10:46 AM, 28th January 2020, About 5 years ago 6
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Leading tradespeople comparison site, HaMuch.com, has looked at the biggest gripes of trade professionals when it comes to working in your home and the things you might be doing that really get on their nerves. They provides a platform for listing DIY jobs to thousands of tradespeople across the UK and has compiled a list of the things that wind them up the most.
No Cuppa
It’s a very small gesture that can get things off on the wrong or right foot and while they may often decline anyway, not offering a cup of tea or even a glass of water can upset a parched tradesperson.
Late Payment
We’ve almost all been paid late for work at some point but if you’re going to splash the cash on home improvements or necessary repairs, having the cash in the first place is a pretty common courtesy.
According to the Federation of Small Businesses, around 50,000 small businesses go under every year because of late payments and often a job requires parts or materials to be purchased upfront meaning your tradesperson is out of pocket before they even set foot in your house. Don’t be that guy or girl that leaves them waiting for payment.
Pay with Money, Not Sexual Favours
It may seem like the set up for a blue movie, but it happens. The offer of sexual favours isn’t an adequate form of payment and with many tradespeople either happily married or in a relationship, it’s inappropriate and pretty desperate behaviour. As per the above, if you can’t afford the work with cash, wait until you can.
Other Favours
On the flip side, just because you’re paying someone to work in your home, it doesn’t mean you’ve hired an all-round handyman or butler to help with additional jobs. Believe it or not, people ask their tradesperson to answer the front door, make them tea, answer the phone, do the washing up, take the bins out, move furniture, help put things in the attic and even watch their kids!
It’s an Emergency!
One thing that is sure to drive your tradesperson mad is them dropping everything and rescheduling other jobs to attend your ‘emergency’, only to find it isn’t really an emergency at all. It’s a selfish way to get your job done quickly and one that puts out your tradesperson and their other customers considerably.
Free Advice
There is a big difference between getting someone in for a free quote on a job and asking them all the questions under the sun on other areas of the house once you’ve given them the go-ahead for some work. It may seem minor, but when picking a tradesperson’s brain for help on additional jobs you’re essentially asking them to provide you a service for free.
Standing Over Them
No one likes it when the boss stands over them at work and the same goes for tradespeople. If you trust them to do a job, let them get on with it and don’t watch them like a hawk while they do.
Don’t Supply Your Own Supplies
You may think you’re saving money, but a huge pet peeve for a tradesperson is turning up to a job with the supplies already purchased by the client. You may think it’s cheaper but often tradespeople can purchase at a discounted price and more often than not, you will buy the wrong materials and have to fork out twice anyway.
Tradespeople are an understanding bunch and if money is tight, they can advise you on where to go and what to buy, so that if you do source materials yourself, at the very least they have the proper stuff when they do arrive.
Other less common things to annoy tradespeople include tool theft on a job, unrealistic customer expectations, the paperwork involved in running your own business, fixing someone else’s shoddy work and a customer changing their mind on a job halfway through.
Founder and CEO of HaMuch.com, Tarquin Purdie, commented:
“When it comes to hiring a tradesperson for a job within your home, there seems to be a bit of a blurred line when it comes to professional boundaries.
All too often, people may expect them to help out watching the kids for 20 minutes, or to lend a hand moving some furniture while failing to extend basic courtesies such as a cup of tea.
It’s important to remember that these people are supplying you with a professional service and should be treated in the same professional manner you would adopt within your working life.”
| Biggest Tradesperson Gripes | |
| Rank | Gripe or Issue |
| 1 | Not being offered a cup of tea (or drink) |
| 2 | Late-paying customers |
| 3 | Sexual favours as payment |
| 4 | Other favours around the house |
| 5 | So-called ’emergency’ jobs |
| 6 | Advice on a different job |
| 7 | Being watched-over or when customers offer advice |
| 8 | Customers that buy all their materials |
| 9 | Tool theft |
| 10 | Unrealistic customer expectations regarding the cost of a job |
| 11 | Paperwork |
| 12 | Fixing other people’s poor work |
| 13 | When the customer changes their mind in the middle of a job |
| Source: HaMuch.com Tradesperson Database | |
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David Lester
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Sign Up12:48 PM, 28th January 2020, About 5 years ago
I would be happy if half of the so called "Tradesmen" could do a good job!
Austyn at H D Consultants
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Sign Up14:32 PM, 29th January 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Lesley Lester at 28/01/2020 - 12:48
It is hard to find a top class A1 tradesman but once you have one, do not let them go! They may be slightly more expensive than 'Dave' down the pub who could do it at 'Arf the cost' but its not worth it.
My Dad is a self employed decorator/carpenter and he has done extremely well by just being good at what he does and dependable. His clients are very loyal and most of the time, do not even ask for a quote. They know that he will do a great job for a reasonable price.
When I asked why he doesn't charge more for such good work quality, he said he wouldn't want to risk losing the trust of his best clients/friends.
You need to build trust with your tradesmen as you need to know you can rely on them.
Personally I think the whole 'Dave is 6p cheaper an hour so I'll go with him' attitude should be binned in favour of quality and the hunting for a cheaper quote should only be used if extremely desperate.
Peter G
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Sign Up9:36 AM, 1st February 2020, About 5 years ago
If a tradesperson is charging by the hour then they must be paid for their time even if this is just putting the bins out. However, customers should not be keeping them longer for such jobs if this makes the tradesperson late for their next job.
David Lester
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Sign Up12:46 PM, 1st February 2020, About 5 years ago
If you pay by hour the Tradesman will work slowly.
Sam Wong
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Sign Up17:07 PM, 1st February 2020, About 5 years ago
Too true. But if u pay by the job, they will cut corners.
Find yourself a decent tradesman n stay with him - easier said than done.
David Lester
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Sign Up17:22 PM, 1st February 2020, About 5 years ago
Most of the Tradesmen I used in the beginning did both, result a substandard job! Find a good one, wait until they can fit you in a pay the right amount for the job.