miga

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Thanks both, what I wanted to hear.

We have a paved over hedge-less front yard, and I was planning to plant a hedge of Portuguese laurel this Autumn. Unfortunately, time has slipped away somewhat. If I were to buy some mature shrubs and plant them in the next 2-3 weeks, is it too late?

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Loz - I suppose we did come to a resolution of some sort (he made good the unfinished first half of the job), and we're getting someone else in to finish the job properly. If we'd wanted to wait another 3 weeks for the next available slot for a day's work, then I suppose we could have had a full resolution. I guess "a bit rubbish and pretty unreliable" doesn't quite get over the "bad review threshold". I feel better for venting anyway.

Positive reviews outweigh the negatives by a long margin in the tradespeople section. I'm pretty sure that hides the true nature of posters' experiences with tradesmen, which is that they are spread out between terrible and amazing, with most sitting somewhere around OK. The reason I asked about negative reviews is that our experience with an otherwise well-reviewed tradesman was significantly different to the fanfare in the section, and not for the first time. Tradesman32 - I understand that some customers might be unreasonable, and I really wouldn't feel great about endangering someone's livelihood, but if the only incentive for doing a good job* is "I'll review you badly on EDF", then surely that's a problem in itself - you should just do a good job for the sake of it (or, failing that, for the sake of your reputation). In this example I'm talking about a small amount of decoration work. Anyway - I think I'll err on the side of less hassle, and chalk this one up to experience. * good job = turning up as arranged (and confirmed); not doubling the time required when you turn up two weeks after quoting, only to leave it another two weeks to actually finish the newly discovered "second half", and then cancel the second half because "a mate needs help"; having your own tools appropriate to the job you agreed to; understanding that "can i use your toilet" usually means "can I have a wee in your toilet" etc

Is it done? Had a pretty unsatisfactory experience with a tradesman - but almost all other reviews glowing (it's not a plumber).

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