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Hi all, I have an issue with a customer who is avoiding me.
I fitted a kitchen for him in one of his flats that he rents out, he bought a partial kitchen along with bathroom fittings from a retailer who then recommended me to install it (the customer wanted some replacement units, worktops, splashback and cooker hood fitting).
The retailer told him to pay me separately and told him it will be on a day rate of £150, the customer said that it should only take one day to which the retailer said no it will take at least two days.
When I arrived on the job he again said that it won't take any longer than a day and I told him "no, it'll be at least a couple of days".
While fitting the Kitchen I told him he'll need to get his plumber out to connect the sink, he said aren't you connecting it? I reminded him that the job was just a dry fit only, he called out his plumber but due to the odd size of the existing pipe work (both hot & cold pipes where 16 mm outside diameter not the standard 15 mm) the plumber could not connect any fixings to it, I told the customer about the odd sized pipes and that the plumber hadn't done anything so he asked me to connect up the sink.
I took a short length of the pipe to a couple of plumbing suppliers and they said they've never come accross that type of pipe before and there was nothing they could do for me, in the end I managed to free the steel couplings in the pipes and refit them under the sink.
While I was working on connecting the sink the Electrician was securing the hob and the glass splashback (which was fixed to the wall with three long double sided sticky strips already attached to the splashback by the manufacturer) fell away from the wall and chipped the corner of the glass hob, the electrician managed to put his hand up and catch the splashback before it hit the hob full on.
The splashback was fitted to the manufacturers recommendations with the fixings supplied (the 3 strips), and fact that the electrician was pushing upward to screw the hob to the cutout in the worktop must have dislodged the strips from the wall causing it to fall away.
I have since stuck self adhesive silver tape to the back and applied silicone sealant as an extra measure, you can not apply silicone onto the glass as it would show through the splashback.
I also fitted a new toilet seat, bath panel and shower screen in the bathroom, the customer asked me if I could plain three internal doors as he had new carpets fitted.
Because the new tenants (his daughter) furniture was being delivered to the flat the customer asked me to cut outside, I told him I couldn't as we where on the third floor and two of the doors where fire doors so to heavy for me to carry down and bring back up again.
I removed as much of the cardboard and off cuts as I could outside for him to arrange collection, I even took down off cuts that the carpet fitters left. I hoovered around the best I could, I couldn't get everywhere as the painters and decorators where working in the kitchen and living room at the time.
On the last day I was there I had to wait outside for nearly two hours before he showed up to let me in as his daughter took the key off me the day before, I told him how long I had been waiting and he said I shouldn't have given the key to her (I can't see how this was down to me as it was his daughter and if she asked for the key then who am I to say no) I gave him his itemized invoice for the work which was 3 and a half days totaling £525 and he commented on the time it has taken saying it shouldn't have taken this long and shouldn't be that much, I told him I had another job I should have been at the day before and it's taken this long because of the extra work and unforeseen problems we've had and everything is itemized on the invoice.
Later that day while I was at the retailers working the customer phoned the retailer to complain about my work saying I'd left the flat in a mess, he said there was saw dust and old screws in some of the units and there was brick dust on the bath after fitting the shower screen, he also complained about the time it had taken and the rubbish left outside and a large box of rubbish left in the flat.
The retailer went round to the flat to meet up with the customer and to look into his complaint, the customer told him that he would have to get in professional cleaners to clear up the mess, the retailer told him it was just a bit of saw dust and is easily cleaned and to contact me to come back and resolve his issues, he mentioned the chip on the corner of the hob, again the retailer told him that I had mentioned the incident to the retail manager the day before.
The customer has not been in touch with me to discuss his issues and has not paid me or the retailer, I called him at his office today (it's the only contact number we have) and was told he is with a client, I left my contact number but he did not call back.
I will try again tomorrow although I doubt he will speak to me,
Now for the punchline! what makes this even more frustrating and hard work is that the customer is a solicitor, I wouldn't dream of telling him how long it's going to take to claim compensation or how long it takes to go through criminal courts and what the outcome will be, in my profession you never truly know how long a job will take until your nearly finished.
