estimate too expensive

[ewan]

comments please. Went to look at fitting thermostatic shower above bath, currently no shower. Customer has unvented system and had already bought unbranded £30 shower so wanted a fit only quote. Being inexperienced I reckon job would take me 3 hours (possibly more but dont think i can base my price on more than 3 hours) I gave an estimate of £85.
Bearing in mind id need a couple of ts, isolator valves, 90 bends and 3-4mtr of pipe I thought I was probably underselling myself. only to be informed more expensive than they expected as theyd been told it was a straight forward job
I wished them well in getting a better qoute

 

[Bartdude]

If it was 2-3hrs work and a few bits then £85 is a perfectly fair price. A £30 unbranded shower would probably be a headache to fit anyway,I'm sure they'll find a cowboy willing to fit it for £40. Good luck to them when it all goes **** up!!!!

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

£30 shower on unvented interesting sight when it blows up.......walk away mate custards a nightmare

 

[Blake]

You always get folks who want something for nowt or just don't understand the costs involved in having work carried out. If they bought a crappy unbranded mixer that says it all, feel lucky you did not get the job cos they would probably have haggled over the agreed price once you had done the job anyway. Move on to the next one mate and don't let it bother you

 

[PlumbBobBob]

they'll get a cowboy to fit it, it will go **** up and then ask you to sort it in the end.

 

[marleyco]

Nothing worse than your quote or bill coming in higher than the materials. They just Don't get it! If it was a 150 pound shower I'm sure you would have seemed reasonable.

 

[WHPES]

Dont waste time on customers like that. After a while you will learn to spot them quickly. Nothing but trouble - don't even bother quoting for the work. Let them get a cowboy or a handyman to do it as that is the kind of person they are really looking for.

Don't even go and try to sort it out for them if it goes **** up - they will still expect owt for nowt.

You can't polish a turd.

 

[PlumbBobBob]

you can, they did it on mythbusters!

 

[tamz]

As whpes said you will learn to spot them and you were too cheap anyway. Welcome to the 21st century plumbing game.

 

[GQuigley67]

you can, they did it on mythbusters!

haha seen that episode, did you see the one where they built a bridge from ductape ?

also I would have estimated it being more to be honest probably £30 for materials alone, who told them its a straightforward job that's what I'd like to know if there wasnt a shower there in the first place then its not straight forward, I got asked to fit a shower once for a friend and when I explained the work inolved they quickly changed their mind she thought I just stuck the shower on the wall and magically water came out of it.

 

[plumberdarren]

You can't polish a turd............but you can roll it in glitter ! Haha

 

[msw109]

just stay away, price is fair if you are inexperienced, if you are experienced then they definitely wouldnt be able to afford you......

 

[royston]

Agree with all posts, even the turd ones, better off not getting that job, wouldnt lose any sleep over it.

 

[dontknowitall]

I often decide on a job on whether I think I'll get a recommendation. Sometimes a job can be really difficult for all sorts of reasons and occasionally I'm told that other plumbers refused to do it (which is why I was called). The job might be poorly paid, but if it leads to another job or two and I've no worries about being paid and if I've not much work on, I'm likely to take it.

I was once undercut by over 50% but satisfied myself that the customer probably went to a cowboy who didn't work to current building regulations (one reason why my price was higher). Losing to a lower price is just competition and it happens and you just have to move on. I'll never forget the person who reckoned a £10 call out was too expensive but while I didn't get that job the next one came in at much more money!

 

[turnpin]

Proberbly the luckiest escape you have hadin future why not ask on here before you qoute to get some general idea`s what to charge for your jobs thats the type of thing this forum can be used forregards turnpin

 

[ewan]

thanks guys for comments, Im not bothered about not getting job as you all point out this customer would be hassle. the guy at my local supplier has said to me a few times that a lot of guys wont touch customer supply or if they do they charge extra. Also I was a bit concerned that the pressure on an unvented system would be too much for a crappy unbranded shower and even if you advise that you wont guarentee the part its you who gets the blame a few months down the line.
Lastly I think I was undercharging, even though Im sure time served/ experienced guys would do much quicker than me by the time you add in travel, restocking, estimate etc your pretty much half a shift and add in the cost of materials id have been working for less than fifteen quid an hour

 

[tackleburger]

3-4m of pipe from an unvented? Copper pipe and fittings alone are half what they paid for the shower? Straightforward for us yes but still half a day gone. Too cheap mate I would be looking for 120 ex vat at least for that. I probably wouldn't get the job but as soon as I hear that they bought this and that usually ends in tears.

Had a bloke last week asking how much to swap a toilet over. I said assuming waste is okay etc then supplied and fitted, decent toilet say £160. He baulked at that let me tell you. The joke is apparentlt someone else told him to buy one from B&Q and he would fit it for £40. So what he is really saying here is he wants it done cheaper than £100 knowing the toilet is £60!! Quite amazing really.