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Legal obligation to pay hourly rate
Anonymous user 14/03/2024 - 2.33 PM
I made the mistake of agreeing with a builder to do works on an hourly rate. I had previously used this builder on an estimate basis without ant problem. He never told us his hourly rate and I blame myself for not insisting but trusted him not to rip us off. He did work to gardens and now is claiming 304 hours work at £19 + VAT per hour. Do we have a legal obligation to pay him what he wants or can we negotiate with him to agree a figure that we think the job is worth?
Are you a tradesperson and able to answer this question?
5 Answers
Rowan Groundworks Ltd
Rating: 5 out of 5
Hi, We pay our labourers £20-00 per hr, the rate you are being charged is not excessive, its the hours you must try and knock down, any more than 8hr a day i would not pay
Peter
Answered18 September 2014
1
Wrights Landscapes
Rating: 5 out of 5
You don't say wether or not you had a written contract in place? Maybe it would be of help asking him for a break down of his said hours and what he has done in those hours?
Answered15 August 2014
0
tm property services
Rating: 5 out of 5
the hourly rate is not excessive but you should have kept a record of his hours, ask for proof of hours/work done then you may be able to negotiate , regards Terry.
Answered16 August 2014
0
Room-by-Room (UK) Ltd
Rating: 4.7 out of 5
Hello,
If you had an agreement with the builder to pay him on an hourly rate I would expect him to be able to show me a significant amount of work completed for 38 days on the job.
I'm not a solicitor but I think that you may find that verbal agreement is as strong a bond as a written contract. He really needs to provide you with his paperwork to show the days he worked and what work was started and completed.
regards
Andrew
Answered22 October 2014
0
Fabgrass ltd
Rating: 5 out of 5
i would ask for a breakdown of hours for each part of the job and then repost your questions to see what other landscapers would charge. 304 hours seams to be a very long time to be on a garden job but depends on the type of job he was doing.
Regards Rick
Answered6 December 2014
0