Tiling Quote

chipmunk10

I accepted a quote from a tiler and paid him a £600 deposit. A few days later my partner measured the area just to double check the tiler's measurements and so that we could order the right amount of tiles. We were going to order an additional 10% to allow for wastage. Imagine our surprise when we found that the tiler's quote was based on a much larger area than our floor space! If we hadn't noticed this, we would have ordered far too many tiles.

Anyway I've queried this with the tiler who admitted he knew it is a smaller area but says he always adds 20% to the actual floor area to allow for cutting. But surely the per metre price of the actual floor area includes cutting? It always has done when we've had other tiling jobs carried out. He is refusing to change his quote so that it reflects the actual floor size and it looks like we won't get our deposit back. We think he is charging about £980 too much which is why we;re not happy about this.

Is it normal to add another 20% on? And what can we do to get our deposit back given that he did not make this clear in his original quote? Hope someone can shed some light on this! Thanks

1984ReturnsForReal_2

chipmunk10 wrote: »

I accepted a quote from a tiler

....................................

No good arguing about prices after you have accepted & paid a substantial deposit..

If he doesnt use enough tiles for the whole area in his quote then you have an argument. If he does not use them you can take full boxes back for a refund.

Only after he has finished can you judge if he is wrong or not.

I presume also you had other quotes for the same job & they came out more.


As for what you add on. I suppose you need to add on a full length & a full width + 1 for a corner.

Oldsoak

You must be having a large area tiled. If it is more than one room and/or large format tiles then due to the amount of waste if off cuts can't be used elsewhere then 20% is not an unreasonable amount.
It is important to remember that the material being used may lend itself to breaking i.e marble/travetine or limestone, therefore extra needs to be ordered. Similarly if there is the possibility of colour difference, you will want to match the material for the best result, then return the rest.
As you have not specified what the material is or if it is one or more rooms, my bet is it is the size of the tiles which has lead to this extra quantity being requested.

chipmunk10

1984ReturnsForReal wrote: »

....................................

No good arguing about prices after you have accepted & paid a substantial deposit..

If he doesnt use enough tiles for the whole area in his quote then you have an argument. If he does not use them you can take full boxes back for a refund.

Only after he has finished can you judge if he is wrong or not.

I presume also you had other quotes for the same job & they came out more.


As for what you add on. I suppose you need to add on a full length & a full width + 1 for a corner.

I know what you're saying as it does seem daft querying it now but I think I've been misled. His quote was based on a total price for the whole area; I divided this by the number of metres according to him to get an idea of his price per metre squared. I had two other quotes and they had quoted by the m2 but did not show the size of the whole area. The tiler I chose wasn't the cheapest but had been recommended. He is charging for his labour costs based on an area which is 20% larger than my room - that's my gripe. I'm not worried about the tiles but do need to be sure I order the right amount as they can't be sent back. So is it normal to charge for a larger area than the actual area that needs tiling? 20% seems a lot! Cheers.

chipmunk10

Oldsoak wrote: »

You must be having a large area tiled. If it is more than one room and/or large format tiles then due to the amount of waste if off cuts can't be used elsewhere then 20% is not an unreasonable amount.
It is important to remember that the material being used may lend itself to breaking i.e marble/travetine or limestone, therefore extra needs to be ordered. Similarly if there is the possibility of colour difference, you will want to match the material for the best result, then return the rest.
As you have not specified what the material is or if it is one or more rooms, my bet is it is the size of the tiles which has lead to this extra quantity being requested.

Thanks Oldsoak. It is a large room and we want large format tiles. They are only porcelain and don't need sealing etc. My querying isn't re the number tiles required but the fact that this tiler wants to charge for his labour based on an area 20% larger than the actual room. i've always been quoted a per m2 price in the past for tiling based on the area which needs tiling. Is it now normal to add on an extra 20% for cutting? We're not ordering the tiles from the tiler. Thanks.

McKneff

You should have done all your research before accepting the quote.
If you always get a price per metre, why didnt you query it this time.

Did the tiler ask for a deposit.
I always pay when the job is done, if they want a deposit (yours is quite a significant deposit) I pay with a credit card.

Dont accept credit card? dont get the job.

You have accepted the quote and its a legal agreement.

Suck it up and learn from it.

Oldsoak

Tes you should only be charged for the area to be tiled, not the order quantity.
As for credit card payment it would add to the cost because the tiler has to have a swipe machine which he will be charged £50/month even if it is not used. Bank transfers is the only other method other than cash payment that I accept from customers.

keystone

Oldsoak wrote: »

Tes you should only be charged for the area to be tiled, not the order quantity.

There is confusion on this thread. I agree with this ^^ entirely but I am unclear whether the OP means:

1. The tiler has quoted for Xm2 to be tiled at £Y + 20% as a cutting charge or

2. The tiler has quoted for Xm2 tiles + client is to buy 20% extra on meterage to allow for cuts and wastage.

and it is therefore difficult to make a judgement. It would be a lot clearer if the OP would be specific about the detail of the quote they have received.

£980 overcharge (per the OP) would equate to a £5k tiling job and if it really is that big he probably should have quoted on a job basis not on a meterage basis.

So lets have details of the quote please.

Cheers

chipmunk10

keystone wrote: »

There is confusion on this thread. I agree with this ^^ entirely but I am unclear whether the OP means:

1. The tiler has quoted for Xm2 to be tiled at £Y + 20% as a cutting charge or

2. The tiler has quoted for Xm2 tiles + client is to buy 20% extra on meterage to allow for cuts and wastage.

and it is therefore difficult to make a judgement. It would be a lot clearer if the OP would be specific about the detail of the quote they have received.

£980 overcharge (per the OP) would equate to a £5k tiling job and if it really is that big he probably should have quoted on a job basis not on a meterage basis.

So lets have details of the quote please.

Cheers

I agree there is confusion. So forget the number of tiles needed as this is not relevant. The tiler quoted £5880 for fitting 168m2 of tiles (which equates to £35 per m2). We now realise the total area is less than 140m2 and queried his measurements. He now tells us that he allowed an additional 20% (in area) to cover cutting the tiles and won't lower his quote to reflect the true size of the area. But surely the normal price a tiler charges is for his labour ie which includes cutting the tiles? And therefore why should we have to pay him for a much larger area? His quote did not make this clear.

keystone

chipmunk10 wrote: »

....................His quote did not make this clear.

So lets have details of the quote please.

Cheers

Oldsoak

£5880 for 140m2 is £42m2, the usual cost is around £30m2 but it will depend on geography as to the going rate locally.
If the porcs you are having are 600x600mm or larger then this would be reflected in the price as they are harder to get flat (they tend to suffer from bowing at that size or bigger).
Having said that, you say it is only one room and fairly rectangular. If you are having them straight set or brick bond he should be flying through the job. If on the other hand they are diamond set, then I could see his point.
Any tiler will charge you according to a set of vaiables and this will be different for most tilers but the common ones are:-
Location and going rare, material, size of tiles, pattern, quantity of cutting especially if hard material, doorways and pipes to cut around.
Sorry if this muddies the waters, as it is meant to help you work out if he is being reasonable or taking the michael.
Without seeing the site and location I could not really say but £42m2, I'd work at those rates 'til the cows come home.