Cheeky customer

Discussion in 'Job Talk' started by Davebuilder, Apr 25, 2019.

  1. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    Priced a job up a while back. Was booked in for 3 months time deposit taken

    3 bedroom house
    Living room/dining room
    1 en suite
    1 bathroom
    1 kitchen
    1 wc

    Was to replace bathroom suites and re tile in bathrooms and wc.

    Rip out kitchen and fit new re tile and new lights.

    Paint all bedrooms stairs landings and living room/ dining room

    Then 60msq flooring and trim

    Customer just phoned up asking if I can do it for £2,500 lol. Short answer sorry but no. He then goes off it about why not. I will be taking there deposit back later today
     
  2. Dam0n

    Dam0n Screwfix Select

    Yeah leave them to it .You've dodged a bullet there i think.
     
    KIAB, Heat and Astramax like this.
  3. Astramax

    Astramax Super Member

    Hold back a percentage of the deposit for time already dedicated to time spent on sourcing prices etc.
     
  4. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    No just give him the full deposit back then he can get the idiot who has said that price to do the shoddy work that we all know it will be lol
     
    KIAB likes this.
  5. jonathanc

    jonathanc Guest

    if the customer cancels - retain the deposit!
     
  6. Heat

    Heat Screwfix Select

    What price did you originally give him?
    I assume it is a labour only price?

    And out of curiosity, - do you know what is the customer’s profession?
     
  7. furious_customer

    furious_customer Screwfix Select

    if the customer cancels because they have now decided that they are unhappy with the agreed price then I would think you are quite justified in keeping the deposit, otherwise what was the purpose of it?
     
  8. furious_customer

    furious_customer Screwfix Select

    Although I would say that if anyone has ever asked for a discount when buying a new van or car then they know where the customer is coming from.
     
  9. Heat

    Heat Screwfix Select

    But you don’t ask a car dealer for a new car for nearly free.
    £2500 labour is not going to go far. Then there is the costs of van, travel, builders insurance, etc.
     
  10. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    The deposit was for the 2 bathroom suites and wc suite also for the kitchen which was planned with Howdens and I was passing my discount on too.

    I have cancelled the kitchen now and told howdens why

    Dropped the deposit off and told them everything ordered has been cancelled. He was not happy thought he could still get them with my discount not a sodding chance
     
  11. dinkydo

    dinkydo Screwfix Select

    One reason for a deposit is to make the agreement binding on both parts, you have allotted a time and date for this work to be carried out, the deposit you should now keep, perhaps if this persons circumstances has changed and he could now not afford the work you may wish to help him out and return some or all of it, but this does not appear to be the case
     
  12. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    He can afford the work. Boss with railways. Just his attitude when i said no for his price. It was costing more than that for the sodding kitchen. I have kept all the plans for everything so he can get it all done again
     
  13. Heat

    Heat Screwfix Select

    You should have asked the customer politely - what money would they work for per week, besides the other business costs (van etc) ?
    It is a question that puts them in a corner, with no ideal answer.
     
  14. Kas228

    Kas228 Screwfix Select

    I’m not in the business as such but as has been said surely you are entitled to all or some of the deposit, it secured your valuable time in your calendar.
     
  15. CraigMcK

    CraigMcK Screwfix Select

    Personally the deposit is there to say you have agreed the price and booked a slot to do the work. If a customer wanted to effectively cancel the job at short notice I would be keeping the deposit unless I had work to fill in. I doubt there would be a judge in the country that would deem this unreasonable. Even if I did get a fill in I would keep a percentage of the deposit to cover work already done ie quoting, shopping etc. That is what the entire job cost needs to cover, without charging something you would be out of pocket
     
  16. WillyEckerslike

    WillyEckerslike Screwfix Select

    For that volume of work some tradesmen would possibly have been looking at the £2.5k as the deposit!
     
  17. Jord86

    Jord86 Screwfix Select

    Something doesn't add up. Presumably the customer was happy enough with the original quote to warrant paying the deposit in the first place? Either ways, you should have kept a percentage of the deposit to cover the time wasted and running about.
     
  18. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    Running about was nothing. Phoned howdens to get the kitchen designer and looked for the bathroom suites they wanted online.

    The deposit was a lot more than 2.5k each toilet for the bowl was 300 for each one alone and they needed 3.

    Found out some idiot he had heard about would do it cheaper the other person quoted Labour only which the customer didn't realise. Customer has been on the phone to me to ask me back on the job but no not a chance. Too long in the tooth for **** like that
     
    Heat and Jord86 like this.
  19. gas monkey

    gas monkey Well-Known Member

    Agreed price got there tools out customer said I be been thinking could you do it for, I put tools away walked out as they tried to get me to do it for original price but that's how some cultures are but not mine so I learnt and so did they
     
    Davebuilder likes this.
  20. Davebuilder

    Davebuilder Member

    Yeah why should we take the grief ? Sorry but not me I don't do it to others so don't take it back
     

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