Plasterer asked for money for materials up front for small job tomorrow

bris

A 25kg bag of plaster is about a tenner. You don't need many for 2 walls. 40% is 200 quid so it's more than the materials.


But apart from that did you get any recommendations for this guy or is it just a lucky hope for the best pick?


Tradesmen should always be recommended or your asking for cowboys to come calling to the most important place in your life.

nLdn

Thanks. My instinct was right then. I've just responded politely that I'm not comfortable doing that and am happy to pay promptly on completion of satisfactory work, as I have with other tradesmen I've hired.

He responded that he doesn't work in this way and I should find a different contractor. So that's a week wasted. If I hadn't have contacted him earlier to double check we were still on when would he have dropped this demand in?!

The work is likely to need maximum 3 plasterboards (most likely 2) and a bag of plaster. A friend recons the materials probably only cost around £40.

Re: only using recommended tradesmen

Of course this is ideal but not everyone has access to recommendations. I'm in my mid 30s in North London and have few friends who own their own homes down here, so I have to try to use sites to source trades. Had good luck with a brilliant local electrician but it feels like the majority of available tradesmen I've had in for quotes are total scammers.

So many people don't want to do just a small job and want to only commit to a job if it's renovating the whole flat.

I found this guy on my builder for what it's worth.

Fed up now. I've taken 2 radiators off ready for the work to start in the morning :-(

Thanks for advice.

EachPenny

nLdn wrote: »

...He responded that he doesn't work in this way and I should find a different contractor. So that's a week wasted. If I hadn't have contacted him earlier to double check we were still on when would he have dropped this demand in?!

The work is likely to need maximum 3 plasterboards (most likely 2) and a bag of plaster. A friend recons the materials probably only cost around £40.

In the old days it was usual for people to do work and then send the bill. Everyone worked on the basis of trust and honesty. Nowadays many people don't trust anybody, and tradespeople have come to expect not to get paid on some jobs. The 'London effect' will mean that is worse than many other places in the country.

After all, you didn't trust him... why should he trust you?

I also wouldn't have got too hung up on the value of materials compared to what he was asking you for. It was probably his idea of a more polite way of saying "40% now, the rest later".

Too late now, but the approach Firefox mentions would probably have been the best way forward... 50% cash on the table when he arrives in the morning, the rest when he's finished the job.

nLdn wrote: »

So many people don't want to do just a small job and want to only commit to a job if it's renovating the whole flat.

That might partly reflect the difficulty in getting paid for small jobs sometimes. With bigger jobs you'd expect to have staged payments, or the value of the project is sufficient to make it worth following up non-payment through legal means if need be. Chasing up £500 for a little bit of plastering may turn out to be more hassle than it is worth.

nLdn wrote: »

I found this guy on my builder for what it's worth.

Although it won't really help you, with hindsight, his decision to drop the job the night before on the basis of payment arrangements might be an indicator of the quality of his work... you can probably assume he has plenty of work as a result of his reputation and has simply contacted another client and will now be working for them tomorrow instead.

jk0

This is why I hate employing tradesmen.



Look on Youtube for how to cut & fit plasterboard, and join it, and do it yourself. You might want to buy 3' by 4' sheets as they will probably go in a car. (More expensive but easier to work with.)


Edit: BTW, anyone remember this guy? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULeDlxa3gyc

onomatopoeia99

If you've found an electrican you're happy with, ask them if they know a good plasterer - the two jobs can often go together as channelling walls makes something of a mess so goes beyond a tub of polyfilla. That's how I found the chap I use.

Risteard

brewthebear wrote: »

No decent workman will want money up front

Why do you believe that decent workmen should provide interest-free loans?

onomatopoeia99

Risteard wrote: »

Why do you believe that decent workmen should provide interest-free loans?

Do you not have a credit account with the electrical wholesaler you use then?

Risteard

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Do you not have a credit account with the electrical wholesaler you use then?

Believe it or not I still have to settle that account regardless of whether I have been paid for the materials or not. So your point is completely nonsensical.

AndyMc.....

Risteard wrote: »

Believe it or not I still have to settle that account regardless of whether I have been paid for the materials or not. So your point is completely nonsensical.

Do you settle on the day or after 28 days?

ceredigion

Cisco001 wrote: »

Ask him to list out what he material he want.

You then go to shop with him and purchase the materials directly.
So the materials is your properties not his.

bris wrote: »

A 25kg bag of plaster is about a tenner. You don't need many for 2 walls. 40% is 200 quid so it's more than the materia

nLdn wrote: »

The work is likely to need maximum 3 plasterboards (most likely 2) and a bag of plaster. A friend recons the materials probably only cost around £40.

The 40% inset just materials, it also includes business costs. That way if you get stung you may loose the wages element of the job but at least you can keep the van on the road to keep going.
Trust is a two way street and you got runover.