Who is my contract with? Retailer or their "self employed" expert fitting teams

Aylesbury_Duck

How much have you paid the fitters to date, and how much are they saying you owe?  

Have you paid in full for the kitchen itself, to the retailer?  Did you put any of the sum on a credit card or a finance deal?

brianposter

I would suggest that you have several separate contracts and can choose who you wish to deal with - which sounds like it would be the retailer.

Patricia1608

I have not paid the fitter anything. I have paid the retailer approx £3500 deposit on debit card. Then two separate cash amounts of £1000 (receipt given) and £775 (no receipt). These were for an integrated fridge freezer and washing machine. Said if I paid cash they could "lose the price for the doors" in the equipment order. So any monies have only been paid direct to the retailer who has threatened me with his solicitors even before I've had chance to send a letter of complaint with full details of my concerns. 

EnPointe

DullGreyGuy said:

Patricia1608 said:

There is nothing in the contract to corroborate that as a customer I am entering or dealing with a separate contract at all. Contract covers the normal definitions, contract, price, goods, delivery, payment, title to goods, general. Under "Price" it states "The goods supplied will be paid for by the customer at the price agreed and documented overleaf" - this is where it gives a cost for the units, appliances and a separate cost for the kitchen fitter stating "client to pay". Incidentally on the same contract it states "Preparation Work - D (ie fitter) to do. "Clients plaster to do: 3 day work starts ..." "Installation Date: D (ie fitter) 20/11/23"

But what does it state what the contract is for? The supply of a kitchen? The supply and fitting of a kitchen? How does it define the price?

Patricia1608 said:

This is what I'm trying to figure out. The company refer to "our hand picked team of experts ..." and refer to "our staff". 

I think you are trying to read too much into the wording, our Chief Actuaries' report to the board states "our project team are" but the team is made up of 6 members of staff and 3 contractors/consultants. We'll shortly be joined by consultants from another firm but it will remain "our project team".  

If you look at the difference between employees and staff in the Cambridge dictionary the former is explicitly the people employed by a company whereas "staff" is people who work for a company and not explicitly only employees so could include contractors etc. 

In many companies there is a blend, as per my own project team, some employees and some non-employees and who's used on what job depends on skills, availability, demand etc. 

Indeed  

 It may also be that in different parts of the country  they  do have their own fitters or simply that  there are insufficient  of their own  fitters and they use  self employed  / franchisee  fitters  but have the  particualr  invoicing arrangmeent seen in the OP