Builder wants to charge me £200 for a Quote!!

leveller2911

Ive been in business for nearly 25yrs and quoting goes with the job, I don't actually know of any tradesman ever charging for a quote.I must admit its a pain when you spend hours pricing up work and not get it but thats the way it is.

OP tell him to go forth and multiply you don't owe him a bean and TBH you can't beat personal recommendation so have a chat with friends and neighbours and see if they can recommend a good tradesman.

IMO the vast majority of these trade recommend websites are a con because they are a money making venture and most don't ask for any qualifications,proof of work etc.

white_star

In fairness, the builder does say that he's had to pay a fee to Rated People, so he is actually out of pocket, and that's not counting the time he's put in to visit

1..They're has been absolutely no mention of any fee's for a quote prior to or after his visit.
2..His 2nd time wasn't a consultation it was to drop off his quote, which he could have posted.
3..My brothers isn't a builder, he is just going to organise it that the same people who are doing his bathroom will do mine and oversee the whole thing for me as my time now is mostly spent at my parents house.

ormus

there is no contract, therefore there is no consideration, or compenssation.
tell him to take a hike.

white_star

Thanks everyone for your imput, really appreciated.

It was such a shock. Like most people I understood that it's always best to get 3 quotes for any job, and hopefully between the 3 estimates you would find one suitable for your requirements. Rated people must also go on this theory as they sent me 3 contact details for tradespeople, so like previously mentioned their is always going to be at least two tradesmen disappointed. In my case 1 wasn't interested in the job, and the other two came in at double the price I had mentioned in my job post. I feel really intimated my his email, and haven't replied back to him yet, as I don't want to make the situation worse by antagonising him. I live on my own and obviously he knows where I live, I just hope he doesn't come knocking on my door.

booty40uk

Tell him to stick his bill and to take you to court if he doesnt like it. Also tell him to make sure he takes all the paperwork and contracts signed by both parties with him.

Andy

lionelator

Just an FYI, I had a builder in from Rated People and he said they charge 6 pounds for a lead for an interested party after an ad.
Not sure if that applies across the board for all sizes of jobs or not.
If it is 6 pounds your builders having a laugh marking it up to 200, make sure you let rated people know or at least tell the builder you are going to inform rated people, that may do the trick in itself.

white_star

lionelator wrote: »

Just an FYI, I had a builder in from Rated People and he said they charge 6 pounds for a lead for an interested party after an ad.
Not sure if that applies across the board for all sizes of jobs or not.
If it is 6 pounds your builders having a laugh marking it up to 200, make sure you let rated people know or at least tell the builder you are going to inform rated people, that may do the trick in itself.

Thanks for info, very useful. Mine was a small budget only £2000-£3000 but there quotes were coming back at £5000.

I just want to burying my head in the sand and ignore his emails, but don't know if that makes it worse or not

gas4you

Don't ignore any e-mails. Take a deep breath and respond sensibly to them.

I used to do quotes via a similar site, they only charged me £3 a referral.

As others have said, we all know that we will be quoting against at least 2 others. It is the name of the game.

Most of us allow for wasted time doing quotes that are not accepted in our overall pricing.

E-mail him and politely state you will not be paying him anything for just a basic quote.

Swipe

Just ignore him

SailorSam

I use to sell double glazing and anyone that did 10 quotes and got more than 3 sales was a top salesman, but the other 7 were never asked for wasting a night of our time.
The only time i've ever been asked to pay for a quote was from a garage for a crash repair (insurance job) on a car, garages know all you want is something to show the insurance while the job is done cheaper somewhere else. So they charge for the quote and deduct it if they get the job.