Drive getting redone bloke not turned up

[wjwren]

Yes my 6. Good car.

[funkyrobot]

wjwren said:

Yes my 6. Good car.

Well, just think about it sinking into the drive. If you let the muppet continue, that is probably what will happen.

[wjwren]

I havent replied to him as yet. Ive got a local company, rated highly on checkatrade if that makes much difference, coming over this afternoon to give me a quote to finish it off and also check the sub base and his thoughts on it etc.

I then propose to write to the idiot and propose a refund of some sort & if required take him to the small claims court.
Any advice or pointers on this would be greatly received. Thanks to everyone who has replied in the past.

[Vaud]

wjwren said:

rated highly on checkatrade if that makes much difference,

They vary... it's better Tham sticking a pin in the yellow pages but remember that the vetting is relatively low and that tradesman pay to be for leads on the portal.

So it's not as open as say, tripadvisor.

[alfie2244]

wjwren said:

I havent replied to him as yet. Ive got a local company, rated highly on checkatrade if that makes much difference, coming over this afternoon to give me a quote to finish it off and also check the sub base and his thoughts on it etc.

I then propose to write to the idiot and propose a refund of some sort & if required take him to the small claims court.
Any advice or pointers on this would be greatly received. Thanks to everyone who has replied in the past.

Not sure what pointers would help at this stage TBH. But if you do get a new contractor get him to detail / specify absolutely everything he is going to do in writing including a payment schedule. Not only so you know what he is going to do but also in case you need to get legal with the other fool............not 100% sure you legally need to offer him the opportunity to redo the work properly before engaging another contractor TBH......Suggest you get legal advice, perhaps speak to CA.

One of the main reasons I stopped contracting was this very issue, being undercut by clowns and then being asked to put their work right, which invariably cost the client far more to put right than my original quote.

I hope I am wrong OP but be prepared for a lot higher quote than the original from the new guy.

Post quote on here if you need it looking at.......good luck.

oh and take lots of pics from all angles, now and during works.

[Andehh]

Vaud said:

wjwren said:

rated highly on checkatrade if that makes much difference,

They vary... it's better Tham sticking a pin in the yellow pages but remember that the vetting is relatively low and that tradesman pay to be for leads on the portal.

So it's not as open as say, tripadvisor.

As he said, I found our best builder via googling local builders and going with a sort of 'attitude test'. Asking their advice on foundation depths, dot & dab vs solid mortar bed etc etc having researched the answers I wanted to hear. Same with asking about their payment schedules, and what their expectations were on when & how they got paid. Anyone asking for deposits/payment up front was instantly discounted, most were fairly casual and go with 'whatever you feel comfortable with, but some form of staggered payment and a final balance on completion'. All the sort of stuff I wanted to hear!

I then shortlisted on price & how easy they were to talk to discuss/facebook pages & pics of previous work etc. Those able to send through detailed quotes etc etc and eventually narrowed it down to the one.

Checktrade is a mixed bag, a good builder never needs to advertise as word of mouth, recommendations and local work will keep them busy. I have found my share of very very 'average' people via that site!

Edited by Andehh on Thursday 4th May 10:24

[cossy400]

Jesus OP this has really esculaTed since I last popped in. Can only echo really what others have said and just tell the guy to jog on.

I paid a farmer to take my drive off which was a mixture of concrete and stone and he took it all away and only chared me £400 and it took him a day and a bit.

Stone was at the time £11 a ton (2015) and we needed 29 ton.

I don't for one minute think it's risen that much and I doubt looking at it you ve had 29 ton down.

And we had 2 people come and quote to tarmac it there was a £600 difference in price but the higher quote got it as he d been recommended.

Walk away and take the hit as hes give you a break down of where your 1200 quid has gone you owe him nothing.

[wjwren]

Had a chap came over that is highly rated on checkatrade. He turned up in a clean new van and was professional with uniform on etc. Night and day to that idiot that came over before. He said it would take around 4 days to do and he would need to dig out what is there now. He said the hardcore was far too high and the blocks would be too high and near enough touching the DPC. The drive is approx 75sm. Then down the side of the house as well which is 9sqm so about 85sqm in total with 60mm eaton setts. £4000.

[alfie2244]

wjwren said:

Had a chap came over that is highly rated on checkatrade. He turned up in a clean new van and was professional with uniform on etc. Night and day to that idiot that came over before. He said it would take around 4 days to do and he would need to dig out what is there now. He said the hardcore was far too high and the blocks would be too high and near enough touching the DPC. The drive is approx 75sm. Then down the side of the house as well which is 9sqm so about 85sqm in total with 60mm eaton setts. £4000.

m3jappa may be the man to comment on the price as my experience on pricing is a bit dated now however it sounds good if not a bit cheap to me. Although I realise some dig & cart has been done already.

