I had a quote through Facebook for a full rewire of my the home I rent out to tenants, the price was agreed for full rewire, half the payment was asked for up front and the other half on completion of the work, 2 days agreed, Yesterday I receive a message in the afternoon saying all work is complete and he would send over relevant certificates if I could transfer over the rest of the money, great I say I'll get that arranged, I then phone my tenant to make sure all work is complete, I'm told he's left the place a mess, he's removed lights and sockets and not replaced them, he's removed the outside security light and socket and again not replaced them, he dissconnected the loft light and didn't replace it, same with back security light, he dissconnected the garage saying it was unsafe but that was the point of the rewire, he ripped up carpets which are now soaking and ruined, one of the carpets he threw in the bath and the carpet grippers have chipped and scratched all the bath, he broke the toilet seat and left loose floorboards, I now have no faith in him as he's cut so many corners to give himself an easy job, but my question is where do i stand now as I've only paid him half the agreed amount, any advise I would greatly appreciate it
Yes had someone send me photo's of everything he's done and its an utter shambles, I'm just astounded at the quality of his work, the new sockets he's fitted aren't even flush against the wall, loads of old wiring left and still in place, holes left in walls, old sockets left and new sockets fitted in different places, I could go on and on tbh
No certificate has been issued yet, he's saying once payment has been made he'll send it over
I have another electrician going out tomorrow to check over it as he's not accepting any responsibility and still adamant he's done a good job there was 4 of them doing it and it was only 1 day even though he quoted for 2
My tenants aren't staying in the house just now
Are you a tradesperson and able to answer this question?
Hi There,
My suggestions would be to maintain communication as best as possible. Have you visited and photographed the premises your self? If not, this would be a good start. Then a difficult but honest conversation with your current tradesman. He would not be the first person to quote too low and realise there is not an honest margin in the work. Simply paying a little more may help but the description sound like unprofessional work practise. Discuss on the phone and follow up with confirmation emails. Also, if he is a member of a recognised trade body (Stroma, NIC etc) they may help mediate.
Finally, bite the bullet if If none of this leads to an amicable way forward you may need to call in a quality professional. A higher price does not guarantee quality but it may help exclude the cowboys.
Answered21 January 2019
1
Anonymous user
you should have used a NICEIC ELECTRICIAN AND never pay anyone up front,i would take him to court if it was me.., by the way a house cant be rewired in
two days if it done right..were are you in the uk
You do owe a duty of care to your tenants and should really have done a bit of digging before you engaged him. Competent Persons Register is a good place to start. I only ask for money to be transferred for materials only, then progress payments, then final payment on me notifying Building Control and an EIC without these two anything goes wrong and, god forbid a fire starts because of faulty work your house insurance is null and void.
Answered21 January 2019
1
Anonymous user
Have you received your electrical installation certificate yet ? Don’t pay anymore until you have that at the very least.
It’s a legal requirement to issue the cert and notify to building control. Who is he registered with ? I suspect you will never see a cert and I would guess from the sound of it that it’s not been tested. Don’t pay anything until you have your cert
Answered21 January 2019
0
Anonymous user
Some important info for you going forward.
A new electrical installation must be notified to the local authority building control before work commenses unless the installer is a member of a Part P scheme like NICEIC. In which case they can be notified after completion of the work.
If your cowboy electrician was not registered then the local authority would have inspected the work during the installation.
If your cowboy electrician was registered then the overseeing body like NICEIC or Stroma for example will indemnify the work and deal with the poor tradesman.
If you use this site for electrical work you’ll always get qualified people who are open to come back.
All the best
I never ask for full payment until the job is complete and the certificate received by the client.
I rarely ask for upfront costs unless it is a larger job, most electricians can get their materials on account for upto a month before needing to pay for them so it is not often necessary.
I suggest you try to maintain a dialogue, do some research and get second and third opinion from reputable local electricians.
It is highly likely you will have to spend more money to rectify his work and to complete the works you originally wanted done as well as too repair any damages caused.
You may want to dig a bit and see if this guy has public liability insurance, check if he is registered with a body using the competent persons register which I suspect not based on what you have said and to go take a look at the property for yourself to get photographic evidence of his work.
Sad to say but prepare yourself for the potential scenario that the money you spent is gone and that you will not see this guy again.
