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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:01 AM  
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Eeyorefanuk
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Tradesman

Hello

Just wondering re quotes

do you look up federation of (actual trade)

Or I think there is a website with company names/reviews that was set up for people to check.

Thanks
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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:11 AM  
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FlorayG
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Just be careful of those 'check a trader' websites. Most of them the trader pays to be included and so lots of small companies who do excellent work don't bother to register.
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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:14 AM  
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Eeyorefanuk
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Oh thank you for letting me know that

I have had one quote but just want two to compare

tried contact another who just hasn’t come back

Don’t have lots in the know to recommend
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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:18 AM  
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Also be wary of anybody immediately available - a decent builder etc. will be booked solid by personal recommendation. If s/he can come on Monday be wary. My favourites always make me wait my turn which can be 6 weeks (but they will come out this evening after they are finished their regular job for an emergency, which a lot of bigger companies won't)
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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:36 AM  
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mickey house
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Basically a builder used to pay to be a member of a builders federation which anyone can join so it's a waste of space. As an electrician I had to be qualified and Part P registered to put an extra socket in your house, but a builder can build you a mansion with zero qualifications or checks on them (building control checks stages of their work but that doesn't mean they will do a perfect job or won't mess you around etc). A gas fitter has to be gas safe registered and window fitters fensa registered.

So a builder, roofer, plumber, plasterer, bathroom fitter, kitchen and bedroom fitters, tiler, landscape gardeners etc require no qualifications whatsoever and don't have to be registered. Clearly some are better than others so sites like checkatrade who I used to be a member of tend to be better than getting a leaflet through your door. The reason I say this is because to join checkatrade you have to pay at least a grand a year to them and most decent tradespeople won't do rubbish work and risk bad feedback when they're paying so much, plus you can check through dozens of their customer reviews.

Even have a Part P registered electrician, a gas safe registered gas fitter etc doesn't guarantee the tradesperson will be reliable and even do a great job, but just that they have are appropriately qulaified and assessed.
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Old 31 Jul 20, 08:55 AM  
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Old 31 Jul 20, 11:51 AM  
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We were in the same boat with moving to a new area and needing lots of work done. I basically used checkatrade as that is supposed to be verified rather than facebook and google as that can be just friends uploading reviews! We did also ask our new neighbours for recommendations, but to be honest that didn't work out very well as most didn't get back to us!

For instance I had 3 quotes for the bathroom work - 1 was stupid money, recommended by bathroom suppliers, 2nd was a recommendation who came out but then phoned and said job was too big for him and 3rd was a builder/carpenter on Checkatrade and he has turned out to be fab.

Windows and doors we had about 5, 2 recommendations, 1 a local shop and the other 2 I found myself. I ended up using the 2 I found myself!

A new oil boiler I used Worcesters own approved fitter list in conjunction with Checkatrade. Builders for the garage conversion, neighbour gave me 2 recommendations one didn't reply to my voice mail, the other did, set up an appointment and then didn't show or contact me! The chap we found for the bathrooms can also do this job so as long as his quote is around our budget we won't be getting other quotes for the next stage of our renovation. He has arranged the plumber, plasterer, electrician for us who have all been great. The tiler's work was great but not so his timekeeping etc so we probably wouldn't use him again if we need a tiler. The decorator we are waiting for at the moment.

A long way of saying, I have ended up going with people who I felt comfortable with and who checked out on checkatrade and other reviews and so far we have been lucky. Good luck!
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Old 31 Jul 20, 11:59 AM  
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olgaandcoda
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Originally Posted by mickey house View Post
Basically a builder used to pay to be a member of a builders federation which anyone can join so it's a waste of space. As an electrician I had to be qualified and Part P registered to put an extra socket in your house, but a builder can build you a mansion with zero qualifications or checks on them (building control checks stages of their work but that doesn't mean they will do a perfect job or won't mess you around etc). A gas fitter has to be gas safe registered and window fitters fensa registered.

So a builder, roofer, plumber, plasterer, bathroom fitter, kitchen and bedroom fitters, tiler, landscape gardeners etc require no qualifications whatsoever and don't have to be registered. Clearly some are better than others so sites like checkatrade who I used to be a member of tend to be better than getting a leaflet through your door. The reason I say this is because to join checkatrade you have to pay at least a grand a year to them and most decent tradespeople won't do rubbish work and risk bad feedback when they're paying so much, plus you can check through dozens of their customer reviews.

Even have a Part P registered electrician, a gas safe registered gas fitter etc doesn't guarantee the tradesperson will be reliable and even do a great job, but just that they have are appropriately qulaified and assessed.
Checkatrade members have all their insurances checked too. My husband is a roofer and top one in our area, all feedback based. Do your research, and don't employ anyone you don't get a good vibe from.
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Old 31 Jul 20, 12:10 PM  
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cornishfrogboy
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A good builder is hard to pin down and get on site. You have to be patient as he will inevitably be in great demand.

A good builder or tradesman in my area will not need to advertise. He will have more than enough work already and rely on recommends.

I am fortunate to live in my home town, having returned from the Army over 30 years ago. I am thus well aware of those that are good, those that overcharge, those who are unreliable and those that are utterly useless. If I am short of a tradesman through a retirement, I will simply ask friends or family for a further recommend.

I currently have a builder converting one of my garages into a Dining Room. I have known of him for 20 plus years, I am friends with both his sisters (One of whom came to my wedding) and even know his mother and his cousin in Australia. He has recently done a similar job on a friends house and from that, got recommended to me by that client. He won’t let me down.

I am fortunate to be in a similar position for Gas, Electricity, Plastering, Groundwork and Roofing.

Plumbers are a different matter. It might be the lead in the pipes.. Few builders feel able to recommend any Plumber in West Cornwall. My Dad had one round to look at his Loo Flush and that Plumber went away, saying that he would have lunch and be back with parts in the afternoon. That was 27 years ago and he still has not returned!
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Old 31 Jul 20, 12:51 PM  
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mickey house
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Originally Posted by olgaandcoda View Post
Checkatrade members have all their insurances checked too. My husband is a roofer and top one in our area, all feedback based. Do your research, and don't employ anyone you don't get a good vibe from.
Checkatrade are good in that respect because they actually visit the trader at home to check all business records, insurances, qualifications etc.

The likes of mybuilder and rated people basically take anyone. When I gave my hourly rate to people and they started complaining how expensive I was (I wasn't) I would tell they would be better suited to using mybuilder as the so called traders are cheap, usually rubbish but cheap (often people at that point would put the phone down on me).
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