Money Moral Dilemma: Should we use the builder who messed us around on the quote?

Broadsword66

Quotes for work aren't just about the money, they are an audition to see how professionally and ethically the tradesman operates, and whether you can get on with them. The fact that you are raising questions is a good reason to look elsewhere. 

Annie2018

I would suggest getting a number of quotes from different builders and also asking them all for two or three references of work done in th last two-three years. You need to be 100% confident in them before committing.

mpcooke3

While I suspect it’s quite common for people to quote higher if they are very busy, the practice is annoying and I’m not sure it was really wise to quote higher and then drop the quote when challenged. Even if what he says is true I feel it shows at minimum a certain error of judgement in how it might make a customer feel. If he makes that error of judgement now in his dealings with you then perhaps he might make others in the future? (Like deprioritizing you for another job half way through)

honestcove

If the only thing that is keeping you interested in this trader is the recommendations then how good are these really. Are they from reliable and credible sources. Your experience so far suggests they might not be.

City_Girl_3

I’ve done a LOT of work to my home in the last 3 years and dealt with dozens of tradespeople. A few things I’ve learned:
- Quotes vary considerably, and sometimes the cheapest quote one month comes out as most expensive a few months later from the same tradesperson. Depends on their availability, how much they want the job plus all the other stuff you’d expect. It’s not necessarily dishonest to quote high, but perhaps a misjudgment of the market or lack of understanding of the scope of work. (And some just charge more as a rule - good on them if they can keep the flow coming in)
- good builders are generally in demand but if the business is larger they can have more flex to accommodate (especially) smaller jobs
- recommendation is hit and miss in my experience.  The 2 worst experiences I had were recommended by my architect. Just because they come recommended by the most knowledgeable person you know doesn’t mean you can skip the due diligence. 
- I would be cautious with this builder. If it’s a big job you should be checking their business profile on Companies House. How long have they been in business for? Any other companies they manage that went under?  This reminds me of the company who built my garden room - who went bankrupt the month after they completed. On reflection they were desperate for income flow so they were willing to do a deal for us. 

- under no circumstances should you pay a deposit. Do agree a clear reasonable payment schedule if the work will take longer than a week or two, but a trade who can’t afford to suck up the cost for a few days is a company without the experience / cash flow or customer satisfaction to back them. There’s ample builders who don’t ask for deposits to choose from (the only exception in my experience is landscapers)
- every little detail in writing. You want them to supply Matt black 2 gang light sockets? Write it down. Make a note of not only what’s included but the specifiation you are expecting, or at least a budget for the items you want provided. 

- no matter how much you like the person, never take them at their word. Document anything agreed verbally and send it to them via email or text.  At the outset require that any extras are documented by them in the form of a quote/estimate. A good tradesperson will appreciate this, and they will trust you more too. 

Joan85

Never use any tradesman you have the slightest doubt about for any reason. I was ripped off by a rogue trader refitting my bathroom. Came with glowing reviews on google (don't trust them at all as he was somehow manipulating them and getting bad reviews removed), gave me a reasonable quote, said he could do everything as I wanted and seemed very pleasant. I began getting doubts when he messed me about with starting dates, but I stupidly stuck with him. Eventually he was taken to court by Trading Standards and ended up in jail (ripped off loads of people) but that didn't get me my money back as he 'had none!'.
I would now only ever go with personal recommendation or, at the very least, seeing recent work. Trading Standards have their own website of trusted traders, but they all have massive wait lists. TS told me not to trust Checkatrade as it's 'full of rogues' who manipulate it (possibly a bit unfair on the honest ones, but how do you know?)

ThisIsWeird

What is the difference between this builder, and any other who also quotes now at a similar level?

Yes, this one first gave an initially higher quote 'because materials prices were so high', and presumably also because they were knocked off their feet with work. That's all.

Many builders do do this; if they have more than enough work going on, are booked up for ages, and someone else asks them for a quote, they will often provide a 'stupidly' high one. This acts as a kind of deterrent so that they filter out any time-consuming discussions on jobs they are unlikely to be able to squeeze in, but - if the customer is desperate enough, and especially if the builder has a good reputation (& this one seemingly does) - then they'll consider fitting in an extra job, working many additional hours, losing their weekends, taking on extra staff, in order to benefit from this 'bonus' job. But they ain't going to work their sweet little cottons off for the same rate as their bread&butter work. And why should they? This is not the builder 'messing us about'.

This forum has regular "why is this builder's quote so much higher than the others?!" questions. It's the simple law of supply and demand.

There is nothing 'wrong' with this. This is normal. It happens. Although it might smack of them 'trying it on', it does not otherwise reflect on their overall trustworthiness or ability.

I also have to add that this builder has seemingly been pretty up front about what's going on - many wouldn't be. He came back to you and admitted he didn't have so much work on at the moment - that is often cited on this forum as a red flag on reputation. So for this builder to be so honest... well, I'm going to turn this completely on its head and claim that this builder could actually be more honest than many.

But, the bottom line with any builder is - due diligence. Check their previous work. Confirm their building reputation, and ideally how they cope with problems. Nail down the work to be carried out, the sequence, and the materials used. And agree a payment schedule.

This builder might be dodgy, or they might not be. The other ones you get quotes from could be ditto. But this is not being 'messed about', and I wouldn't set too much store by it. If this builder has a good reputation, as he seems to have, and if they were soo in demand a while back that they could inflate their prices to discourage folk*, then that sounds all good.

*Depending on the building work required, producing an accurate quote can take from a mere multiple number hours of their exhausted evenings, to actually costing them many £100's as many builders pay third parties to carry out this tedious side of the job. So, what should they do during such very busy periods? Waste many hours providing a quote for a job they will not be willing to fit in at the usual price in any case? Or simply say 'No - we're too busy!', and risk ostracising that potential customer for good?

Or, provide a quick quote that says, "If you really want us, we'll squeeze you in - but at a cost...".

JayD

Was he the only builder to quote you? Surely it's always wise to get more than one quote!

When you say 'we've heard good things about him' , just where did you hear them?

Because, if you can check those sources, I'd say you can't beat good recommendations of those who have used him. 

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Woodentop22

Does not sound like a professional approach to carrying out a contract, I would be wary and  have your quote set out in stone to avoid any pitfalls.

keithyno.1

No, ditch him and use somebody else. He sounds like a real cowboy.