get a quote

[king.module]

just thought i'd share this with you all to show that getting a number of quotes is not stupid (but then again you know that!)

job - replace guttering and 1 down pipe on end terrace house in the north....


quote 1 - £1843
quote 2 - £580
quote 3 - £390

obviously we went for the cheapest option (we don't have a great deal of spare money) - had it done yesterday and it's a proper 'Bo job - aluminium gutters with a 10year guarantee - i seriously can't believe the difference in prices especially quote 1 (ok they were a building firm but still............)

 

[masona]

Quote 1, probably didn't want the job as they are too busy to make it their worthwhile and if you accepted it then they would be happy
That's my guess anyway.

 

[king.module]

Quote 1, probably didn't want the job as they are too busy to make it their worthwhile and if you accepted it then they would be happy
That's my guess anyway.

your prob. right... but i had a job lot of quotes off them that really would have made it worth their while and kept them in work for a few weeks with no real hurry about getting the work done... if they put in a sensible quote that is.... won't try and use them again.. and if anyone asks me for a builder i'll tell em not to goto them!!!! - their loss

but again it does show that you can't trust your first quote - i didn't know how much guttering cost to replace (other than the fact that it's really cheap for the parts - and that's only because i almost live down the shed at the moment )

 

[kendor]

Too many "tradesmen" try it on these days and give the industry a bad name no wonder then sites like this do so well as more and more people don't trust others to do the work.

 

[petewood]

We recently had quotes for an extension, the cheapest was £30000 the highest was £56000. I'm sure you're right about people putting in high prices if they don't want the work but it doesn't help their reputation. I have heard numerous times lately about tradesmen calling round at peoples houses to quote for a job and never bothering to get back in touch. I'm sure this is because they are busy enough to pick and choose the best/easiest jobs.
I am lucky to be in this position myself at the moment but if people phone for a quote and it sounds like a job I don't want to take on I just tell them politely that I am too busy. Most people accept this without a problem and it enhances your reputation because people know that if you are in that much demand then you must be ok. These are potential customers that you may need to rely on one day so it doesn't do to p**s them off.
Having said that, if they ask how long I think we will be busy for, I usually reply- hopefully about 10 years.

 

[kendor]

I'm sure this is because they are busy enough to pick and choose the best/easiest jobs.

read: best paid for the least effort!

 

[WoodYouLike]

Too many "tradesmen" try it on these days and give the industry a bad name no wonder then sites like this do so well as more and more people don't trust others to do the work.

Do you mean that they then try to do the works themselfs, or that they try to find companies who are recommended on this site, or even trying to get companies present on this forum to quote/do the works?

We are proud to have done a job recently, purely based on this forum

 

[2scoops0406]

It's important though that the quotes are like for like, in that you are getting the same or similar materials, same quality workmanship, same guarantee. It's always best to be skeptical of quotes that are way over the top, but then it's always best to be skeptical of quoters that are way under the others.

On quite a few occasions when I've obtained quotes, I've not gone for the cheapest.