Reply With QuoteSmall claims court.
We paid a tradesman a deposit to do some work at our house. £500 deposit in September for a job worth £20,000 to start in January.
The guy emailed to say he will no longer be doing the the job. He wont be returning our deposit as this covers a day’s work he did for us in November, which was part of the main job.
Obviously im annoyed he no longer wants the job but also feel him keeping the deposit for his previous work is unreasonable and over priced.
What, if any, options do i have in this situation?
Small claims court.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
I wonder how many £500 deposits he keeps. Small claims court or write it off. Don't spend too much time or money on it, just count yourself lucky the idiot isn't doing the job.Originally Posted by Bangers
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
Check there is something to grab first having done that and basically thrown more money away! Ours was a £3,000 deposit and I am a buffoon…
What was the days work he did and how many men ? Did he have to buy materials ?
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What was the reason he gave for not doing the job ?
x10
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I paid up for an outside job on the promise the tradesman would pop back and finish (two days) and he's never returned. Others don't want a two day job, so I'll do it myself. Let's face it, it's not that hard is it? The term tradesman usually just means someone in a scruffy van with a few robbed tools, who leaves someone cash in hand to do most of the graft anyway.
Why did you pay a deposit in the first place? That would be a massive red flag to me.
Sorry OP, but if you have to go on a watch forum to ask ask bunch of people who know nowt about nowt, it's no wonder he saw you coming.
I hope you get it back but I'm not holding my breath. Small claims court is a good shout but I'm guessing he won't be around to hear the result.
Disappointing reading, good luck OP.
Just out of curiosity what nationality was he, the tradesman?
Last edited by Passenger; 26th December 2022 at 19:40.
A deposit secures the slot and shows client commitment.
I can count too many times over the last 40yrs when the customer has, at the 11th hour, changed direction and gone with another contractor.
It leaves a hole in the continuity diary.
Not all contractors are A- Holes.
Nope.
I’ve read it and re read it , but I’m still not clear what you’re trying to say here .
Basically don't pay them upfront. Let me know if you need help with any other posts. No shame in it.
Without a small deposit you cant ‘secure’ the job, most trades here are booked 6+ months in advance.
Even with this, I have never paid a deposit, ever.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Have you ever been asked for one ?
What would your answer and reasoning have been if you had ?
Personally I would consider writing it off to experience and be glad that they are not doing the full job. Add the cost to the job and forget about it.
I don’t know what work he did for you but depending on the hours spent, materials and knowledge used, he could argue his cost is justified. However if you disagree, then chase him. Let him know he is being unfair and you would like £x back otherwise you will consider further action. Keep in mind, for the small claims process to work, you will need evidence for a 3rd party to assess the case, invoices, contracts, communication chains, evidence of payments etc.
If I had a tradesman who asked for a deposit, that would show there is zero rapport/trust between us so he just could F right off back on the nag he came in on!
Oh yeah, a superb attitude. I bet contractors are queuing up to work for you then 😂😂
Exactly. I have a flat roof which needs re felting and fixing in the spring. £500 deposit paid a few weeks back with a reputable guy. Got to have skin in the game.
I have never been asked for one - the last 5 trades I have used over the last couple of years have not asked for a deposit. I guess I am conditioned to having not been asked?. All the guys I used (apart from render company) do not advertise and are pretty much booked up for months and months.
Builder - no deposit, monthly invoice payment agreed.
Sparks - same.
Plumber - same.
Plasterer - same.
Render Company - agreed to pay scaffolder separately (on completion), paid for the materials once the colour choice was made (happy to do so without any issues).
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
I have never had to or been asked to pay a deposit for a trade.
Pay as materials arrive, sure, but to secure a slot. No way.
"Bite my shiny metal ass."
- Bender Bending Rodríguez
At the end of the day, the OP paid 2.5% of the job price deposit and yeah, this time he got f***ed. And that's not good.
You mention having not paid money up front to Sparks, Spreads and Plumbers..... obviously and I'm going right out on a limb here, that none of the above was costing you 20 grand each trade to employ and carry out their tasks ( although you'll probably tell me that you were).
After spending the last 40yrs in the building game, as a building contractor, to arrange and sign a contract of intent to work and carry out a project, it is common practice.
Not on a piddling little plaster, sparking or plumbing job but a larger job of 20 grand + and way upwards means the customer gives a show of commitment to said job with funds held by a 3rd party in the unfortunate event the contractor should peg it.
As I mentioned in my initial response, clients have and do change their minds.
Why the f*** should I, as the contractor, be left with a sizeable multi week or multi month hole in my diary.
No thank you.
Bit harsh that… I could bite and say everyone in smart dress or suit is a thief… IMO….
Got to love threads like this. The responses range from debate over whether to pay a small deposit (or not) to paying someone entirely upfront!
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
That’s probably the ones you have come across. Most tradesman are hard working good people. A good way to spot a decent tradesman is one who will accept no money till the job is finished or stage payments for work completed.
If I had been asked (contractually) for a deposit then I would probably have paid one (I wanted the particular contractors for the job). I paid the guys a monthly payment to take account of materials etc.
It was in excess of £100k when finished (2 storey extension).
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
But even that isn’t entirely true all the time . There can be trades who have cash flow issues and might need a deposit to source materials and/ or labour . It’s not always black and white . I very rarely have to venture into the domestic market but from experience, I know the minefield it can become for both parties .
I didn't introduce paying entirely upfront? I paid the full balance with a small amount remaining (typical half a day stretched to two for dramatic effect) two days prior to completion. After three weeks on the job, I made a mistake trusting him.
On a tangent, are materials and/or labour charges still sky high? I have a ton of carpentry work I need to get done but don't want to pay through the roof to do so.
Building materials have gone up astronomically of late, for example wood has doubled in the last year or so. My local plumbers merchant has a running list of their suppliers price increases printed up on display at the counter and are now producing copies for the tradesmen as so many of them were photographing the details to show their customers.
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
Totally correct Ralphy and they won't be coming down any time soon (if at all, ever)
That's just ridiculous.
Good tradesmen are hard to come by.
It's really worth looking after them.
However, if they're worth the ink on their quote, they shouldn't need a deposit.
They'll have plenty of work in hand, and if a customer 'drops out' they'll have plenty of other customers just waiting to fill their place.
A request for a deposit is a red flag.
Same goes for un liveried white vans, no landlines, 3 million positive reviews, cheapo quotes and the inability to produce insurance or references.
I had a load of roofing work and new facias and guttering and 3 new upvc doors supplied and fitted neither trades man wanted a deposit which suprised me as the door man had to get the doors made to size, then I had a new radiator fitted 4 months ago there is a problem with it and the plumber won’t reply to my texts and phone calls tradesmen seem to be a very mixed bag
I am a tradie and for every bad workman story there will be a tale of woe about rogue customers, i have horror stories myself running into many thousands, cant pay, plain wont pay,and cats ate my chequebook
I never asked for monies up front with the exception of bespoke MTM items, in the end tho i got ground down by the customers,even the blatant mind change became my fiscal responsibility and took contractor works for my local authority fitting wetrooms and ramps. Its not a 52 weeks a year job but does enough to keep me in holidays and diary milk.
If making an advance payment, the purpose should be clear and if it is a deposit or part payment. The terms are used interchangeably and incorrectly. They are different.
Small works can be ambiguous as very little gets documented.
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Completely depends on the type and size of job. A tradesman might have scaffold, and skips booked, and other trades planned in which may or may not be required on another job. Customers aren’t always ready for someone to drop on them to start work days or weeks early than planned.
A deposit is fair, I’m even paying deposits at some restaurants now.
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