the best price.

If you feel that £180 is value for money, some people wont. Don't come here moaning about it - either live with it or reduce your prices. Every other business out there competes on a price basis, and so should you.

Same could be said for our power tools

Do we use cheap performance power from B&Q or the dewalt pro range to save time and do a better job!What would the customer prefer?

I await a DIY who says all tools do the same job!!!

sturll

thechippy wrote: »

….Other tradesman chime in!

I get increasingly irritated when I see posts saying something like “He wanted £180 per day - WHAT!”

People simply see this as £900 per week, or £3600 per month and often feel it’s expensive and they are being ripped off.

Out of that, we have to pay the following;

1. Tax and NI
2. Fuel
3. Vehicle repairs / upkeep
4. Public liability insurance
5. Tool replacement / upkeep
6. Admin costs
7. Phone

…Just to name a few.

We are not earning a fortune, just an “ok” living - nothing more.

Is this difficult to understand?
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen the work of a “tradesman” who charges maybe £100/120 per day and it’s often appalling. They charge this amount because they are either rubbish at what they do, or they are fiddling their tax.

I recently quoted a guy who has a £750,000 house which was having a £200,000 extension added. He scoffed when I mentioned £180 per day labour rate. Now, what sort of money is he earning to have such a property? Why does he think that his skills (whatever they are) are worth so much more money than mine? Why is HE allowed to earn a fortune, but I’m not?

I get increasingly fed up of people wanting a perfect job, but expect to pay peanuts.

This is not directed to anyone here in particular, I just needed a rant!

Rant over!!

The problem you've got is that most tradesmen are dodgy. You probably included.

Stop moaning. If you dont wanna do your job there is probably some Polish guy more than happy to do it

andyhop

sturll wrote: »

Stop moaning. If you dont wanna do your job there is probably some Polish guy more than happy to do it

Who will send his money out the country.....Good luck getting out the reccession:mad:

Who do you complain to when the works goes wrong,Most have gone back home, I spend the money on a insurance backed warranty on all my installations to protect the customer,there home and there possesions......

sturll

andyhop wrote: »

Who will send his money out the country.....Good luck getting out the reccession:mad:

Who do you complain to when the works goes wrong,Most have gone back home, I spend the money on a insurance backed warranty on all my installations to protect the customer,there home and there possesions......

Most may have gone home where you live, but where i live they flourish.

To be honest i can't do with the Poles, i cant really do with any immigrant taking up the jobs of British. That said, if decent tradesmen like yourself hadn't been bumming the public for years then we would have loyalty to British tradesmen. As it is its whoever gives the best quote gets the job. Often it's the foreigner.
But you have no one to blame but yourselves.

kiddy_guy

andyhop wrote: »

Same could be said for our power tools

Do we use cheap performance power from B&Q or the dewalt pro range to save time and do a better job!What would the customer prefer?

I await a DIY who says all tools do the same job!!!

Bad workman always blames his tools :rotfl: