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Avoid
the COWBOYS
It's stressful enough having work
done in your home without the added misery of dealing
with a bad workman. If you follow the four rules below
it may help you find just the person you need for
your job.
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How to find
a tradesperson you
can trust
It's stressful enough having work done in
your home without the added misery of dealing with a bad
workman. If you follow the four rules below it may help
you find just the person you need for the job
Rule
1 Ask
a satisfied customer
In an ideal world, what you're looking for is a tradesman
or firm who has successfully completed a similar job
for a friend or relative within the past year. If
nobody you know can recommend anyone, there are several
ways to arrive at a shortlist of firms to ask for
a quote:
• Through one of the find-a-tradesman schemes
or trade associations listed below.
• Via a local consumer group's list (your local
council should be able to tell you how to contact
these organisations; some councils even run their
own 'reputable trader' lists).
• From your household insurer.
• Through your managing agent (if you live in
a flat).
• By asking your neighbours and looking for
signboards outside houses in your area.
• By looking in local newspapers and classified
directories.
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Rule 2
Check
them out.
There are thousands of skilled, hardworking, painstaking,
organised and honest tradespeople out there. Sadly there
are also any number of who want to make fast money at
your expense. Here's how to avoid them:
•
Don't even consider having a job done by someone 'doing
work in your area' unless you can talk to at least one
householder who's prepared to recommend their work.
• Don't be swayed by time-limited 'special prices'
- they could be specially high for That kind of work,
so shop around first.
• By all means collect
flyers put through your door, but check the tradesmen
out thoroughly.
• Be wary of tradesmen you
can only contact by phone, especially a mobile -if things
go wrong, they're hard to find.
Don't suffer in silence. If you do get caught out, tell
the trading
standards department at your local council
- your case could help to stop someone else's home or
bank balance being ruined. |
Rule 3 Don't
take logos at face value
When you look at a letterhead, advert or directory
listing for a home improvement firm you're likely
to find at least one logo showing membership of a
trade association. Unfortunately you can't assume
the logo means anything of use to you. Although many
trade associations have codes of practice, the best
of which include complaint handling and dispute resolution
schemes run by an independent body, others have little
to offer the customer. Here's how to check up on the
logos:
• Contact the trade association to make sure
the firm is a current member.
• Ask how firms qualify - do they have to agree
to a code of practice, for example, or provide evidence
of good financial standing and workmanship?
• Find out how the association could help if
you were dissatisfied with one of its members and
whether it has a dispute resolution scheme.
• Ask what the association would be able to
do if a member went bust or disappeared before your
job was completed satisfactorily.
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Rule 4 Shop
around for quality and price
Ask at
least three firms for a quote and make it clear that
you want to inspect at least one similar
job before you give the go-ahead. Even with a relatively
straightforward project, write down exactly what
you
want done before the tradesmen visit, so you can
be certain you're comparing like with like. Here's
what
to watch out for when the estimates come in:
•
Did it take more than a week to arrive?
• Is it legible?
• Does it include technical terms or anything
else you don't understand?
• Does it indicate how long the job will take?
(Make sure you agree start and end dates.)
• Do quantities of raw materials such as paint
or timber vary between estimates? (Skimping on coats
of paint may indicate that standards aren't high enough,
for example.)
• Is it clear which - if any - materials are
included in the price?
• Will the firm agree a fixed price contract
before starting, rather than just an estimate?
• Is the tradesman easy to get hold of and happy
to answer your questions?
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These methods aren't perfect on their
own - nothing is a substitute for checking out the firm's
reputation and examples of finished work. The proof of a
job well done comes only when it's complete - on time, with
no uncorrected defects, no surprise 'extras' on the bill
and no unresolved disputes.
 The
Council for Registered Gas Installers (CORGI)
Tel: 01256 372200
www.corgi-gas.com
National watchdog for gas safety. UK gas fitters must
register with CORGI by law. The register of 44,000
installers can be searched by postcode. Ask to see
a current ID photocard showing types of work the fitter
is 'competent and qualified' to do. CORGI will take
up complaints about any gas fitter.
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Federation of Master Builders
Tel: 020 7242 7583 www.fmb.org.uk
The easy-to-use website lets you choose up to five
small or medium-sized building firms in your postcode
area from the FMB's list of 12,500 members. The FMB
has a code of practice, an arbitration scheme and
an optional insurance-backed warranty scheme called
MasterBond
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National Inspection Council for Electrical
Installation Contracting
Tel: 020 7564 2323 www.niceic.org.uk
An independent body for consumer protection and electrical
safety. Maintains a roll of 10,000 approved contractors,
UK-wide, searchable by postcode. Each contractor is
annually assessed and is required to issue a signed
certificate on completion of work. |
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The Institute of
Plumbing
Tel: 01708 472791 www.registeredplumber.com
A useful website, giving access to 3500 qualified
and experienced IP members.
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Electrical Contractors Assoc.
Tel: 020 7313 4800 www.eca.co.uk
Register of 2000 'qualified and accountable' members
who must follow a code of fair trading. All the work
is covered by an insurance-backed warranty and bond
scheme.
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