overcharged by electrician

Doozergirl

Ibrahim5 said:

I think people expect the forum to be inhabited by like minded consumers where in reality there are more from the trade. So people have a problem with a tradesman and they get a response from another tradesman rather than getting good consumer advice. I feel sorry for people who register just to ask a specific question. They often get very poor advice.

And sometimes they get very good advice indeed.

There is a specific consumer board if one wants to use it.  I'm not sure why people in the industry aren't allowed to say what a fair going rate might be when it's them that set the prices, after all.  No one has a personal allegiance to the company in question. 

Ibrahim5

Risteard said:

melb said:

I didn't get the impression that many of the replies on this forum were from electricians either, although I can see that you are. he has now confirmed that it was an emergency call out hence the inflated charge.  We called his office.wife in the morning, he rang back lunchtime to say his electrician would call some time after 4.30 and we said great thanks.  Also he is now saying he quoted £60 for the parts on the phone - if he knew which part would be being replaced (how else would he know the price) why didn't he make sure the electrician attended with the part on his van?

his actions today prove to me he is a bully.  

An RCD needs to be made by the correct manufacturer, as well as the correct rating and type. So there is no way that I would have stock of all the different makes and types, which could only be ascertained following investigation of the fault. Was it known that the EVSE was a ROLEC unit?

Also many of the older ROLEC units do not have DC Leakage Protection built in, which would necessitate the installation of a vastly more expensive Type B RCD over a Type A device. I presume it's an RCBO inside the unit rather than an RCCB. A double pole Type B RCBO is a rare device indeed. EVSE installation is much more complex than you probably appreciate - in fact there is a whole section of the Wiring Regulations specific to EV Charging installations.

It's just a £20 component that needs replacing. This doesn't impress anyone. Well not me anyway. Making things sound complicated when they aren't.

Section62

Ibrahim5 said:

It's just a £20 component that needs replacing. This doesn't impress anyone. Well not me anyway. Making things sound complicated when they aren't.

Over the years I've discovered that people who say things are much simpler than an expert suggests, will typically have only a fraction of the knowledge and understanding necessary to do a job safely/competently/efficiently.

The most important quality when advising someone on something such as electrical installations - where safety is very important - is having a good understanding and appreciation of one's own limitations and avoiding the temptation to comment on stuff beyond those limitations.

BooJewels

I saw a locksmith on TV, donkeys years ago, who specialised in heritage and unusual locks. He relayed a tale about doing an emergency call out to a very old property with a jammed lock. He fixed it easily and turned to the proprietor and said "that'll be 60 pounds please" and she was horrified and said "you've only been here ten minutes!"  To which he replied "yes, but it's taken 35 years of practice and experience to get to the stage where I can do it in 10 minutes - that's what you're paying for madam".

I thought that was fabulous and I've tried to keep it in mind at all times when dealing with skilled people.  The more skilled someone is, the easier they tend make it look and the quicker they are.  Different skill sets is exactly the core principle of how the first societies were formed.

melb

I agree with paying for someone's skills and expertise but when they delibererately maneouvre you into a position where they can claim enhanced fees for 'out of hours work' which we did not request, that is a totally different matter. If they choose to send someone at 5.30 that is up to them but don't expect us to pay extra for it.  Anyway he is now threatening CCJs, a £35 a week extra charge plus 7% late payment charges (on an invoice we received a week ago) I think we can safely assume he is not your average tradesman.

emmajones1976

melb said:

I agree with paying for someone's skills and expertise but when they delibererately maneouvre you into a position where they can claim enhanced fees for 'out of hours work' which we did not request, that is a totally different matter. If they choose to send someone at 5.30 that is up to them but don't expect us to pay extra for it.  Anyway he is now threatening CCJs, a £35 a week extra charge plus 7% late payment charges (on an invoice we received a week ago) I think we can safely assume he is not your average tradesman.

All of which a judge in the small claims court would never award him for a debt of around £130 if he won a judgement against you. Interest, maybe. The small claim court filing fee, almost certainly.

Anyway we did all this in your other thread, he is clearly bluffing.

GDB2222

One question that was asked was whether the trader can record the calls without warning the consumer. The answer is that it is legal. It seems to be a good idea, if there are frequent disputes!

It strikes me that the OP should offer to settle this bill. Maybe not the full amount, if she strongly feels there are errors. But, simply refusing to pay is bound to result in a strong response. 

The trader can refer this to a collection firm whenever he likes. Whether that helps the situation is another matter.

NSG666

melb said:

I agree with paying for someone's skills and expertise but when they delibererately maneouvre you into a position where they can claim enhanced fees for 'out of hours work' which we did not request, that is a totally different matter. If they choose to send someone at 5.30 that is up to them but don't expect us to pay extra for it.  Anyway he is now threatening CCJs, a £35 a week extra charge plus 7% late payment charges (on an invoice we received a week ago) I think we can safely assume he is not your average tradesman.

Since your initial post things seem to have taken a turn for the worse and taking your version of events at face value he does sound like a chancer. Given no-one on here has suggested what you should have expected to pay then you may chose to use the info you have regarding how long he spent at your house diagnosing and fixing the problem, add on some time for collecting the part (where did he go to get it as Falcon and Albion are the main wholesalers in Leeds and close at 5 or 5.30). If he replaced the RCBO then you can probably look at the part number and price it online - use the highest price. Multiply by his labour rate, add the cost of the RCBO then multiply by 1.2 to cover the VAT.

Did you find him on a check trade type website?

And don't go chasing shadows ref the legality of recording the phone conversation unless you are concerned that it contains info that disputes your version of events.

MobileSaver

Ibrahim5 said:

Someone told me they paid £70 for a tap washer. That would have cost me 10p. A car service someone would pay. £200-300 and it would cost me £30. Parts and tools are cheaper with the internet. Tradespeople seem to charge more than ever.

I have a dripping tap and car that needs servicing. I've got £60.20 in cash waiting here for you (so 100% profit for you!) When can you pop over?

koalakoala

melb said:

I agree with paying for someone's skills and expertise but when they delibererately maneouvre you into a position where they can claim enhanced fees for 'out of hours work' which we did not request, that is a totally different matter. If they choose to send someone at 5.30 that is up to them but don't expect us to pay extra for it.  Anyway he is now threatening CCJs, a £35 a week extra charge plus 7% late payment charges (on an invoice we received a week ago) I think we can safely assume he is not your average tradesman.

And I think we can safely assume you are not your average customer ..............................