If you are looking for someone to work on your home, no doubt, you want someone who will be honest and dependable. But, how easy is it to find someone like this? There are many good and honest tradespeople out there and with a little detective work, you can find out who they are. Here are a couple of suggestions on how to do this.
Firstly, don’t be afraid to ask them questions. Ask them about previous jobs they’ve done, what types of insurance they have, and their address, etc. A trustworthy tradesperson will not mind your questions and will have no problem providing you with this information. Be wary of anyone who acts too pushy or who wants you to give them an immediate answer on whether or not they have the job.
If you are getting a quote over the phone or by email, ask for a price for the job before giving out your address. Very often, someone dishonest will give higher quotes to those who live in more affluent neighborhoods.
It is not uncommon for a small deposit to be required before starting a job, however, you should be suspicious of anyone asking you for a large deposit or the whole amount before the job has been started. Ideally, you should try to get a fixed price for the entire job and have this all written down and signed, otherwise, you may find some “unforeseen extras” will be added to the price you were originally quoted.
As we have already mentioned, there are many honest tradespeople out there but, these few suggestions should help you weed out those that are less than honest.