What is the Forum’s view?

[PhilTheFragger]

My mum has a gardener who charges £18 per hour, he has done a decent job so we asked him to look at the weeds at Fragger Towers.

It’s basically a lot of ground clearance, this is his quote

“

In regards to a price for the garden works. I will need between 2-3 days to complete everything.

My price would be £395. Let me know how that sounds.

I have to pay £6.50 to have tonne bag of waste recycled so those charges are added on at the end of my jobs.

Many thanks and look forward to hearing from you.”


Now we thought £395 a bit high, but split over 3 x 7 hour days, it’s bang on his hourly rate.

He has done a good job worked all day Saturday and an hour on Monday morning and a couple of hours for dump runs and he has finished
11 hours and he still wants to charge the full £395

This puts his hourly rate at over £35

I’m happy to pay him for 3 days work, if he has done 3 days work, but he hasn’t.

I’ve offered him 2 days (14 hours) at £18 ph (£252) plus the waste charge which he has declined to accept.

What is the forum view

Cheers

 

[BubbaP]

One view is he stated 2-3 days and gave you a fixed price.
If he had taken 30 hours would you still be offering an hourly rate?

Is easy on a forum though, different if you are there.

 

[upsidedown]

Sorry Phil you accepted his quote so you have to pay.
When asked to quote for hedge trimming work I give them my hourly rate plus disposal if they want me to and my rate is £30 per hour and I've plenty of work .

 

[User 99]

You accepted his price, pay the man.

 

[HowlingGale]

We had a guy come to put slabs down and lay a lawn after our extension was built. He gave us a price in the expectation of 5 days work. In the end it took him 3 days. He offered to come back and put up fencing to 'use' the other two days as I think he was embarrassed.

We never took him up on it as we couldn't get our act together to source the fencing. However his rate for the 5 days was still reasonable compared to other quotes that we got so we didn't think he diddled us. The upshot is is there other stuff he could do for the remaining 10 hours?

 

[PhilTheFragger]

Sorry Phil you accepted his quote so you have to pay.
When asked to quote for hedge trimming work I give them my hourly rate plus disposal if they want me to and my rate is £30 per hour and I've plenty of work .

Yes but I know his hourly rate is £18 , he is an experienced gardener, so I would expect him to have a pretty good idea how much work is involved

I just feel as if I have been overcharged

 

[User2021]

He gave a quote to do the work, which you accepted.
To my mind he is entitled to his money, unless you see fault with what he has done.

 

[upsidedown]

Yes but I know his hourly rate is £18 , he is an experienced gardener, so I would expect him to have a pretty good idea how much work is involved

I just feel as if I have been overcharged

Your Mum is a regular customer so may get a discounted rate and if he has seen you as a one off job he's likey to have bumped the price up . If I'm asked to do a one off lawn mow I charge more than I would for a regular one

 

[backwoodsman]

Anything in the horticultural profession is time-variable. Yes, the more experienced one is, the better one can estimate timescales. But it's still time-variable.

He quoted £395, you accepted £395, you pay £395. Simples.

(And bottom line is you wouldnt have paid, say, £450 if it had taken longer - would you?)

 

[Wolf]

I see why your a little miffed if his hourly rate is £18. However I'd say he agreed a flat rate 3 day fee, he didn't from what I've read anyway discuss hourly work at hourly rate with you.

As a result I'd say you've got to pay the flat fee imo.

 

[PhilTheFragger]

we have agreed to meet half way

£305 plus waste fee

Thanks for your help guys👍

 

[Sharktooth]

The old man was quoted £500 to do his back garden. Approximately two days work. I told them to ram it. Another guy from the village done it for £160 and he is a gardener by trade.

 

[Slab]

For you his quote didn't mention any hourly rate of £18

And if you wanted to break the quoted '2-3 days' down to an hourly rate (not what he quoted) it would work out at £28 - £18 per hour

Your compromise figure works out (almost) as his 11 hours of work x £28 so it sounds like a good number still in-line with his quote

 

[Deleted member 1740]

Genuine question, if it wouldve took him 5 days, would you have paid him the extra 2 days money after agreeing £395?

 

[Fade and Die]

Once a price has been agreed by both parties that’s what should be paid, if you had agreed daywork with him no doubt it would have taken him the full 3 days to do the job but once the bloke is on a price he has an incentive to knock it out quick as possible, then get on with other work. Seems like you have punished him for being a quick worker!

 

[Andy]

Tighter than a gnats chuff!

 

[Jamesbrown]

Weeds would be back on your garden, tonne bag emptied and strewn everywhere. Price agreed is the price you pay unless job not to standard.

 

[Smiffy]

If I were happy with the price quoted, I would personally be chuffed that he got it done quicker than anticipated.

 

[PJ87]

If I were happy with the price quoted, I would personally be chuffed that he got it done quicker than anticipated.

100%

When I got married we got our garden completely redone with new fences, fake grass and patio around it.. agreed a price with the only condition that it was done within the 10 days we were on honeymoon

My parents only live round corner so let the guys in every morning for us (whilst doing the old check on the house stuff)

They finished 2 days early

I didn’t even consider short changing him

If anything I’d of given him enough for a drink for getting the job done so quick

 

[HankMarvin]

Fraggers Towers Really !!!

LOOKS LIKE YOU SCREWED THE GUY, bloody poor show and hope you are please with yourself...........not