plumber took old tap/pipes without permission

bargain_hunter25

I am having my kitchen re-done and the plumber took the old sink / tap out and put it in the garage. I had already listed the item on Gumtree for sale only for a tenner for both as its 12 years old and someone came round to pick it up. I went to collect the item for the new owner and its missing a tap.. So I had to let it go for a fiver instead.

Is it common for plumbers to just help themselves to kit they remove without asking?

I would of thought the answer to this is no. They are due back for the final fit on Monday so i could say something then and dock £5 from their bill I suppose.. :-)

DRP

in my experience usually they will take everything away unless told otherwise...

wealdroam

bargain_hunter25 wrote: »

They are due back for the final fit on Monday so i could say something then and dock £5 from their bill I suppose.. :-)

Yes you could do that... but be prepared for him to give you the old tap back.

konark

in my experience usually they will take everything away unless told otherwise...

in my experience they will take anything of value but leave all their rubbish, although they often do go to the effort of hiding it under floorboards etc

JustAnotherSaver

When i had a radiator changed the plumber was going to take it until i said to leave it (as i'll list it & then scrap it if it doesn't sell).

He also wasn't going to leave those caps for the TRV until i said about that also.


But all this over £5? I'm tight & even i wouldn't bother really.

MisterBaxter

Sometimes tradespeople can't win. When they don't take the rubbish away with them them customers complain; when they do customers complain.

The key is to make sure you agree with them before any work starts that they are to include in their price for the disposal of anything they strip out and make it clear what if anything you want to keep.

In this case I would let it go if you weren't clear about wanting to keep the items, it's not worth the argument over £5.

lstar337

MisterBaxter wrote: »

Sometimes tradespeople can't win. When they don't take the rubbish away with them them customers complain; when they do customers complain.

Maybe they could just ask?

Most of the complaints I see are because the tradesperson just does whatever they like without consulting the owner.

A simple "Would you like me to take all the rubbish away, or would you like to keep any of it?" would save all the problems.

Of course it works both ways. If the owner knows they would like to keep something, they should tell their tradesperson before work begins. Communication is all it takes.

teddysmum

When my boiler and new radiators were fitted, knowing the value of copper, I checked that the people I chose would leave the metal scrap, as one quotation specifically said the price was dependant on their keeping any scrap.

There was a discussion on here at the time, with certain people saying they would insist on keeping the scrap or leaving the whole mess.

Mine were happy for me to keep the copper, as going to the scrap dealer took up time in which they could be earning. The radiators , which neither of us wanted (scrap value being less than transportation cost) were eagerly grabbed by one of the regularly passing metal collectors. The small amount of other rubbish either went in the bin or was swept up by my husband, put in a box and taken to the tip. (We were surprised at how much the dealer paid for the copper).

firefox1956

Scrap copper price around £2.00 per kilo.....
Worth having.

Nilrem

MisterBaxter wrote: »

Sometimes tradespeople can't win. When they don't take the rubbish away with them them customers complain; when they do customers complain.

Pretty much it it seems.

Some people get upset about anything left behind, others want everything left.

I tend to assume that if they're doing replacement work they'll dump the old stuff as part of it.

southcoastrgi

I either clear site or I don't clear anything,
why should I only take the stuff you don't want ?
Who do you think pays for putting the stuff in my van & emptying it ?
Who pays for the waste carriers licence ?
Who pays for the extra diesel ?
You want to get a few quid for the copper & brass no problem just leave enough room for all the rest of the rubbish, plus I will only remove the minimum I need to, to get the job done the rest is up to you to cut out