Traveling - How should you be charged by a company?

Tinkly_Rain

I have just had a large bill which was not what we expected. Our septic/treatment tank broke. We had a bad cowboy outfit come calling and we are refusing to pay them as they came without knowing anything about the unit we have. Another company called back after they had been and said it was most probably something simple like a diaphragm. They said there charges were £30 call out for the first hour and parts. So we calculated the bill to be about £145, due to what we were told and that would include traveling costs at 55p per mile. The Google map states it is just under 14 miles. The bill we had was:

• Stripped Blower replace Diaphragms Replace valve £80
• Air filter £5 (which we know they were sending and for me to fit it)
• System left working satisfactorily £95 (what this cost is is beyond me?)
• Vat 20% £36
• Total £216

Where is the justification in this bill? And what is the law for traveling to your home. As far as I am aware the cost if any is to travel to your home and not to somewhere else?

Would love to know where we stand here. I can see the cost we would pay for the diaphragm but £95?! The man took about 25 min to repair the unit.

Valli

tbh £216 isn't that much more than £145. £145+VAT = £174

had you taken VAT into account in your own calculation?

Travelling might be to and from your home. You could ask for a further, detailed breakdown.

The system left working bit might be the time taken (ie £30 per hour - or part thereof, strip down, check, rebuild and check it's working?)

wealdroam

Surely 'traveling' would cover the cost of any travel necessary to do your job.

As you say, it will cover travel from base to your house.
It may also include any travel needed to purchase spare parts, for example.

Not sure there is a law about it though.

Tinkly_Rain

Thanks for your replies. I live on disability benefits and my wife lives on a basic pension, so money is very tight and the difference of a £1 is very crucial to us. So £174 would indeed be what we should pay, it seems we have to wait for Monday morning to talk to the company. I really wanted to know where the law stand as regards to paying for traveling. I have the feeling its only one way as the company would get paid twice going onto the next customer.

Valli

If you were told prior to agreeing to using the company that travelling costs would be included in your final bill there's not going to be a lot you can do about it, unless those travelling costs are unreasonable.

mountainofdebt

I think the problem is that you have estimated how much the bill should come to and you are comparing this figure to what the bill has actually come to ......whether that bill is right is a different matter all together.

I agree about the £95 but the only peeple who can help you with that is the company itself

As for travelling costs, I would imagine that if you were advised of the costs prior to you agreeing for them to do the work then you are liable....interesting does google maps do 'as the crow flies' or 'as the mam drives'?

arcon5

Supposing the £80 is not for parts and the £95 effectively means 'Labour'....

halibut2209

Looks like they are charging £95 to fix it and leave it working. But you'll need to ask them.

bod1467

#1 what another company would charge is entirely immaterial unless you FIRST got competitive quotes BEFORE engaging anyone to do the work.

#2 just because the company you engaged seems to be a little more expensive than (what YOU calculated) the other company to cost, why does that make them a "bad cowboy outfit"? Is the tank/system working correctly?

mattyprice4004

Instead of calculating the bill, why didn't you ask them for an all inclusive quote?!

Hintza

Tinkly_Rain wrote: »

And what is the law for traveling to your home.

They can either include it in the bill or I imagine to be fairer they calculate it separately.

When the architect comes to our house we get charged mileage as with the Vet.