Hello there, we have an account with Travis Perkins having purchased thousands of pounds worth of goods for our extention and think we have been overcharged on the latest bill. We went to our local branch and took 4x 25kg plastering sand=2.85 pounds per bag which is okay but also had 1x blue circle 25kg cement bag for 6.34 pounds. We have had the same cement bags from them a few months ago at half this price and have had the same cement from b and q for 4.50 pounds. Have they made an error this time or have there prices gone up hugely?
Travis Perkins over charging?
- Thread starter ademco
- Start date
Sponsored Links
TP & all the large national Builders Merchant chains are the biggest rip off merchants going for the general “joe”, even with a “trade” account which really only gets you free delivery anyway! They will charge/overcharge you list on everything unless you kick them in the balls & even with the up to 60% discount you can get without too much trouble, they are still way OTT as youve just found out!
This is a regular topic on here & anyone who knows better doesn’t bother with them. Personally, I will only use any of the national BM’s if I’m stuck & have no choice, particularly for cement/plaster/drainage products. I use ---- B&Q trade outlet for all my cement & plaster products; you may get slightly cheaper but you won’t get fresher because, at the prices they charge, they sell so much of it!
If you’ve got a large project on, do yourself a good turn & cast your net wider or it will probably cost you twice as much in materials as it should! Internet supplies will certainly be cheaper for most stuff even with the minimum delivery charge on larger items if you order over £100 worth.
This is a regular topic on here & anyone who knows better doesn’t bother with them. Personally, I will only use any of the national BM’s if I’m stuck & have no choice, particularly for cement/plaster/drainage products. I use ---- B&Q trade outlet for all my cement & plaster products; you may get slightly cheaper but you won’t get fresher because, at the prices they charge, they sell so much of it!
If you’ve got a large project on, do yourself a good turn & cast your net wider or it will probably cost you twice as much in materials as it should! Internet supplies will certainly be cheaper for most stuff even with the minimum delivery charge on larger items if you order over £100 worth.
nope basaicly as said the mark up 300% and thats there base price
you will get between 20 and 40% off just for breathing and 50 to 70% off for trade
i have a travis within 200mtr off my house but they dont even register with my timber planning as i like constant and predictable i only get 10 to 20% off from ryall and edwards but this equaits to 70% off at travis plus the timber is 99% useable
you will get between 20 and 40% off just for breathing and 50 to 70% off for trade
i have a travis within 200mtr off my house but they dont even register with my timber planning as i like constant and predictable i only get 10 to 20% off from ryall and edwards but this equaits to 70% off at travis plus the timber is 99% useable
Sponsored Links
Travis have had their few years of aggresive take overs of the small merchants, now it has to be paid for.
I've got an account with them but I'm not using it now, they put £25 extra on a bulk bag. I was only paying £30 per bag so that's a big increase they can't justify. If I go back to them I'll get a refund, which takes ages, but I'd rather deal with somebody else.
Selco are now doing good prices so I've started using them for some things.
I've got an account with them but I'm not using it now, they put £25 extra on a bulk bag. I was only paying £30 per bag so that's a big increase they can't justify. If I go back to them I'll get a refund, which takes ages, but I'd rather deal with somebody else.
Selco are now doing good prices so I've started using them for some things.
H
hotrod
Not so much Travis Perkins as Dick Turpin.
I used to work at a TP branch a few years ago as a Lorry driver. when they were short staffed i was trained to work the counter and if a DIY'er came in and wanted a piece of wood the computer tells you the list price ( which i thought was a lot of money) if a tradesman came in he would instant ask for discount and we could give him 33% off!!! ( timber this is) So basically the DIY'er gets ripped off big time. Although they have good experience in the building trade for advice etc which B&Q don't.
You can say this about any company.
Look at the prices of a packet of 10 bolts from B&Q, and it will be more than the price of a box of 50 from Screwfix
A pot of paint from Selco will be 1/3 more than the same pot at Wilkinsons.
TP must be doing something right or they would not still be in business
Look at the prices of a packet of 10 bolts from B&Q, and it will be more than the price of a box of 50 from Screwfix
A pot of paint from Selco will be 1/3 more than the same pot at Wilkinsons.
TP must be doing something right or they would not still be in business
The moral is if it’s your money, you have to shop around; there is no “one stop” shop for everything but for me, the big nationals are a “no stop” shop for anything unless I’m really stuck.
The reason WHY they are still in business is not that difficult to fathom; like Tosco’s, they are everywhere, some of them trading under the same parent company. They are just so convenient & most local builders/tradesmen that use them will just invoice materials “at cost” (without the discount!) to the poor unsuspecting customer. They all know that the average “joe” hasn’t really got a clue on prices. It’s a self perpetuating “comfort zone” but a bloody great rip off non the less; but they do have to pay for the corporate entertainment days somehow I suppose
The current economic climate may well change it though & from what I’m being told by some, there may be problems for them ahead!
The reason WHY they are still in business is not that difficult to fathom; like Tosco’s, they are everywhere, some of them trading under the same parent company. They are just so convenient & most local builders/tradesmen that use them will just invoice materials “at cost” (without the discount!) to the poor unsuspecting customer. They all know that the average “joe” hasn’t really got a clue on prices. It’s a self perpetuating “comfort zone” but a bloody great rip off non the less; but they do have to pay for the corporate entertainment days somehow I suppose
The current economic climate may well change it though & from what I’m being told by some, there may be problems for them ahead!
H
hotrod
Not quiet sure why the sarcasm or what your point is butlol - yeah no sh*t sherlock
• Drop in sales ahead of expectations 14% on last year 19% in the last quarter
• Extra funding by way of £300m rights issue needed to play down a £1bn debt
• Close to breaching the terms of its loan agreements
• Suspeneded shares didvindend for 2008
• 14% staff cuts
I’d call that a bit of a problem; Northern Rock thought it was untouchable!
H
hotrod
Hey Richard, I was agreeing with you! I was referring to TP being in dire straits and having to launch a rights issue for £500m (more than the £350m-£400m the market was expecting).
My "lol - yeah no sh*t sherlock" observation was aimed at Imran Akram's comment, hence the bolded text.
It was a veiled attack on TP's sky high prices, hence their not surprising "superior margins". I can see how it was lost in translation though. That's the problem with internet forums it's sometimes difficult to gauge the "tone" of a post.
I really wasn’t too sure what to make of it, it was the Sherlock comment that threw me a bit. Perhaps it was a little too subtle for my feeble brainHey Richard, I was agreeing with you! I was referring to TP being in dire straits and having to launch a rights issue for £500m (more than the £350m-£400m the market was expecting).
My "lol - yeah no sh*t sherlock" observation was aimed at Imran Akram's comment, hence the bolded text.
It was a veiled attack on TP's sky high prices, hence their not surprising "superior margins". I can see how it was lost in translation though. That's the problem with internet forums it's sometimes difficult to gauge the "tone" of a post.
; again, my apologies for getting you wrong. i was in my local wickes about a year ago when they first opened in the morning,and i could not belive the ammount of builders there getting their aggregates etc,got chatting to a few and basically they go there because its a lot cheaper for them then travis(thats not to say they wont charge top whack to customers)but what surprised me was that travis own wickes and they seem to be pricing themselves out of the market,the only thing the builders did say was delivery but if you own a big van then they were not concerend about picking it up.
DIYnot Local
Staff member
If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.
Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.
Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local
Sponsored Links
