Leaving negative reviews for tradesmen

[miga]

Is it done?

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

[Robert Poste's Child]

Personally I think it's fine to do that, particularly if there are already positive reviews as people appreciate a balanced picture. Given your post asking about it, I'm sure you'd make an effort to word it as fairly as possible!

[Tradesman32]

Obviously you can tell by my tag what I am but I will do my utmost to remain unbiased.

In my opinion It is important to leave a review based on your specific experience and not based on the tradesman's previous reviews as the previous post suggests.

Whilst I am sure there was an effort made to resolve the issue there are always two sides to every story. I may be alone on this but If I was to be reviewed negatively on a public forum I would like to the opportunity to firstly avoid the hassle and resolve the issue.

However if that does not work and the problem continues to exist and here lies the question. When posting a negative review does anyone consider informing the tradesman of their intentions and offer the option to respond.

Would people prefer to read a review with a response to give an alternative view from that of the aggrieved?

[Jeremy]

I've left reviews in the past which were fair and balanced, but could be seen as negative overall... only to get a call the next day from the tradesman to ask that I remove the post. Frankly, I don't need the hassle.

[jimbo1964]

Could there be some sort of spreadsheet on the forum where people could leave feedback (say 1-5 stars) and a short comment like eBay feedback? It would mean just one entry per tradesman or business and avoid endless threads like the one about a certain plumber.

[Jeremy]

It would probbaly be open to abuse though...

[KidKruger]

In the building trade, as in many other sectors, a satisfactory outcome is dependent on many factors other than whether the tradesman is good at his job. For instance, a customer who cannot describe exactly what they want, does not fully understand the implications of what is being described by the tradesman, does not really know what they want, does not appreciate the 'unknowns' in building work could (in their mind) feel perfectly justified in being aggrieved by what they feel is a dissapointing outcome.

I'm not saying this is the case for the OP at all, but can be a factor in general, so personally I tend towards not posting negative about a specific tradesman unless it's blatant piss-taking with no scope for their having been any misinterpretation. I've recently had a negative experience with a builder but I'm trying to resolve it rather than take revenge via the EDF. I think loss of work for a tradesman is a serious problem and all too easily done with an anonymous throwaway comment on the internet. This may please the poster in the sort-term, but have significant (and perhaps comparatively unfair) consequences for the tradesman.

I worked several years ago as a self-employed handyman in ED and in Wiltshire and when working on repairs to houses you're often uncovering really bad previous work and some people are just not prepared to debate changes to approach to the job, overrun, extra cost and having to do a repair before you can do the job you were taken-on for. It can be a bit of a minefield for both sides.

[Robert Poste's Child]

Tradesman32 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> In my opinion It is important to leave a review

> based on your specific experience and not based on

> the tradesman's previous reviews as the previous

> post suggests.

>

I can't see how you got that from my post - I was making a point about giving a fair and balanced picture! - but I appreciate that as a tradesman you may be reading more into it than I intended.

[Tradesman32]

There are threads here about some trades that are excessive to say the least. They do say no smoke without fire but it can get out of hand.

RPC, I am also in favour of a fair and balanced review but i think its important to be solely based on the posters personal experience and not on a previous review.

We do extensive projects that can take anywhere from 8 weeks to 24 weeks and I find that it is imperative to ensure the relationship with the client is protected at all costs. It is very easy to forget that it is often the clients first experience of a large project and as much as it is fun and exciting it can also be daunting. However, I also think the client has a responsibility to educate themselves in what they are getting into. With us all being mostly only human we react differently to difficult decisions, expensive unknowns or simply the stress of having your home and life invaded by noisy builders. Construction is expensive. Changing during the build will change the cost. If you add things or take them away the cost will change. More often then not the change will cost a lot of money. Project planning and understanding what you are getting into is very important.

I have been on the receiving end of emotional explosions and The important thing for all concerned is to deal with the issue quickly, close it off and move on.

Doing most of the above is the responsibility of both parties. Although my company has not featured on the forum yet I am sure it is only a matter of time and I look forward to responding to all reviews even in times of adversity.

[miga]

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

[Tradesman32]

Hi Miga,

I think the incentive to do a good job should be found within the pride a tradesman should show in his work and his reputation. Where the works are of a small nature there really shouldn't be major issues. I am genuinely sorry to hear you had a bad experience. As a customer you should definitely get the service you were offered and are paying for and Any visitor to your home should have the utmost respect for it.

I wish you better luck in the future!

[Loz]

I rely on the EDF for getting good tradesmen and other services and, mostly, it usually is very, very good. Like TripAdvisor, you need to read comments and accept that everyone gets a bad review.

I try to post something when someone has done a good job and if a bad job has been done, I would certainly report it if no resolution can be found. I haven't needed to yet, though I came very close not very long ago. Fortunately, a sort-of resolution was found and steps taken to make sure it shouldn't happen again with others, but had it not been worked out then I would have been on here to report the problems.

One thing I don't do, though, is threaten a bad review. But that means that, if I ever write one, it will probably come as a nasty surprise to the subject. But the EDF is a reporting tool, not a weapon.

[miga]

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.

[red devil]

miga, I don't think your problem would warrant a separate thread which you sometimes see on the forum, but if you see this tradesman getting good reviews i don't see any harm in posting your experience or offering to PM. I'd certainly want to know if someone was unreliable...

[Seabag]

I usually look toward the car trade for a broader picture

What I mean is this

Subarau were the most reliable car going at one time, something like a 96% score rating

So, out of every 100 cars, 4 were duff in some way

I'm anti perfectionism, but I do think things should be well done

So, based on that; all good reviews are tempered by a less good one occasionally

As long as it's fair/not axe grinding, people will take it at face value