Block Driveway Quote

lauren1983

Hi

We have just had a quote for a block paved driveway. Does anyone have any opinions on the price please?

Here's the details...

Area is 56 m2
The area needs sand putting down
We need a 7m drop putting in.
A large tree needs chopping down

The hardcore base is already down
We have already bought the blocks

The quote was £2200

Any thoughts?

Alex.T

Not a bad price that. To be fair, a lot of places like to supply the stuff themselves, so in theory you are just paying that £2200 for their day rate. Depending on how many people they have working, would depend on how long it takes. It sounds like a 2 man, 4 day job.

To give you an idea of what we paid for ours, down South, near London, approx. 100m2, complete dig out (concrete single drive and lots of grassed area) new soakaway, hardcore base, membrane layer, sand layer, Bradstone blocks, new front step to front door. Cost us just shy of £10k. Wasn't the cheapest quote, by a long way, but a really good job in my opinion.

glasgowdan

I'd be wary of someone willing to lay on an unknown sub base. Did you do it yourself?

Rolandtheroadie

Had a couple of quotes recently, 53m2 with the steps to the front door being done as well. Steps would involve bricks at the sides, and blocks for the steps.
£2800 for both quotes, second company said the stairs would be £500 on their own.
That's digging down till they hit something solid to start from, then back filling with type 1 to the sand level.

martinsurrey

lauren1983 wrote: »

Hi

We have just had a quote for a block paved driveway. Does anyone have any opinions on the price please?

Here's the details...

Area is 56 m2
The area needs sand putting down
We need a 7m drop putting in.
A large tree needs chopping down

The hardcore base is already down
We have already bought the blocks

The quote was £2200

Any thoughts?

Are you putting blocks over where the tree is?

As above, anyone willing to put this down without knowing the base is sound, or willing to put it over a freshly cut tree, is going to bodge it.

Newly_retired

I've been quoted £3500 for a block paved drive, currently concreted, and extended paving over a currently lawned area.
Three firms all quoted the same. Terms are roughly the same too. How does one decide which firm will do the best job?
What should we be looking for ?

Furts

Newly_retired wrote: »

I've been quoted £3500 for a block paved drive, currently concreted, and extended paving over a currently lawned area.
Three firms all quoted the same. Terms are roughly the same too. How does one decide which firm will do the best job?
What should we be looking for ?

What thickness of hardcore, what type - Type1, what pattern to lay, what edge restraint detail, what thickness of block, what drainage detail, where do you stand with Planning Permission - the list goes on but these are a few.

Newly_retired

All three traders have spoken about all these aspects, and all seem to me to be saying much the same thing, but then I do not have enough expertise to differentiate. I am waiting for written quotations now.

Newly_retired

Update.
After a week, I had nothing in writing from the first two. I contacted the third, who had already left me a written quotation (not a contract, as not signed by him or me ). He came again and we finalised things, and he gave me a contract, with 14 day cooling off period.The next day, my husband took a phone call from one of the others, when he told him we had gone with another firm, he became abusive, said we had no right, we had promised to wait for his quote........it was now 10 days since he had called.
A few hours later, another one called at the door, saying he had brought his paperwork, though I never saw it, as I told him we had decided on another firm. He tried to talk me round, asked how much I was paying, why I had chosen that firm. Although he was civil, I found this intrusive. We have not actually gone with the cheapest quote; there were other reasons, but they are none of his business. I had begun to think it was the norm for firms not to bother getting back to you, but 9 or 10 days is a long time.
Is this the norm, nowadays?