Quots for new bathroom: good price vs trusted company

m0rgana

Hi all

I'm in a bit of a dilemma about some quotes I've been given for the complete refurbishment of our bathroom, and I'd really appreciate some advice.

Background: we have a medium-sized bathroom with all the usual fittings. It's currently in generally pretty poor state with ugly units, crumbling plaster, horrible flooring and unsightly fixtures (bad DIY job). It needs a complete overhaul.

I've now had two quotes: one from a company I immediately trusted, and one I felt a bit uncomfortable with. The 'good' company have quoted me around £3k all in; the 'bad' company £1k.

Much as I would like to simply dismiss the cheaper company out of hand, I am not remotely in a position to sniff at a £2k difference. However I am really not keen on going with company 2. They could not supply any examples of earlier work, seem very young/new and weren't so clued in on design. £1000 also seemed like a suspiciously low amount considering it is not a very small bathroom, there's quite a lot to be ripped out and I live in London.

The 'good' company, meanwhile, were immediately on my wavelength when I described a very sketchy idea of what I wanted and have got heaps of glowing reviews. I also don't think £3k is itself a bad price for the complete job, I have heard people be quoted up to £12k for smaller rooms, but sadly I'm not so loaded it isn't a consideration. We are also very keen to make some mortgage overpayments this year, and how much we put in is entirely down to this job.

I suppose what I'm asking is how much is too much to pay for confidence? I am absolutely willing to pay more for the company I feel happier with, but I really don't think I can bring myself to pay £2k+ more when I know how much lower the quote could be. Negotiation is clearly key, but how to people in the trade tend to take it when you produce massively lower quotes? I'm sorry to sound so naive but I am, it's my first house and I've never had anything more complicated than a blocked sink fixed before now.

How would others approach this?

Any advice more than welcome!

andyhop

m0rgana wrote: »

Hi all

I'm in a bit of a dilemma about some quotes I've been given for the complete refurbishment of our bathroom, and I'd really appreciate some advice.

Background: we have a medium-sized bathroom with all the usual fittings. It's currently in generally pretty poor state with ugly units, crumbling plaster, horrible flooring and unsightly fixtures (bad DIY job). It needs a complete overhaul.

I've now had two quotes: one from a company I immediately trusted, and one I felt a bit uncomfortable with. The 'good' company have quoted me around £3k all in; the 'bad' company £1k.

Much as I would like to simply dismiss the cheaper company out of hand, I am not remotely in a position to sniff at a £2k difference. However I am really not keen on going with company 2. They could not supply any examples of earlier work, seem very young/new and weren't so clued in on design. £1000 also seemed like a suspiciously low amount considering it is not a very small bathroom, there's quite a lot to be ripped out and I live in London.

The 'good' company, meanwhile, were immediately on my wavelength when I described a very sketchy idea of what I wanted and have got heaps of glowing reviews. I also don't think £3k is itself a bad price for the complete job, I have heard people be quoted up to £12k for smaller rooms, but sadly I'm not so loaded it isn't a consideration. We are also very keen to make some mortgage overpayments this year, and how much we put in is entirely down to this job.

I suppose what I'm asking is how much is too much to pay for confidence? I am absolutely willing to pay more for the company I feel happier with, but I really don't think I can bring myself to pay £2k+ more when I know how much lower the quote could be. Negotiation is clearly key, but how to people in the trade tend to take it when you produce massively lower quotes? I'm sorry to sound so naive but I am, it's my first house and I've never had anything more complicated than a blocked sink fixed before now.

How would others approach this?

Any advice more than welcome!

What are the prices for? Are they based on a like for like basis?

m0rgana

andyhop wrote: »

What are the prices for? Are they based on a like for like basis?

Neither company has provided a complete break-down of costs, but it is understood in both cases that the quote is for the various items that we have requested. The £3k quote actually includes the materials we want to buy (actual quote £2.5k) while the £1k one does not, so I suppose I should have said £1.5k vs £3k - still a difference that I find troubling in terms of making the decision.

phill99

I think if you read your own post, you will answer your own question. First impressions are made for a reason.

m0rgana

phill99 wrote: »

I think if you read your own post, you will answer your own question. First impressions are made for a reason.

I completely agree . I think this is an important investment in the house and tend to err on the side of spending as much as you can afford to get a job done perfectly. but of course it is not only me making the decision and the other party is far more driven by costs than impressions. How much do you think is it worth negotiating in this sort of situation?

phill99

It would be interesting if you can give us an overview of what it is they are doing for their £1k / £3k

gas4you

You never get something for nothing. Why do people always go for the cheapest then regret it later!

Buy cheap, pay twice

warmgas

If in doubt, then there is no doubt!

dobragol

To be honest even £ 3000 sounds really cheap to me .What about the tiles ? Are these included ? Average priced tiles ,bathroom suite , good adhesives,rubbish removal -skip and all other materials (pipes ,fittings ,electrics ?, materials needed to re-plaster /make good walls /ceiling ,subfloor ) can be easily around £ 1500/£ 2000 ( as all the tradesmen know all the costs add up very quickly ).And what about labour? It sounds like at least 2 weeks job ( if someone tells you this can be done in a week -simply run ) .Still can't believe someone quoted £ 1000 for that job .I would definitely go for trusted company to do job like bathroom .

sarah01uk

My step-dad is a plumber who doesn't come cheap! However, he doesn't buy the most basic ranges of materials, always tidies up after himself etc and has loads of satisfied customers. He gets the majority of his work by word-of-mouth as people often just go for the cheapest quote if they don't have someone in mind. Do you know anyone locally who could recommend someone they have used? Having seen the difference between his work and that of the cheap plumbers used by my landlords in the past (grout all over the tiles, rough finish on adhesive near shower making cleaning impossible, holes left in tiles etc) I can assure you that there is probably a reason the more expensive firm charge more! Good luck! x

C_Mababejive

Just remember..anyone can call themselves a plumber ,builder or whatever...

£1000 is way way too cheap..you know that dont you? Do you want to be left with a horribly bodged cheap bathroom that needs re-doing?

Recontact the first company and ask them if they have any customers for recommendations/viewings etc

Dont believe all the hype about hard working polish plumbers or similar.