Made agreement with Builder but changed my mind

akorn77

I made an email agreement with a builder for a full house renovation, new roof and small 3 metre extension for £92.5k. He came to my property twice to discuss. He was very pressurising and kept telling me that he had another couple people about to agree a project and that I had to get it done quick to nail him down. So i quickly did an email agreement. After agreeing he requested that all the money be made in cash which I'm not comfortable with. Then yesterday one of the previous builders I was speaking to made a counter-offer of £85k and so I want to give him the job instead. I have references etc. for both builders. 

I havent paid any money to anyone or handed over any keys. 

Would there be any issues if I backtrack on the agreement with the first builder and switch to the second one? If so, how is the best way of telling the 1st builder that I want to cancel? 

shiraz99

At the end of the day you have a contractual agreement with the first builder. Yes, you could pull out but he could charge you for any time and effort he's already put in and any losses he's so far incurred, which may be minimal at this stage but nonetheless.

I don't see the fact that's he's told you he has other potential work on as pushy, it's simply the reality. I would question why he want's everything in cash though, particularly such a high amount as that. There wouldn't be many legitimate reasons for doing so.

macman

What is the relevant wording of your 'agreement'? We can't see it. For a contract of this value you would expect detailed t and c's. You agreed a price, but did you agree a start date?

akorn77

macman said:

What is the relevant wording of your 'agreement'? We can't see it. For a contract of this value you would expect detailed t and c's. You agreed a price, but did you agree a start date?

No it was just a list of items to be done and the price. No other information i.e. start date, deposit, payment terms, duration etc. 

Bendy_House

What's the other fellow's quote like with detail? And how do they want payment? Did they mention staged payments?

akorn77

Bendy_House said:

What's the other fellow's quote like with detail? And how do they want payment? Did they mention staged payments?

Yes the 2nd guy gave a full breakdown of the cost, including deposit, duration and payment terms. I havent agreed/signed anything with him. 

Auti

He requested cash after you agreed ? In my view he then changed the terms of the agreement and to something that could be seen as illegal. Have you the request for cash in writing/email? I would say to him that you could not continue due to the cash request and legalities of it.

Bendy_House

akorn77 said:

Bendy_House said:

What's the other fellow's quote like with detail? And how do they want payment? Did they mention staged payments?

Yes the 2nd guy gave a full breakdown of the cost, including deposit, duration and payment terms. I havent agreed/signed anything with him. 

And payments made how?

I'm thinking that your way out of the first contract might be to insist that payments are not made by cash.

twopenny

Yes, while you agreed I'm taking that that it was before he mentioned cash.

I wonder if he will want cash as he goes? That can leave you in an awkward position especially without a start and potential end date.

I'd be inclined to email that you aren't happy with 'start date, deposit, payment terms, duration etc.' which you hadn't expected or known on acceptance and that is not what you expected and aren't happy with. By giving a reason rather than just a no he has options - I'm pretty sure he will pull out.

The second sounds professional and gives you some security for such a large and important job.

Section62

Auti said:

He requested cash after you agreed ? In my view he then changed the terms of the agreement and to something that could be seen as illegal. Have you the request for cash in writing/email? I would say to him that you could not continue due to the cash request and legalities of it.

There's nothing illegal about asking to be paid in cash, or for cash payments to be made.

The legalities relate to whether the builder will account for the cash correctly, e.g. declaring it for tax and (if appropriate) being registered for VAT and correctly administering VAT payments.

If the OP uses the cash request as an excuse to pull out, what happens if the builder responds that it is Ok to pay by bank transfer instead?  Better to be honest and say a more competitive price has been offered by someone else.

shiraz99

The best thing to do is simply be upfront and talk to the first builder. Ask him to clarify the payment terms and state you're not happy about all cash payments. The ball will be in his court then.