& How To Steer Clear
Hiring the right tradesman can be a tiring and time consuming exercise. Having dealt with many tradesmen, this article will help you hire a professional tradesman vs an unreliable one
You’d be surprised, how many tradesmen, painters, decorators, etc, have shown up to my house, spent an hour or 2 pricing a job, and then not sending over a quote. These tradesmen waste their time and money (and mine too!). They may as well have stayed in bed. This article explains how I choose a tradesman for my projects.
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Be Weary Of Professional Salesmen
Some companies engaging in actively outsourcing professional salesmen for their callouts. You will never see this professional tradesman again. Surely if the tradesman is worth their salt, they will show up themselves. If you spot this, it should raise eyebrows. If a tradesman is good at their job, why hire polished sales pitches to sell their services?
Watch: Comebacks after a rogue tradesmen & future prevention with trusted tradesmen
If They Delay, Say No Way
They tell you they will show up on Friday or they say they will contact you but they don’t. Tradesmen are busy and I get that. However, if I can’t trust you to arrive on time, or keep delaying or ignore me, how can I trust you to complete the job?
Only Sell-outs Pressure-sell
Professionals don’t push you for an agreement on the spot. We had a leak. We were not sure if it was a leak pipe repair or a roof leak. We got a roofer to have a look. They offered to fix it on the spot for €500, without questioning if it was a pipe leaking, or a roof leak.
I said “I have to ask my wife”
“Do you want to give her a call now?” – Asked the roofer
Only An Unreliable Tradesman Pressure-sells
I felt under pressure to buy. I was told that they we’re busy and that If I didn’t fix the roof now, it would be a few weeks until they wold be back. In heavy rain, it didn’t get any worse. I explained this to the roofer and they we’re still adamant the roof needed repair..!
Turns out it was a pipe leak
Note, that this was a legitimate company, registered with the CRO, had good reviews, etc… However, I still feel I was being pushed into the sale there and then. The plumbing leak is now repaired and the roof was not the issue.
€500 saved.
They seem to know & promise everything
If someone has all the answers on the spot then something is amiss. I would prefer they came up with solutions and then replied. No matter how many years in business, new issues arise & new questions must be asked. I don’t think any less of a tradesman honestly telling me they will get back to me, rather than knowing everything. They may be good at their trade, but I know best what I want…
Process Of Elimination
If you have 2 or more exceptional tradesmen and you don’t know who to choose, simply find a reason to eliminate the others.
- Perhaps a tradesman will barter with you? If so, choose this one.
- Who has more / newer / higher reviews?
- Who is longer in business?
- Who is registered with the CRO?
And Lastly, When You Know, You Know
More often than not, you just know. We needed a local plumber to install a new boiler. We were in a house with an had an attic. At no point did the plumber suggest or ask if we had an attic. Another plumber, who was a good friend, told us we needed to rip up the entire flooring upstairs.
The plumber we went with needed a new website. So we bartered with the plumber. Not only this, but the price was reasonable and had decent reviews. So in this instance, the decision was already made for us!