Builder’s final invoice 160% more than what was estimated!

arcon5

If it turns in to a full blown dispute as a minimum you pay what you believe is genuinely due. Not paying a penny would not paint you in a good light

Hanzy13

Arcon5 - Absolutely, we would definitely pay the amount we think is genuinely due as we are happy with the work we have done but just can’t comprehend the extra cost!

Wesleyad- you are exactly right, the original estimate was £1295 and he is charging us £3370.

photome

Hanzy13 wrote: »

Arcon5 - Absolutely, we would definitely pay the amount we think is genuinely due as we are happy with the work we have done but just can’t comprehend the extra cost!

Wesleyad- you are exactly right, the original estimate was £1295 and he is charging us £3370.

crazy
how long did the job take him.


I had a ceiling and part of a wall replastered a few weeks ago, cost me £250


as others have said he needs ti itemise

agrinnall

It's not necessarily crazy, things happen during building work that may lead to additional costs which wouldn't have been obvious before starting. But unless the extra work had to be done immediately to prevent worse problems it should definitely have been agreed with you before proceeding for such a large cost variation.

peter_the_piper

It surely depends on whether it was a verbal estimate or a written quote, the OP uses both words.

Hanzy13

We have got an itemised invoice of sorts from the builder. It's a bit vague.

In the 'extra work' section, he has included many things that we asked him to base the estimate on (ie. putting floorboards down and a bit of skimming work). I am quite cross at this as I was very specific from the outset of what needed to be done. I have asked him to revise the invoice as I don't think it is fair that he has included these in the extra work when I asked him to estimate for these from the initial consultation!

He says the extra labor cost have come from:
- time spent removing old plaster from one wall
- rendering and replastering one wall
- time spent bagging up the old plaster
- time spent taking bags of old plaster outside
- time spent going to the DIY shop to get materials
- time removing bagging up old bathroom rubbish and putting in the skip
- making a small pipe box to cover a pipe
- making small vanity unit
- £130 for cost of a small skip (seems expensive? but I accept it..)

Is it right that he has charged me so much extra for bagging up rubbish and taking it to the skip?! Surely that is all part and parcel of his job as a tradesman and can't have costed me a few grand!?

I've asked him to revise the invoice and also to give me a breakdown of what it cost exactly to make the vanity unit and to render and plaster the wall so I can understand better where the extra costs have come from.

Does anyone have any more advice or thoughts?

Hanzy13

agrinnall wrote: »

It's not necessarily crazy, things happen during building work that may lead to additional costs which wouldn't have been obvious before starting. But unless the extra work had to be done immediately to prevent worse problems it should definitely have been agreed with you before proceeding for such a large cost variation.

Yes, I completely agree with that and we knew there would be an extra cost for two things (plastering a wall and the making of a vanity unit) but I would have thought that if he knew it was going to cost us an extra £2000 he would have mentioned it.

Blackbeard_of_Perranporth

As a point I had my bathroom done last year, and extra work was carried out due to a leak under the bath and toilet. Extra plastering and other bits needed to be done as long with the job. His estimate was for £2,400. Final bill was £2,900 which I was happy at. Your initial estimate of £1,300 is a bit cheap. One I saw offered me this and I showed him the door!


I expect the same problems next year when we do the Kitchen! (leak on down pip in Kitchen, currently covered!)

photome

I did ask earlier. How long did the job take him?

If the costs are for labour that has a bearing on the price.

£130 for a small skip is possibly cheap.

I paid £215 for a large one a few weeks ago and the next size down ( medium) would have been £190 , on that basis I would assume the smaller one would have been around £160


I had a new kitchen fitted but I got a quote rather than an estimate but still had to pay a few quid more for some extra work but it was all itemised and it wasnt much more but one of my extras was boxing an extractor duct in ( £50 I think it as)

Hanzy13

Blackbeard_of_Perranporth wrote: »

As a point I had my bathroom done last year, and extra work was carried out due to a leak under the bath and toilet. Extra plastering and other bits needed to be done as long with the job. His estimate was for £2,400. Final bill was £2,900 which I was happy at. Your initial estimate of £1,300 is a bit cheap. One I saw offered me this and I showed him the door!


I expect the same problems next year when we do the Kitchen! (leak on down pip in Kitchen, currently covered!)

Thanks for your message, just to make it clear... we had a separate plumber to do all of the plumbing which cost £2000. The tradesman in question was there to do the tiling and bits of joinery work.

The whole project at the moment is standing at around £7000 for what is a very small bathroom!