Charging for quotes

[Brown and Boris]

I have some damproofing work needs doing, perhaps £1k worth of work. Rang three local trademen, all within 3 miles. Two quite happy to come out at a time tio suit them ( I work from home). The third wanted £25 ('refundable if we get the work') to come out.

I can understand that there is a time committment on their part but surely quoting is part and parcel of being a tradesman? As it is, the stroppy woman on the phone couldn't be bother to justify the charge and hung u on me when I wanted to know why they charged and others didn't. Great customer service. They must be rushed off their feet with work.

[Brown and Boris]

maser_spyder said:

What sort of damp-proofing?

Some underground tanking across 2 and a bit walls, and replastering. It has been done before (not tanking though) but was giving problems within 18 months. The damproof companty did not admit their system had failed but did re-do it was a 'gesture of goodwill'. By the time we moved in 12 or 15 years later it was showing signs of being breached again, so we knew we had work to do. Then the 2007 floods came and the damp company walked away from the gurantee (which really a fool would have issued given it was below ground and hadn't been tanked).

This current damp is artially due to the floods in 2007, but it has taken this long to do the final room as we have had to move around the house as work has been done. It is an old stone coarse rumbled house and DPC just doesn't work, especially in the bit below ground, although we found that they had tried injecting the stone every 8 inches is a sort of matric pattern over the wall then laying polythene over it before puting up battens, boarding and skilling. It had worked quite well for 20 years until the battens got wet at the bottom in the floods, warped and split the joints between the boards.


I think the bigger companies and those who have to travel (like parquet flooring man) are less willing to opo out knowing they ae one of a number of quotes.

Edited by Brown and Boris on Monday 20th April 07:50