labour charges

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called to a neighbors house yesterday
wickes pushfit waste for dishwasher/washing mashine and kitchen sink badly fitted and bowed clogged with that lovely grey smell rubbish in/ fitted an arms length away at back of units
pulled it all out de clogged and refitted it,charged 50.00 as it took me 2 hours as tried using a hose to clear it first but it was solid
my wife thought i should have charged less???
this is down sarf where cost of living is higher
my question am i being mean??
 
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I would have charged £55 min and I am up in Leeds. If they dont like the price which i tell them before hand then they can get someone else and no barganing either as i cant bargain with my adverts! They are not just paying for you to clear the blockage they are paying for your knowledge of the problem. 😉
 
I'd charge £45 for first hour and £17.50 per half hour after that... well maybe not for a neighbour but that's the going rate.

People might think that sounds like a lot, but we have to pay tax, insurance on tools,van and public liability, course fees, registration fees, advertising fees, accountancy fees, and after we've paid all that we have to renew our tools, buy solder, flux, gas. Then what's left over is ours.

Which isn't very much in my case!
 
Dannypipe said:
I'd charge £45 for first hour and £17.50 per half hour after that... well maybe not for a neighbour but that's the going rate.

People might think that sounds like a lot, but we have to pay tax, insurance on tools,van and public liability, course fees, registration fees, advertising fees, accountancy fees, and after we've paid all that we have to renew our tools, buy solder, flux, gas. Then what's left over is ours.

Which isn't very much in my case!
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I thought you could charge more darn saaf surely. £17.50 per half hour ? where did you get that from ,why not try £60 then £40 per hour thereafter and see what happens?😉
 
It works out at £35 per hour. Which is about right, even darn saaaf!! I swear people think that down here we can charge what we like and are all loaded!!
 
I charge £40.00 first hour and £25.00 hour after that, so it would have been £65.00+tax so... don't think you are far out.

I'm south-east coast, still get the "discount for cash" tell them to **** off.
 
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well, i am in surrey and we charge here 70 per hour (cringe) but that's what everyone charges. suppose the thing is this, if you get customers paying 70 an hour then they are the right customers aren't they?

If they want to buy on price then you will only ever be their plumber all the time you are the cheapest!

When the next cheaper plumber comes along they will show no loyalty to you, will they???
 
Gassy said:
well, i am in surrey and we charge here 70 per hour (cringe) but that's what everyone charges. suppose the thing is this, if you get customers paying 70 an hour then they are the right customers aren't they?

If they want to buy on price then you will only ever be their plumber all the time you are the cheapest!

When the next cheaper plumber comes along they will show no loyalty to you, will they???
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good logic thought there.😎
 
newbie1 said:
called to a neighbors house yesterday
wickes pushfit waste for dishwasher/washing mashine and kitchen sink badly fitted and bowed clogged with that lovely grey smell crap in/ fitted an arms length away at back of units
pulled it all out de clogged and refitted it,charged 50.00 as it took me 2 hours as tried using a hose to clear it first but it was solid
my wife thought i should have charged less???
this is down sarf where cost of living is higher
my question am i being mean??
Click to expand...
hi mate iam new today. i think £50 is fine, i would have charged the same. As the rest have said it's what we charge up norfff
 
newbie1 said:
called to a neighbors house yesterday
wickes pushfit waste for dishwasher/washing mashine and kitchen sink badly fitted and bowed clogged with that lovely grey smell crap in/ fitted an arms length away at back of units
pulled it all out de clogged and refitted it,charged 50.00 as it took me 2 hours as tried using a hose to clear it first but it was solid
my wife thought i should have charged less???
this is down sarf where cost of living is higher
my question am i being mean??
Click to expand...


What do women know about business? 😉
 
Charge what you think is right.
As far as neighbours go it depends. The old pensioner (87) across the road i do the small jobs for a cup of tea but she always takes in my parcels.
The prik over the fence i took £90 to fit an outside tap and he never asks anymore😀
Once had a knock on the door 6 o'clock xmas eve from a guy down the street who wouldn't give you a nod in the desert.
Boiler packed in, could i have a look. 4" of snow on ground. Wife told him yes before i could open my mouth (me - if looks could kill) so went round.
As i went in he said how grateful he was that i came round and if i could just get it going again as he was having his boiler changed 1st week of new year. Was venturi choked but fkd about for half an hour then told him had no parts to fix it and took £50 off him for my trouble. He had BG out on 27th and still doesn't look at me😀
 
for as large job i work on 15 per hour, smaller jobs a bit more, depends on what they are really. plus im very slow so i will make more than you lot
 
That is what I do take me time and lower my rate. Once took me 6 hours to put in an outside tap...

Cant really charge 50 an hour for that so i charged 10 and it came to 60.
 
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I would have got me jetting machine in and a few labourers, cleaned all drains out thoroughly, told them they could claim on their insurance and charged the about £2500 and put the money towards a new high fence round my house with electrified fencing on top ,to stop the neighbours annoying me with their blocked wastes and drains.
Don’t forget you pick your friends but are forced to live next to your neighbours,
I try to explain to the wife, just because a boring small, bald headed block moves in across the road, it does not follow I have to do plumbing favours for him, why do I want to stay friendly with neighbours, I see a few times a year on the odd sunny day and anyway any one who lives near me ,should be able to afford the large bill I give, as I told the wife its one way of keeping the standards of the neighbourhood up
Women just do not seem to understand!!

😀😀😉
imho
 
i hasten to add it was friday and ime still waiting for him to pop round with the money🙁
 
Always the same, neighbours, friends and family,

They all want mates rates, pay when they feel like it but want the same level of service as a full paying customer.

I try not and deal with any of the neighbours friends etc. Harsh but no good comes from it.

I explained to a friend that I still have running costs, if your working for a big company on a weekly wage its not as important to do the "favour" for a "drink" but if your working on your own, I think its a different matter.

Whilst your on your hands and knees struggling to get into the cupboard and the phone rings "I've got water coming through my ceiling" your a bit stuck.

In short I'd charge the normal rate, family I double it.............Can't stand most of them😱
 
If there's no work coming in for a few weeks, the customer is not going to pay your mortgage .or the town hall half my rates for that mth

the price is the price.
the call out or hourly rate is discuss before you start .

if they fart at the end just pay up you agreed at the start.

or tell them to get some poles in and draw him some picture next time,then put him up in your garden shed for 6 mths and feed him on the contents of the black bags until his green card is ready .

customers😡
 
I would be one of your neighbours asking for help..... £50 seems pretty reasonable to me..... and I'm in IT!
 
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