What do you charge - bathroom locks/doors

[HappyHacker]

My daughter bought a house owned by a man who had a business as a "handy man". He had fitted new hollow doors through out the house.

The list of problems included;
Door mounted wrong way around so handles and catch were not in the block and fell out,
One side trimmed instead of both so only thin strip (1/8 inch) to screw hinges into, they fell off,
Bottom trimmed so far it took the complete bottom lath off leaving unsupported edges,
Door catch morticed to size of face plate,
Hinges surface mounted,
Edge of trimmed door looked as if it had been done with eyes shut using a blunt axe.

I think they were the main ones, most of which I have remedied so she can use the doors.
But even some of his efforts were better than the photos you showed.

It was my inability to find good tradespeople 50 years ago that got me into doing it myself as I could not do it worse than some of the jobs I saw.

 

[niall Y]

Were there not terrible stories about Barry Bucknell's house when it was sold?

Those of us of a certain generation will know who this is, but for those who don't he was the DIY guru of the '60's.

Mind you, in his defence, he did say that he was primarily a TV presenter who's only DIY credentials were that he could hammer a panel pin in straight,

 

[J-G]

...he could hammer a panel pin in straight

... but not every one that he tried!

 

[Mjward]

Just to update as hopefully this is useful to others that might find themselves in a similar situation. I claimed for the door bodge last month, claiming for the maximum allowed (i.e. GBP1000) to partly cover future door replacements (they were GBP1500) and to cover the entirety of the labour cost (GBP540)

1. Within a week of my Checkatrade claim they had been in contact with the trades person (who apparently said the shoddiness must have been done by someone that came in after )
2. Immediately after, their insurance company contacted me to arrange an independent surveyor to come have a look, and he provided very good and immediate availability
3. Surveyor spent about 30 minutes at the property taking notes but on the spot was able to tell me he would recommend a reimbursement to the maximum of Checkatrade's liability (i.e. GBP1000).
4. This morning I have received an email from Checkatrade that they have the surveyor's report stating a GBP2500 total cost to rectify the situation and that they will ask the tradesperson if they intend to pay that amount, if not Checkatrade have agreed they will reimburse for my claim amount of GBP1000.

A good outcome to a bad situation I would say but it's good to know they have a solid claim process but as other's have mentioned, doesn't touch the sides if you have a big job but that's when you involve the trades person's own insurance or go through the courts.

 

[Bingy man]

It’s definitely better than nothing but I’m a little saddened that they don’t cover the full cost . It seems to make checkatrades position as a middleman pointless. A small job done badly and you will get nothing back, a large job and maybe the max claim , anything bigger ( house extension) and that £1000 would not cover your legal costs . The installer in this case is unlikely to pay up so checkatrade pay out . What then happens to this installer- is he removed and no longer recommended, or does he just continue with a lower rating. It just seems crazy that something designed to protect consumers is not really fit for purpose. I’ve stopped referring customers to checkatrade etc and I just say go by personal recommendations-friends family or work colleagues.

 

[johnnyb]

I'm stunned you got such great service tbh. I was fully expecting a brush off. they are expensive though min £80 a month so at least £1000 per year. wonder what happens to john Wayne?maybe three strikes and your out.

 

[Mjward]

I was also expecting a brush off so very surprised and moderately happy with the outcome.

Currently their profile no longer exists on the site so don't know if it's a temporary suspension whilst this is ongoing or a permanent one. I actually hope it's not the latter. I'm not here to wreck livelihoods and think the site would be far "healthier" if you could see trades that have had claims levied against them

 

[Bingy man]

Agreed - they could also include some sort of rating for the tradesperson who has then rectified the situation because let’s be honest-things can go wrong, mistakes can be made , parts and materials can fail. It’s what defines us as tradespeople or furniture makers etc etc that when things go wrong the genuine tradespeople will want to put it right if it’s our fault or something has failed after all it’s our reputation and our integrity that’s at stake. What I can’t accept are those that literally bodge the job and then set out to blame the customer and won’t under any circumstance accept responsibility for their shoddy work and poor customer service.

 

[Doug71]

Currently their profile no longer exists on the site so don't know if it's a temporary suspension whilst this is ongoing or a permanent one. I actually hope it's not the latter. I'm not here to wreck livelihoods and think the site would be far "healthier" if you could see trades that have had claims levied against them

John Wayne should be permanently banned but his name left with the words criminal next to it in big red letters.

