7 weeks over schedule on an 8 week job - is it fair to deduct payment?
Anonymous user 23/02/2024 - 2.52 PM
We have had a builder in to do a number of jobs internal & external, including making good on a flat roof & external rendering left half-finished & badly done by a previous builder; tiling an internal floor; and converting a toilet/cloakroom into a wet room. We agreed all jobs to be done at the outset, a schedule of works (from beginning July to end August), and a payment schedule (an initial advance payment for materials, then payment on completion of each discrete job).
The builder provided a written estimate, but we did not insist on a written letter of agreement or a contract, and ongoing negotiations have been verbal. As the work has progressed there have been considerable delays. Some of these have been with good reason: a problem with the valve in the shower; discovering that some floor joists needed to be treated for woodworm & wet rot. Each of these problems caused a delay of 2 days max.
But as time has gone on the delays have become inexplicable, and the ongoing works increasingly inconvenient (the deadline for the wet room was to coincide with a tenant moving in; the delay on the external works meant we couldn't use our garden during September; we had to cancel a trip away because works were at a critical point; we have had people & mess in our house for 7 weeks longer than expected).
£4k now remains outstanding on the £10k+ bill. In these circumstances, is it reasonable to ask for a discount, if we haven't previously discussed doing so? If so, of what amount? And if not, what else can we do (or should we have done)?
@ Around The House & CW:
Thanks very much for your responses - reassuring to know our concerns not unreasonable. We'll try suggesting that a discount might be in order in the circs, and see where it goes from there.
Are you a tradesperson and able to answer this question?
To just say "7 weeks overdue, sack him" In my opinion that is the wrong attitude to have.. You should be asking yourself questions like,
1, is he there everyday?
2, does he spend the full day?
3, (and the most important) is it his fault the jobs ran over??
If there has been complications then additional time can tot up quickly..
2 more questions I would ask myself.
1, has he done a good job
2, is he likely to bill me for the additional time spent??
It works both ways
7 weeks is a joke. I get stressed out if my jobs run over by 2 days the max my jobs have ever gone over is 1 week and that was a massive job inc kitchen, 2 bathrooms and cloakroom. If your builder was with you every day he made a massive error in his estimates. All that being said problems always pop up but that seems a little excessive to me. Its a tough one to call. I do offer my customers a discount if I really go over my estimate unless I can prove where the time has been spent on unforeseen problems or changes in the original plans.
Very sad - but as they say shit happens. We've done some pretty large complex jobs and as you have we've priced each part of the job and asked for payment on completion of each part. Problems do happen but your builder should be discussing these with you on a daily basis. A 7 week overrun is crazy - he's probably got other jobs on the go and lost interest in you and your job. If you feel you've got what you've paid for so far I'd just dump him and find someone else to finish the work. If you feel he owes you some more work then you'll just have to persevere until you feel you've got what you've paid for. That said it's sometimes better to cut your losses.
Answered22 October 2014
0
Anonymous user
unfortunately more information would be needed for an accurate answer but I'm assuming your builder may have needed to use some other subbies to complete some of the work on this project in which case a 2 day max delay to you can be a week or more for him as he has to rearrange with said subbies before he can progress. also unfortunately unless you have a written contract stating an agreed finish date and an agreed penalty clause
legally you can not with hold any money owed but morally if any delay is the builders fault it doesn't hurt to ask for a discount.
having said all that 7 weeks delay on an 8 to 10 week job is a bit excessive and probably a combination of him not letting your delays impact his other projects and him know he has an excuse for over running.
