Employing an electrician, what should I do?

Jimmy_Neutron

I am going to employ an electrician to do a rewire of my house. I have had four people view the house, two did not give quotes and there is a difference of £1,000 between the people who quoted.

The person I am going with is the cheaper one and he seems ok. he is a respected member of an electricians forum. He is getting on a bit and said he will have help when it comes to moving heavy furniture etc.

As I have never had electrical work of this magnitude before what should I look for in setting up a contract and payment (he wants 40% up front). Should I pay by bank transfer, will that give me some protection if things go wrong?

bris

Bank transfer offers no protection. It's also very unlikely he accepts credit cards so you need to do your own checks and decide if you trust him or not.

Doozergirl

Why does he need 40% upfront?

That doesn't instill me with much confidence as it's a huge proportion of the work. If he can't buy the materials on credit then perhaps you should be buying them.

"Seems okay" isn't the most comforting of phrases either. What due diligence have you done?

owen_money

Doozergirl wrote: »

Why does he need 40% upfront?

That doesn't instill me with much confidence as it's a huge proportion of the work. If he can't buy the materials on credit then perhaps you should be buying them.

"Seems okay" isn't the most comforting of phrases either. What due diligence have you done?

The OP said 'he is a respected member of an electricians forum'.

What more to you need?