Is this a normal price to quote for so little work?

[Gerrydelasel]

I'm having a new kitchen installed. There are sockets on the wall already, but two of them will now have cabinets placed over them, so I need two surface-mount sockets inside the cabinets now, in front of the existing wall sockets. Electrician has quoted £280 for two surface mount sockets and for hooking up the new hob to the same outlet as the original hob. £280 Seems excessive to me, that like one hour's work surely?

 

[ericmark]

Some stuff can be silly prices, this stuff for example costs £35 for three meters, not saying you have that fitted, but costs can easy mount up. And in the main one is looking at ½ day or a day, in real terms one could never do eight jobs a day, theory you should be able to do eight one hour jobs, but try timing your self going to do some shopping, no tools to unload, only popping in for a few items, and it's ½ day gone.

One can likely get 4 jobs a day with two guys, that's still ½ day a job, health and safety can't really do all jobs on ones own, even if second guy only a mate, and not an electrician.

If the work is brought to the tradesman, like taking car to garage yes can spend just ½ hour on a job, but when my son started as a sole trader he would always underestimate the time, in the main he would forget the time taken to write out invoices, write out estimates, and work out rest of paperwork, he would say I got £100 for 8 hours today (it was some time back) he would forget the 4 hours spent at home doing paperwork. Or going to the whole sale outlets to pick up parts.

One socket damaged, and a 15 mile return trip to get replacement, that's after hunting the van to see if you have a spare. In the main when he did get a couple of short jobs, he would then spend time twiddling his fingers, as next job booked for next day.

 

[norseman]

Get alternative quotes I'd say

 

[stubob]

You don't pay for what he does, you pay for what he knows.

 

[Deryck Tintagel]

I am no expert in pricing but going back 11 years I was quoted something like £500+ for two sockets, move one socket and add an FCU for cabinet lights in my kitchen refit.

 

[norseman]

I'm long since retired, but back in my working days I should have been an electrician

 

[pcaouolte]

The electrician has probably priced it at half a day, plus materials, plus VAT. As said above it won't be an hour in total, they have probably spent an hour looking at it and pricing it up, they also have to travel to you. It is going to spoil half a day.

 

[Gerrydelasel]

Ugh, I don't even need an electrician I would do it myself except but kitchen supplier needs it to be 'signed off' or something. Kinda wish they'd mentioned this extra cost during the quote period, it's adding nearly 30% to the actual fitting cost!

 

[EFLImpudence]

Do it yourself then.

Cannot the kitchen fitters just fit the cabinets with holes in the right place and leave you to connect the sockets and hob?

 

[Mottie]

I didn't think you needed anything 'signed off' if you added to an existing circuit? Hob can be connected after they've gone, surely?

 

[EFLImpudence]

I didn't think you needed anything 'signed off' if you added to an existing circuit? Hob can be connected after they've gone, surely?

Strictly speaking, the circuits should be tested and the results recorded - on a certificate.

That is all that is required if that is what is meant by 'signed off'.


But if nothing is connected while the kitchen fitters are there then it is nothing to do with them.

 

[SUNRAY]

I had this row with my brother in laws kitchen fitter. They had quoted something like £250 to connect the lights in the new cabinets and the oven. Oh and a similar price to fit free issued handles. In the end he was persuaded to not do the electrical work and fit the handles FOC after a threat of going elsewhere.
All the lights were plugged into 13A sockets above the wall units (sorry winston1) on the lighting circuit and a switch by the door and the oven on it's 13A socket from the 'cooker switch'.

 

[SUNRAY]

I'm having a new kitchen installed. There are sockets on the wall already, but two of them will now have cabinets placed over them, so I need two surface-mount sockets inside the cabinets now, in front of the existing wall sockets. Electrician has quoted £280 for two surface mount sockets and for hooking up the new hob to the same outlet as the original hob. £280 Seems excessive to me, that like one hour's work surely?

Yes it sort of sounds like an hours work, however does it have to be done in conjunction with the kitchen fitter, ie at the same time as this may involve some lost time.
As others have said it sounds like a 1/2 day price (depending on location and other things) and that tends to be a minimum time period for a job. I assume he has already been to survey and that time needs to be included too.

 

[winston1]

All the lights were plugged into 13A sockets above the wall units (sorry winston1) on the lighting circuit and a switch by the door

Why didn’t you do it properly instead of badly than apologising?

 

[securespark]

He wasn't apologising for a bad job, because it wasn't.

I think he was apologising for the inevitable rise in your BP when you read the post.