Getting your way when dealing with workmanship and quality disagreements
Bloody awkward. That’s what it is when you see something you’re not happy with.
Maybe embarrassing. Did you make yourself understood? Should you have known? Did you do enough research? Feeling totally out of your depth and overruled by the ‘expert’ in the room?
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh. That’s what it feels like right?!
…..but you’re not going to get to UN levels of peace treaty negotiation with just that in your armoury. And you’re likely not going to get things fixed either.
Leave throwing toys out of prams to the experts - ie the under fives.
But what do you do? And how do you get the result you want?
What do do when the problem has already come up;
Firstly - don’t panic! Get the complaining out of your system (in a healthy way that doesn’t take it out on the contractor or your family!). Run, scream into a pillow or make a voodoo doll.
Better?! Now hit the reset button. Shit happens.
Ok, put down the Ben and Jerry’s long enough to make a list of…
A) what is wrong
B) what you were actually expecting and;
C) what a good outcome is from where you are now.
Shouting “rip it all out!” is not always the best option, even though it may feel like what you want right now.
Be honest with yourself about whether the contractor would have known what you were expecting.
Is the work dangerous, downright shoddy, or is it just not up to your high standards?
If the work is unsafe
If it is unsafe or unacceptable by most people’s standards this is something to address immediately.
In this instance, separate what you WANT from what you NEED. You NEED your home to be safe.
Ask them to pause. Remove yourself and children/pets from the house if necessary. You don’t have to go into detail about why yet. You don’t want to get them on the defensive or make it personal.
Check your contract for a process to follow, and who to contact. Take photos and keep a record and establish what the dangers are.
If you don’t have a contract, contact building control or citizens advice - or make a call to a professional for advice and a second opinion if necessary. This can be a local Architect, a RICS surveyor, structural engineer or solicitor (used to building work) for example; most can at least point you in the right direction if not help themselves.
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/problem-with-home-improvements/
If you haven’t already, check your builders’ credentials and if they are registered with a trade body. Report them to Trading Standards via Citizens Advice if they are claiming to have qualifications that they don’t hold.
Secure the property including any materials or tools left on site to prevent them doing a runner with things you have paid for. Check your home insurance policy to see whether it covers you for legal expenses for issues with traders or builders.
Collate all records of instructions, invoices and receipts for materials. At this point, follow the advice of your adviser.
You may need to get an independent report on the work by a suitably qualified person.
Worried about choosing the right person and getting the ‘right’ quote for your work or design? Grab my FREE CHECKLIST and advice below!
If the work is just poor.
If the workmanship isn’t done with what we call ‘reasonable care and skill’ or worth the amount they’re charging you, they’ve broken the law (Consumer Rights Act).
You’re entitled to ask them to fix the problem, or to stop work and provide a refund for services offered.
Again, take photos and review what they said they were going to do for what price, by when. Go back over your records.
The next step is to address it with them. Don’t just withhold money or immediately bring in someone else as this may invalidate a claim for compensation. You have to give them a chance to fix it. See if they have a complains procedure.
Try to resist the urge to rant, particularly if this is not the first hiccup.
Write to them saying that you are “unhappy with the work and that you consider it unsatisfactory”. Ask them to comment and propose how they will make it right, including timescales and costs. Keep it factual and unemotional.
Set out the issue simply and clearly, ask them for their perspective and request a plan to make it right; with a timescale.
If they don't turn up for an agreed date, contact them again to agree a final date by which all the work needs to be done and to what standard.
Make it clear that if they fail to meet that deadline, you'll ask someone else to do it and you'll be claiming back the costs from them. Get some quotes to indicate what the value of a claim may be.
If there is ambiguity between your expectations and what they quoted to do, I recommend negotiating a compromise.
I believe in talking to people face to face.
Sometimes poor workmanship has an underlying cause that can be addressed by talking to the contractor as a fellow human. For example rushing a job because of personal issues or taking on new staff that weren’t up to scratch.
That does not excuse substandard work, but by finding out why it went wrong you may discover that they are actually as embarrassed as you are about it (the boss may not even have been aware), and keen to make up for the inconvenience.
In my experience, showing patience and compassion is often rewarded later when they are waiting on you to make a decision, you want to make a change or items you are supplying are delayed.
What if you just hate the tiles they have installed? 😬
I think this one is the worst, because there isn’t anyone necessarily at fault.
Remember, this just happens sometimes - it is almost impossible to make ALL the right choices on paper. Even with years of training and experience I still sometimes walk into a room and think - oh god, that pendant is not right AT ALL - (that doesn’t make it a bad fitting necessarily though!).
Ok - start by considering WHY you don’t like it. Is it because it really doesn’t fit or look good, or is it just not what you expected?
If it’s the latter, mention it to your contractor and look at the implications of living with it for a few days. Adjust your mindset and see if you can make it work, perhaps by tweaking something else like colours or handles.
Happy accidents can often be the most surprising and successful elements in a project.
I love theseEcho cabinet pulls by Turnstyle Designs from TBKS
If you can’t find a way to make it work, is there somewhere else you can move the item to? If not, check the returns policy - or maybe you can sell it online. Particularly if you bought it online or with a credit card you have strong rights.
If your contractor bought it for you, just level with them and ask them to help you out. Identify what part of it you dislike. The colour? Shape? Size? Quality?
This may feel like a huge inconvenience if it’s something like the tiles they just finished installing or the kitchen worktop that had a 10 week lead time, but don’t let it lie and simmer. You may need to compromise on an alternative supplier if the impact on the overall project is too significant to bear, but keep an open mind and look for opportunities. Maybe there is a saving to be had? Maybe a local carpenter can recreate the look with the desired tweaks in time?
Ultimately, this is your home and you need to be happy with it. But treat the conversation like a problem solving partnership, and leave an open door to listening openly to issues your contractor may come across too.
Talk to the contractor about the implications on time - cost - quality, then make an informed decision about how to proceed from there.
It may cost you a bit of cash and delay but misjudgments happen and are an inevitable part of a very complex design process. This is what your contingency is for too.
The implications are very rarely as huge as they feel when you first walk into the room. The kitchen table light you hate may be your best friend’s dream hallway pendant.
You can do it!
Be brave, clear and constructive!
Wow - you made it all the way to here!
Thank you for reading, and cheers to that! Hopefully you found this helpful.
If you did, please share on social media and shout about my blog and resources to anyone you know in need of a bit of support (or just cheering up whilst the building dust flurries around them - I get it!).