Can anyone offer me advise on where I stand with this one please..
I fitted a kitchen for him in one of his flats that he rents out, he bought a partial kitchen along with bathroom fittings from a retailer who then recommended me to install it (the customer wanted some replacement units, worktops, splashback and cooker hood fitting).
The retailer told him to pay me separately and told him it will be on a day rate of £150, the customer said that it should only take one day to which the retailer said no it will take at least two days.
When I arrived on the job he again said that it won't take any longer than a day and I told him "no, it'll be at least a couple of days".
While fitting the Kitchen I told him he'll need to get his plumber out to connect the sink, he said aren't you connecting it? I reminded him that the job was just a dry fit only, he called out his plumber but due to the odd size of the existing pipe work (both hot & cold pipes where 16 mm outside diameter not the standard 15 mm) the plumber could not connect any fixings to it, I told the customer about the odd sized pipes and that the plumber hadn't done anything so he asked me to connect up the sink.
I took a short length of the pipe to a couple of plumbing suppliers and they said they've never come accross that type of pipe before and there was nothing they could do for me, in the end I managed to free the steel couplings in the pipes and refit them under the sink.
While I was working on connecting the sink the Electrician was securing the hob and the glass splashback (which was fixed to the wall with three long double sided sticky strips already attached to the splashback by the manufacturer) fell away from the wall and chipped the corner of the glass hob, the electrician managed to put his hand up and catch the splashback before it hit the hob full on.
The splashback was fitted to the manufacturers recommendations with the fixings supplied (the 3 strips), and fact that the electrician was pushing upward to screw the hob to the cutout in the worktop must have dislodged the strips from the wall causing it to fall away.
I have since stuck self adhesive silver tape to the back and applied silicone sealant as an extra measure, you can not apply silicone onto the glass as it would show through the splashback.
I also fitted a new toilet seat, bath panel and shower screen in the bathroom, the customer asked me if I could plain three internal doors as he had new carpets fitted.
Because the new tenants (his daughter) furniture was being delivered to the flat the customer asked me to cut outside, I told him I couldn't as we where on the third floor and two of the doors where fire doors so to heavy for me to carry down and bring back up again.
I removed as much of the cardboard and off cuts as I could outside for him to arrange collection, I even took down off cuts that the carpet fitters left. I hoovered around the best I could, I couldn't get everywhere as the painters and decorators where working in the kitchen and living room at the time.
On the last day I was there I had to wait outside for nearly two hours before he showed up to let me in as his daughter took the key off me the day before, I told him how long I had been waiting and he said I shouldn't have given the key to her (I can't see how this was down to me as it was his daughter and if she asked for the key then who am I to say no) I gave him his itemized invoice for the work which was 3 and a half days totaling £525 and he commented on the time it has taken saying it shouldn't have taken this long and shouldn't be that much, I told him I had another job I should have been at the day before and it's taken this long because of the extra work and unforeseen problems we've had and everything is itemized on the invoice.
Later that day while I was at the retailers working the customer phoned the retailer to complain about my work saying I'd left the flat in a mess, he said there was saw dust and old screws in some of the units and there was brick dust on the bath after fitting the shower screen, he also complained about the time it had taken and the rubbish left outside and a large box of rubbish left in the flat.
The retailer went round to the flat to meet up with the customer and to look into his complaint, the customer told him that he would have to get in professional cleaners to clear up the mess, the retailer told him it was just a bit of saw dust and is easily cleaned and to contact me to come back and resolve his issues, he mentioned the chip on the corner of the hob, again the retailer told him that I had mentioned the incident to the retail manager the day before.
The customer has not been in touch with me to discuss his issues and has not paid me or the retailer, I called him at his office today (it's the only contact number we have) and was told he is with a client, I left my contact number but he did not call back.
I will try again tomorrow although I doubt he will speak to me,
Now for the punchline! what makes this even more frustrating and hard work is that the customer is a solicitor, I wouldn't dream of telling him how long it's going to take to claim compensation or how long it takes to go through criminal courts and what the outcome will be, in my profession you never truly know how long a job will take until your nearly finished.
Can anyone offer me advise on where I stand with this one please..
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