Beware These 'Tradesman' Scams

[paco]

Hi All

I have been stung by people doing the following - one from a tradesman recommended on this site.

1. Getting a quote

When I texted one tradesman asking for his hourly rate, he phoned me back and stated that he charged ?75/hour.

When he sent me an invoice, the hourly rate was actually ?90/hour.

My mistake for not asking if that included VAT.

However, I spoke to someone who said he did exactly the same to him - gave hime a verbal price of ?75, didn't mention VAT and didn't put it in writing.

2. Price increase

A few people have quoted me a price verbally, but when they arrive to do the job, they say "The part costs more than I realised." In one case, the prices was double what had been quoted.

SO:

1. Get a written quote - check if it includes VAT

2. Consider whether to decline the work if the cost of a part goes up

3. Check the price of parts - I was charged more than the price I could have got the part for!

Simon

[KidKruger]

Parts and materials have gone up in price significantly the last year plus.

So having a view on what a price for something is, only to be surprised that it?s increased over time, is pretty normal.

If the tradesman is being paid for his time to source/shop for the part, fair enough - expect the best possible deal.

[paco]

Well if a tradesman knows that prices have gone up, all the more reason for them to check!

[ianr]

Cidolphus means the tradesman's assigned VAT registration number. https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-vat-number https://www.gov.uk/vat-record-keeping/vat-invoices