Whether you are looking for a new build or an extension to your existing property, it is important that you only use house builders in Bristol that are fully vetted. Bristol Builders Network does the hard part for you. We vet all our builders and keep track of all our past projects. Below is a look at just why you need to avoid rogue traders, with some frightening statistics from the UK.
The recession hit hard in the UK, and although things are recovering, there has been a knock-on effect. Many legitimate builders went out of business, but cowboy traders began to flourish. Following the recession, in 2011, the Office of Fair Trading logged 64,780 complaints and Consumer Direct a further 70,000 complaints. Websites like Checkatrade are also nowhere near fool-proof. Not all reviews are checked thoroughly, and many rogue traders still slip through the net.
Using Bristol Builders Network to source your tradesmen is a foolproof way of ensuring that everything goes to plan. But, to ensure you are 100%, read on for some invaluable tips on hiring builders.
House Builders in Bristol : Avoiding Cowboy Builders
Common sense should really prevail when employing tradesmen in your home. To avoid being conned by cowboys, never pay in cash. Cash means no paper trail for your work done. Make sure you pay by transfer or by cheque, ensuring that you stipulate on the payment the person you are paying and what you are paying for. Paying in cash also means that you builders may be avoiding paying tax on their earnings.
Also, never pay upfront for work to be carried out by your house builders in Bristol. Even the smallest traders will have the necessary funds to buy materials in advance. Far too many people are conned into paying in advance for building work, in cash, only to find that the builder disappears and doesn’t finish or sometimes doesn’t even start the work.
Before you employ a building, you need to check their reputation. This is something we do for you here at BBN. It is easy to check how long a company has been trading. If they are not in an older telephone directory then chances are they trade in a different name each year, conning innocent people out of money.
Recommendations from friends and family are not always a good idea. What you consider to be a good standard of work may not be for someone else. Some people are lax about messy builders who turn up late; others can’t stand someone who is more than 5 minutes late.
The best way to ensure you are not the next horror story in Cowboy Builders is to ensure you use vetted tradesmen. No matter how small or large the job at hand, always use a vetted tradesmen. A plumber who is a rogue trader that is employed to fix leaking pipes could easily end up doing thousands of pounds of damage to your home. So, always be on the safe side and let BBN do the legwork for you!