Cancelling a workman

MalonsMilk

I’m hoping to get advice and probably a little bit of validation. We recently got a quote for some plastering last week but I have rung up the day before work is to start to cancel. My reasons were that he asked for an upfront payment for materials. I have been stung very badly before regarding shoddy workmanship and alarm bells were ringing that he needed money to buy resources rather than just wait until the end of the job to get paid in full. As it was only agreed upon last week I’m still in the cooling off period but he has since hassled me that a relative has died and he has a family to support and various other reasons. I guess I’ll never know if he was on the level but would you have done the same?

Ayr_Rage

Cancelling with only one day's notice is a pretty rotten thing to do.

He will have planned to be doing your job and won't be able to fill your slot at such short notice.

Paying upfront for materials is a reasonable request.

On what basis do you think you have a cooling off period?

What does your contract say regarding cancellation?

If I was the plasterer I'd be absolutely fuming with you.

Hoenir

Finding good tradespeople is always a challenge. No I wouldn't cancel the day before.  Prefer the job to be done. 

MalonsMilk

Yep I would be cross too but never have we ever paid for the resources up front and we would have been happy to use our normal one but he is getting too old to do the bit of plastering we need to be done so he declined it. Citizens advice bureau states that you are allowed to change your your mind within 14 days for trades and products if the agreement was made outside the tradesman’s office. I feel bad for him but I am very aware that I don’t want to get fleeced again especially if I’d have ignored major red flags. 

swingaloo

Asking for payment for materials is not a major red flag. People cancelling the day before are probably one of the reasons he does ask. 

We recently had some building work done and the builder asked us for money for materials upfront. We were happy to give it, he was an excellent workman and we had recommendations to use him. 

He told us that he had twice done work in the past then the person refused to pay or wanted to pay in dribs and drabs so he now covered his back so that if he had trouble after doing the job he had only lost his labour and not the cost of the materials. 

He was efficient, reliable and I was pleased with the job so would have no problem recommending him but he wont take a job without payment for materials first.

MalonsMilk

Fair enough I just wish he would have told us that this is what he was intending to do. I don’t like letting people down before and I’m sure if he had done work for us before or we knew of his work then this would have been fine but knowing nothing about him has made me very weary. Plus plasterers round our area are very difficult to get booked as they’re always very busy. We were surprised when he said he could come the very next week. 

MeteredOut

MalonsMilk said:

Fair enough I just wish he would have told us that this is what he was intending to do. I don’t like letting people down before and I’m sure if he had done work for us before or we knew of his work then this would have been fine but knowing nothing about him has made me very weary. Plus plasterers round our area are very difficult to get booked as they’re always very busy. We were surprised when he said he could come the very next week. 

You may well find it even more difficult in future if word gets out that you cancel the day before a job is due to start.

But you're right in that both sides should have been clear from the outset on payment expectations/terms.

Aylesbury_Duck

No, I wouldn't have done the same. It think it pretty poor form, I'm afraid.

Vectis

It's quite normal to pay for materials upfront.

However, I would question what materials a plasterer might have needed to buy that he won't be able to use again?

The unreasonable part, on your side, is that by cancelling the day before means he probably missed out on other paying work which he could have been doing.

HampshireH

You've already said

- it's hard to find plasterers due to them being busy.

This plasterer probably had a cancellation or adjustment on jobs and slotted you in.

Now he may not be able to pay next weeks food bill due to you cancelling on him the day before.

If you didn't want to use a trade you haven't used before why bother wasting his time.

How will you ever get the works done if you doubt anybody you've never used when your usual guy isn't capable of doing it anymore.

If you weren't sure of the terms you should also have asked him.

Good job he never bought those materials without that payment or he'd be even worse off now.

Grumpy_chap

The OP may find this helpful
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/cancelling-building-or-decorating-work/