He has ripped you off, massively overcharged for a very poor job, is he doing this to people on a daily basis? Imagine what he tries to get away with when working for old, vulnerable people? I wouldn't worry about wrecking his livelihood, it would be doing his potential future customers a favour getting him off the streets.

 

[Dave Moore]

John Wayne should be permanently banned but his name left with the words criminal next to it in big red letters.

He has ripped you off, massively overcharged for a very poor job, is he doing this to people on a daily basis? Imagine what he tries to get away with when working for old, vulnerable people? I wouldn't worry about wrecking his livelihood, it would be doing his potential future customers a favour getting him off the streets.

Hi,
Due to the problem of getting builders to commit or having time to do work my step daughter hired a very convincing cowboy to refurb the house she had bought who said he could do it all and project manage it for her. So now after finally twigging that he was a cowboy and getting rid just before last Xmas she is not yet in the house as a lot has had to be redone costing her a fortune. I’ve been finishing off her heating and other various jobs and am shocked by his work. She has a downstairs loo/ utility which she wanted a radiator hanging. Yeah no problem, where’s the pipes for the radiator? So the stud wall was tiled one side where the rad hangs and I had to cut the plasterboard on the other side to find the pipes so I could put them through the wall to pipe up the radiator. No drains on the heating system, only one in the hallway which was smack in the middle of the skirting so useless. Cold water feed for the downstairs toilet behind the skirting and tiles so no access. Ok so now the tiles have to come off to run the feed. No pipe insulation or supports on the heating pipe under the lounge hollow floor and sat on the concrete sub base, great for heat loss. Even though he had the stud wall stripped in the upper hallway it never occurred to him or too lazy to put a piece of board in the studding before replastering so I could hang the radiator on a support board. The list goes on and he’s still going around the town ripping people off.
Regards,
Dave

 

[Bingy man]

Hi,
Due to the problem of getting builders to commit or having time to do work my step daughter hired a very convincing cowboy to refurb the house she had bought who said he could do it all and project manage it for her. So now after finally twigging that he was a cowboy and getting rid just before last Xmas she is not yet in the house as a lot has had to be redone costing her a fortune. I’ve been finishing off her heating and other various jobs and am shocked by his work. She has a downstairs loo/ utility which she wanted a radiator hanging. Yeah no problem, where’s the pipes for the radiator? So the stud wall was tiled one side where the rad hangs and I had to cut the plasterboard on the other side to find the pipes so I could put them through the wall to pipe up the radiator. No drains on the heating system, only one in the hallway which was smack in the middle of the skirting so useless. Cold water feed for the downstairs toilet behind the skirting and tiles so no access. Ok so now the tiles have to come off to run the feed. No pipe insulation or supports on the heating pipe under the lounge hollow floor and sat on the concrete sub base, great for heat loss. Even though he had the stud wall stripped in the upper hallway it never occurred to him or too lazy to put a piece of board in the studding before replastering so I could hang the radiator on a support board. The list goes on and he’s still going around the town ripping people off.
Regards,
Dave

And I bet he has loads of work.makes me sick , I’ve said it before that I’m not a professional but I can do several trades to a good standard even though I’ve only ever been trained and accredited for gas installations and service . Yet these cowboys are still in business- I bet he has the words “ master builder “ they prey on the vulnerable, or those who don’t have the knowledge to know what is right and wrong, they can sweet talk there way around any situation, they promise to deliver knowing they won’t. I tell all my customers that I can do the work but I have no qualifications. Once completed my work speaks for itself. These fraudsters should be publicly exposed and held accountable. The odd one now and again gets jailed but it just the tip of the iceberg.

 

[BucksDad]

My opinion is a lot more trades should have to be registered and licensed with the council or some other authority so they can be held account properly for the work that they do.
The fact that anyone can potentially carry out major alterations on houses running into the tens of thousands of pounds of work without any proper registration / licensing scheme is insane

 

[thetyreman]

My opinion is a lot more trades should have to be registered and licensed with the council or some other authority so they can be held account properly for the work that they do.
The fact that anyone can potentially carry out major alterations on houses running into the tens of thousands of pounds of work without any proper registration / licensing scheme is insane

full agree, and they need to make it HARD not easy to pass, like insanely hard, so that it naturally weeds out the cowboys, without the license they can go to prison for trading illegally.

