Around the House sunderland

Roping in cowboy builders

Home improvements can add thousands of pounds to the value of your home and provide your growing family with much needed extra space. But big projects are a big financial investment.

Justified or not, the home building trade has a bit of a cowboy reputation. Most homeowners have fallen prey to at least one shoddy job at one time or another.

Making the financial commitment to improve your home is the first step. The second is putting your money – and home – in safe workmen’s hands.

You can reduce your risk of shoddy workmanship, fraud or worse by using a set of tips to catch those cowboys before they head to the hills with your cash.

Ask friends and neighbours if they can recommend anyone. Be wary of people ringing you up or knocking on your door, especially if they want you to sign up to a special deal on the spot. Be cautious of advertising that comes through the door, particularly adverts that only have a telephone number. Anyone can claim to be a professional.

You should also shop around. Ask at least three traders to quote on your work, but remember that cheap is not always cheerful. Choose the quote that offers best value for money, taking into account not only price but also reputation for quality and reliability.

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Make sure the firms you approach give you a fixed price quotation and not an estimate, which is likely to increase upon completion. Be specific about what you want when asking for quotes, so that the traders are giving a price for the same work. Don’t be pressured into getting work done that you can’t afford.

There are questions to ask tradespeople. How long have they been in business? Do they have a permanent business address? Established traders are less likely to disappear in the middle of a job.

Are they a member of a trade association? This may give you some extra security as some associations have protection schemes or will help to resolve disputes. Ring the association to find out what protection it offers, and to check if the trader is a member as he claims.

Can you see references and/or similar work the trader has done in the past? Does the firm have insurance against damage to property – your neighbours’ as well as yours?

Is the work guaranteed? If so, is the guarantee insurance-backed, which means you are protected if the company goes out of business?

Guarantees are in addition to your legal rights, not instead of. If the work is covered by a guarantee scheme, the name of the scheme and any registration number should be included in your written agreement.

Traders’ own guarantees are worthless if they go out of business. But don’t forget that you have rights whether or not you have a trader guarantee. An insurance-backed scheme protects you if your trader goes out of business and is underwritten by an insurance company. Insurance-backed schemes may well be tied in with a trade association and sometimes association members are vetted before they are able to participate.

Try to avoid paying deposits, particularly large deposits, and don’t ever pay the whole amount up front. There is a risk that the trader will disappear with your money and you will have less leverage over completion of the work and quality of the workmanship. In all cases, you should try to keep back enough money to keep pressure on the trader to get on with the job and to finish it properly.

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