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Hitler and the Holocaust atrocities continue to fascinate people and they're are highly entertaining. Who cares if they're always truthful?

It's nice that you can pass on all this valuable advice from other co-posters, but you can only talk about success if she really manages to get rid of the mould.

The initial problem wasn't simply one of condensation, it was mould growth in many areas of the flat. It not identified and treated correctly, this can have serious consequences for the tenant's health. I doubt that your simplified view of the world will be of much more help. There are...

There are actually family members who help each other. As there are people who would refuse to take any money from family members.

I wrote "knowledgeable and experienced" people not "con-men and cowboys". But I guess as the building trade in this country is infested with people you can't trust, many people will have to continue living in damp, poorly insulated dwellings. You've been wrongly informed because the...

Of course, you don't need a specialist, or anyone who has an in-depth knowledge, posting on a diy forum will do... That's why so many properties in this country are in a dismal state, with problems never getting properly sorted.

I guess if you've been called out to look at a house, the people who called you out must have assumed that you have some specialist knowledge of damp/mould problems. You're not acting as a clueless homeowner asking for advice. The replies given in this thread are indeed useful but - do you...

88 Quid my *rse. It's probably aimed at big companies who don't care about such amounts of money.

These people need advice from someone who's specialised in dealing with damp/mould problems. In particular there needs to be money to address these problems once they've been diagnosed.

Tradesmen could easily avoid non-payment by setting up a proper contract between themselves and the customers. This of course requires effort, diligence and responsibility. They will have good reasons why instead they rely on casual agreements and cash in hand after the job's finished.

Tradesmen can pick and choose for whom they want to work. And the guys who like to overcharge customers will know too well whom to target, for example elderly people as in Pippy's case.

I wouldn't bother with any particular estate agents, Rightmove and related websites give you a much better overview. You can live comparatively central for a low price if you're not too bothered about having renters as neighbours. In terms of areas, I wouldn't categorically exlude any of...

The workman that Pippy complained about had made the job sound much more comprehensive and time consuming than it really was. He was misleading and overcharging the customer. The itemised invoice that he sent to the customer consisted of fictional figures. Typical dishonest conman behaviour...

This work is different from the types of jobs that were discussed earlier in this thread. You're doing diagnostic work, so as a customer I know that I'll have to pay a minimal charge for that service even if it takes only a couple of minutes to find the fault. In an emergency situation like you...

It's the only thing that makes sense. If a tradesman wants to make sure that he doesn't undercharge a customer, he'll have to work out how many hours he'll need for a job BEFORE he starts the job. It's based in the first place on TIME, then factors such as required materials, skills etc.

I don't agree. If I'm quoted a price, I assume that this price not only reflects the completed job but also the amount of work that's gone into it. If a job can be easily completed in two hours, then the customer shouldn't be charged as if it was for 5 hours. Anyone who deals with workmen...

Sure, but these old-world master builders were not the type of present-day "builders" that Gavin the plumber was talking about.

Yes, but these master craftsmen were top notch people involved in the planning and supervising of the building project. They did not represent the masses of builders who did all the manual work. A shame, by the way, that masters craftsmen hardly exist any more in this country and that the...

If the customer pays cash in hand (and to my experience this is what most tradesmen expect) the taxman knows nothing about the income. It's a net wage for the builder.

The post is still there: PostPosted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 1:11 am I don't know how often customers refuse to pay for a job, when the job has been done to satisfaction. The only thing you can do, if you've been overcharged, is to find another workman.