 

[HOJ]

In my view operators such as Checkatrade are just cheap marketing schemes for the “Trader”. At no point do they check the capabilities/skills of the “Trader”

This is the criteria for membership:

What does Checkatrade check? Here are the things we’ll check and what you need:

Identification. Have a photo ID handy, so we can verify who you are

Proof of address. We’ll need to see evidence of your trading address

Qualifications. You’ll need to show us proof of any regulated accreditations

Open-source check. We’ll search for any adverse media on you or your business

Personal CCJ check. We’ll make sure you don’t have any personal county court judgments

Business CCJ check. And we’ll make sure you don’t have any business county court judgments either Company history.

We’ll want to see proof of good trading history

Financial checks. We’ll carry out a bankruptcy and insolvency check

Duplicate check. We’ll make sure you don’t match any previously declined, suspended or expelled trades

PLI. You’ll need to show us that you have valid public liability insurance

Director search. We’ll check your company for previous directorships or disqualifications

Customer experience check. We check your reviews on third-party websites

So actually no criteria restrictions on membership.

 

[Setch]

In my view operators such as Checkatrade are just cheap marketing schemes for the “Trader”. At no point do they check the capabilities/skills of the “Trader”

This is the criteria for membership:

What does Checkatrade check? Here are the things we’ll check and what you need:

Identification. Have a photo ID handy, so we can verify who you are

Proof of address. We’ll need to see evidence of your trading address

Qualifications. You’ll need to show us proof of any regulated accreditations

Open-source check. We’ll search for any adverse media on you or your business

Personal CCJ check. We’ll make sure you don’t have any personal county court judgments

Business CCJ check. And we’ll make sure you don’t have any business county court judgments either Company history.

We’ll want to see proof of good trading history

Financial checks. We’ll carry out a bankruptcy and insolvency check

Duplicate check. We’ll make sure you don’t match any previously declined, suspended or expelled trades

PLI. You’ll need to show us that you have valid public liability insurance

Director search. We’ll check your company for previous directorships or disqualifications

Customer experience check. We check your reviews on third-party websites

So actually no criteria restrictions on membership.

The golden rule applies; if you're not paying, you're not the customer, you're the product.

 

[Mjward]

I've said since the financial crisis that it beggars belief that things relating to property (everyone's biggest spend by a country mile) is the most unregulated, whether that be from estate agents to trades.

Your phone/internet subscription gone wrong? Report to Ofcom

Your water company ripping you off? Report to Ofwat

Your energy provider screwing with your account credit? Report to Ofgem

Your trades person carried out below standard work? You're on your own sucker.

 

[paulrbarnard]

My opinion is a lot more trades should have to be registered and licensed with the council or some other authority so they can be held account properly for the work that they do.
The fact that anyone can potentially carry out major alterations on houses running into the tens of thousands of pounds of work without any proper registration / licensing scheme is insane

The problem with that is they stop competent amateurs working on their own property as doubtless citification through an expensive trade association would be needed on any job done.

 

[Mjward]

The problem with that is they stop competent amateurs working on their own property as doubtless citification through an expensive trade association would be needed on any job done.

It could/should work like it does for electrics i.e. a competent homeowner can do a lot of things in their property without the work being notifiable. Part P et al only kick in when it is deemed the work is beyond the scope of DIY i.e. changing consumer units or fiddling with bathroom electrics. Within the woodworking world, most of the danger is from the machines we use i.e. I can't see the regulations preventing competent amateurs continuing as they are but should ideally draw a very clear line between amateur and professional. We are flooded with amateurs giving it a go under the title of "handy-man" then get wise to the higher labour charges of calling themselves "joiner" or "plumber" and so forth.

 

[HOJ]

It could/should work like it does for electrics i.e. a competent homeowner can do a lot of things in their property without the work being notifiable. Part P et al only kick in when it is deemed the work is beyond the scope of DIY i.e. changing consumer units or fiddling with bathroom electrics

There in lies the biggest problem, I would suggest most "homeowners" are oblivious to the requirements of Part P etc, and whilst they can happily go into one of the sheds and buy anything they wish, and carry out work with no comprehension of the regs, nothing is going to stop them.

 

[deema]

There in lies the biggest problem, I would suggest most "homeowners" are oblivious to the requirements of Part P etc, and whilst they can happily go into one of the sheds and buy anything they wish, and carry out work with no comprehension of the regs, nothing is going to stop them.

I would also like to suggest most electricians are too…..or chose to ignore the regulations in the haste for speed / move on to the next job. There are of course excellent highly competent passionate sparkies who take pride in their work, but like in most professions they are a rare breed IMO