Check whether this includes the dreaded V,A,T,..... good luck.

[Bristol spark]

wjwren said:

Had a chap came over that is highly rated on checkatrade. He turned up in a clean new van and was professional with uniform on etc. Night and day to that idiot that came over before. He said it would take around 4 days to do and he would need to dig out what is there now. He said the hardcore was far too high and the blocks would be too high and near enough touching the DPC. The drive is approx 75sm. Then down the side of the house as well which is 9sqm so about 85sqm in total with 60mm eaton setts. £4000.

It may be nothing, but im surprised he would give a price instantly like that.

Im obviously a very different trade, but would never give a price instantly like that (unless its to change a light bulb)

I would want a good day to think it through, else you miss things.

[alfie2244]

Bristol spark said:

wjwren said:

Had a chap came over that is highly rated on checkatrade. He turned up in a clean new van and was professional with uniform on etc. Night and day to that idiot that came over before. He said it would take around 4 days to do and he would need to dig out what is there now. He said the hardcore was far too high and the blocks would be too high and near enough touching the DPC. The drive is approx 75sm. Then down the side of the house as well which is 9sqm so about 85sqm in total with 60mm eaton setts. £4000.

It may be nothing, but im surprised he would give a price instantly like that.

Im obviously a very different trade, but would never give a price instantly like that (unless its to change a light bulb)

I would want a good day to think it through, else you miss things.

I can see where you are coming from but as a ball park figure, had I been up to date with costs of mat / labour I could have worked out a square metre price...and from what I see, not that the OP would agree, this appears to be a fairly simple straightforward job.

£4k / 85 = £47 per sq/m... he makes no mention of edgings, cuts around manholes etc which would need to be priced separately..... I really do think the OP should get a written fully costed / itemised quote (not estimate) before he tells the guy to go ahead as that price sounds a bit cheap to me.

[wjwren]

that included 2 manhole covers and edging. I will get full written confirmation if i go ahead.

[m3jappa]

Its very cheap tbh, its too cheap at £47 a meter! unless stuff like grabs and type 1 are cheap where you are.

I don't mind if you want me to have a look at his page, pm me if you like and ill have a nose and tell you what i think.

Theres a paving page on Facebook and there are a significant number of people who do a very very good job, might be worth joining that. However expect to pay more like £80+ a meter.

[wjwren]

bare in mind ive already had it dug up and hardcore down (to a certain degree) so the price per sqm should be lower. He said if id had it done from scratch then it would be £5k.

[photosnob]

The price has already doubled for you really. And there is going to be more headaches to come I think. Can you not just put some top soil down, then some turf and park on the road? Would be a much cheaper solution and something you could do yourself.

[alfie2244]

wjwren said:

bare in mind ive already had it dug up and hardcore down (to a certain degree) so the price per sqm should be lower. He said if id had it done from scratch then it would be £5k.

But the hardcore needs digging up again, the area re-dug lower (and taken away) to correct levels to attain 150mm below DPC, hardcore put back down and extra added probably as much as already put down.

If the areas is as you 85sq/m say then the price, to do a proper job, should be nearer £8k IMO.

I really think you need to take m3jappa up on his kind offer and pm him.

[Mojooo]

8k for that drive to be done from scratch sounds way too high.

5k all in sounds pretty top end for me.

I would get another quote anyway if I was OP.

[Andehh]

OP - I wouldn't rush in with the next builder, get a couple more quotes & suss out how you feel about them. Getting a good vibe, from a builder who very clearly describes what he would do is worth the extra week or two delay!

Ask them what depth they would recommend, what sort of hardcore should go down etc etc - 'play dumb' to make sure they answer everything correctly...

Ask if they have any local projects you can inspect/go and have a look at/drive by?


Don't rush into anything, i know this is all a massive ballache now - but everyone has these sorts of jobs that should have been simple/fairly priced & end up being a nightmare. It's all worth it in the end!

[hyphen]

^^ Is builder being used as a generic term? As driveway specialists tend to be 'driveway and landscaping' companies rather than general builder.

OP- have you looked at the approved installer list for Marshalls/Bretts etc. As you would imagine their workmanship would be to a good standard. M3Jappa would that be correct?

Edited by hyphen on Friday 5th May 07:54

[wjwren]

The original bloke text me today asking me when am i going to transfer the money to him for the blocks! Tried calling but he is very shy for some reason on the phone.

I will be taking my time on making any decisions