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C

chiggers

i'm nearly finished my college (2330) and have been sparking for about 5 years and the time has come for me to possibly go out on my own a do a bit of "private" work. i have the ability and the confidence now but dont have a clue where to start with pricing?!

i'm not really talking about major installs yet but what you might call "pocket" money on top of my mon-fri. it's not something they teach you at college!

any sort of pricing guide would be very helpful and even what i should be expecting the firm i work for to pay me once i'm qualified?

cheers chaps
 
As for your firm, it depends on what they pay qualified Sparks. Most pay JIB rates which are about £11 per hour. Naturally some pay more but the JIB rates should be the bare minimum.
As for pricing your 'cobbles' - all I do is guess how long the job is gonna take and then multiply it bu my hourly rate £20 per hour. I then total the job up, add 10% on top for contigency. I also mark up around 30% on any materials.
 
cheers cirrus this is just the sort of info i need;)

didn't the local councils use a schedule of rates or something of the like? i've heard the terminology but not to sure if it's correct to say a schedule of rates is a laid out set of prices to work from? also including a timeframe given for each job?
 
to be honest my prices come off the top of my head and what i think they can afford. if they want me to do the job the pay the price if they want to go somewhere else they can.

i priced for a 3 bed rewire with 6 sockets in the front room, 4 in the kitchen plus spurs and outlets, 5 in main bedroom, 2nd bedroom had 6 sockets for all his dj gear outside lights all the extras for 2600 in the end he want for a price for 1700:eek:. anyway what my point is someone will always try and undercut you.


tommorrow for instance im off to change someones cooker and wire that in and im going to do it for free............. cos ive done work for this customer before and they keep coming back to me and its good to keep people happy and onside. besides next time they call they will remeber that im a good bloke cos i did it for free but il stick 30 quid on the next price for them. ;)

if you think im wrong let me know but it think its a good way to be.
 
Are you taking the pis* alex?

"they will remeber that im a good bloke cos i did it for free but il stick 30 quid on the next price for them."
 
I do the same, a little free bee here & there but lob some of the cost onto the next visit.

Another favorite on bigger jobs is to put an extra 5% on the quoted total, then on the invoice add a note that if payment is received in 4 days they will get a 5% disscount, it never fails to amaze me how quick they pay up:D:D
 
All just tricks of the trade lads. Remember - it is all down to psychology!
 
Hi guys its intersting to see how you all do your pricing,

I Have been self employed for about 4 years now and It is hard to get it right. I used to estimate how long the job was going to take and price a daily rate + materials with 20% on top to cover your ---. but that is quite hit and miss.

for the past 6 months I have taken a more "schedule of rates approach" charging

x per socket
x per switch etc

It seems to be working ok as you can literally set a rate for anything

The other plus side is you can easily price Extras into the job, If the client asks you for an extra socket or light in the loft you know instantly how much to charge them.

I think the key is to be consistant and don't be intimidated into lowering your prices

It's better to get a reputation for being good, than a reputaion for being cheap.

"A good job for a fair price"

Mutts
 
hey cirrus!!!

No nothing technical,

I just set up a simple excell spreadsheet. It does'nt take long and its easy to add to if you come across a new "item". You can let the auto sum facility do all the maths you just type in how many of each item you want.
 
Good idea but how did you get to decide how much for say 1 socket and how much for a light fitting etc?

standad rate for a socket around here is £60 and £40 a fitting. Thats obviously 1st and 2nd fix and london rates. Thats kinda average what alot of people I know charge.

I tend to sometimes work out how long the job takes, so daily rate + material + 15/20% on top just to cover my arse if the job over runs, or extra profit :D.
 
Ive just set up and deciding on pricing is a nightmare
Decided to have price for everything eg. £100 per socket before entering job and reducing it depending on ease of work.
Bit concerned when 10 sockets or a new circuit with 10 socks could add upto £1000 but gonna see how it adds up at end of each quote and whether house occupied/ lots of furniture to move.
Got 1st big quote this week(mostly been wiring cookers and relacing light and sockets).- so will see how it works out in front of customer!!!
 
its all about time things take mate i think really, i installed a ring main for someone from new and only had 5 double sockets on it, but it took a while to do and cost the customer £750,
 

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