What and arxse hole...

[R G]

Unbelievable mate .....

You have to issue something surely along with a contract with description of the works and payment terms and deposit, you can't enforce whats on a website can you or enquiry by e mail ......

Seems like this guy is taking an advantage of your weakness

 

[Octopus]

Thing is I may not have provided T's & C's but he certainly didn't state he wouldn't pay me until the end until I submitted the invoice.........

So I would say we are both to blame for the situation...

 

[ruston]

Best of luck to you, whatever you decide.

 

[GMES]

The week before Xmas I bust my gut to get the kitchen and bathroom lights finished so the other trades would have "light" - he was talking about all the money he had saved as he didn't have much cash!

Fair enough mate, you know your own gut feelings, I personally would get him to sign something before commencing again stating he is happy with all works and that payment will be made immediately on completion and also that he won't receive the certificate until all monie owed are paid. If he signs that then at least you have a cast iron case should he try it on.
I just think it is a lesson learned on both sides.

 

[Geordie Spark]

Fair enough mate, you know your own gut feelings, I personally would get him to sign something before commencing again stating he is happy with all works and that payment will be made immediately on completion and also that he won't receive the certificate until all monie owed are paid. If he signs that then at least you have a cast iron case should he try it on.
I just think it is a lesson learned on both sides.

I agree.

BUT I have a nasty feeling that if he presents the bloke with that he'd be told to go and take a running jump! And then what???

The unfortunate fact of the matter is that Our Friend made the mistake of not getting T & Cs FIRMLY established BEFORE he started the job!

A little bit of time spent at the beginning can save a hell of a lot hassle & money at the end.

 

[R G]

Exactly as. Geordie says , if you now present some conditions it could well backfire on you At this stage you would do well to talk to the guy and reach an agreement

 

[Octopus]

Exactly as. Geordie says , if you now present some conditions it could well backfire on you At this stage you would do well to talk to the guy and reach an agreement

Hum.... I've been back through the emails after the initial estimate was sent. He made no comment or question about payment terms. This situation reared its ugly head once I had submitted the part invoice

My estimate template does stated "due on receipt"

 

[Marvo]

When you boil everything down you didn't establish or agree any payment terms before the job started so he would be reasonable to expect an invoice and payment on completion and he's unwilling to budge on this. I guess he might have even accepted your quote specifically because of this so I can see his side of things to a point with not wanting to make stage payments that were never previously agreed. I'd suggest given the exchanges you've already had that you just bite the bullet and complete the job and meanwhile get your ducks in a row so if he doesn't pay you take legal action against him as soon as possible afterwards.

 

[7029 dave]

I would be twitchy too, no reason why he should not give you a payment for work in progress, 2 ways to go here Clive, bail out or carry on till the end, on completion,request payment certificate at the ready, if he still trys to swerve you, no certificate, disconnect all circuits out of CU and cut the cables tight to ceiling and push them all the way up, if dp isolator fitted before recover CU, if not fit one and take the lot. This guy sounds as slippery as an fish. Then no more.

 

[tomspark93]

I would be twitchy too, no reason why he should not give you a payment for work in progress, 2 ways to go here Clive, bail out or carry on till the end, on completion,request payment certificate at the ready, if he still trys to swerve you, no certificate, disconnect all circuits out of CU and cut the cables tight to ceiling and push them all the way up, if dp isolator fitted before recover CU, if not fit one and take the lot. This guy sounds as slippery as an fish. Then no more.

i wouldn't waste my money on an isolator a 2nd hand Henley block would do lol

After setting up as SE mid last year this thread has made me realise maybe I should be considering writing out some terms and conditions as I have never thought of it before as I'm far to trustworthy. Where do you even start?

Thankfully all of my jobs have been successful to date with happy customers and me getting paid. It's a shame you can't always trust people though.

 

[Octopus]

i wouldn't waste my money on an isolator a 2nd hand Henley block would do lol

After setting up as SE mid last year this thread has made me realise maybe I should be considering writing out some terms and conditions as I have never thought of it before as I'm far to trustworthy. Where do you even start?

Thankfully all of my jobs have been successful to date with happy customers and me getting paid. It's a shame you can't always trust people though.

By copying somebody elses!

 

[HandySparks]

By copying somebody elses!

To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism — to steal from many is research.

 

[NDG Elecs]

It's crap Murdoch, but agree with others to bite the bullet n get it done.

I did notice in the knobs wording that he said to pick a 'convenient day'. Sounds closer to 2 days work left there, but if he insists it's done in a day, lash it in man!

It still amazes me how many customers expect they can just pay when they feel like it.

There's always a bag of postcrete in the drains route..... Good luck fella

 

[Marvo]

.....After setting up as SE mid last year this thread has made me realise maybe I should be considering writing out some terms and conditions as I have never thought of it before as I'm far to trustworthy.......

I think this is the root of the issue, with business everything has to be agreed in advance and written down and signed by both parties to ensure everyone is on the same page. In this case I suspect it's as simple as both parties having different expectations regarding when payment is due.

Often with smaller jobs of a few grand it hardly seems worth it and in reality is probably unnecessary with 99% of jobs but that one percent that do become a problem will make you wish you had. As suggested, have a look at some already existing terms and conditions and tailor them to your needs. Try keep them short, sweet and in plain English, as a small sole trader you can't cover every eventuality so just stick to the important stuff.

 

[ruston]

I would not do anything that would bring repercussions in this situation. This chap has it weighed up, and compromise is the better part of valour.
The last thing you want is the Police at your door for criminal damage, and finding the prime suspect will not take Sherlock.

Another lasting piece of advice I was given was " It can take years to establish a good reputation , and you can lose it in a day"

 

[Midwest]

Agree with ruston, if you haven't got stage payments mentioned in your T&C's, then you probably won't have 'materials remain the property of ....., until full payment is received' Elecsa has a sample set of T&C's, Stroma isn't it Murdoch? Sure they must have similar. They are a starting point.

 

[Octopus]

Agree with ruston, if you haven't got stage payments mentioned in your T&C's, then you probably won't have 'materials remain the property of ....., until full payment is received' Elecsa has a sample set of T&C's, Stroma isn't it Murdoch? Sure they must have similar. They are a starting point.

Staged payments are mentioned, as are materials remain the property of .......

 

[NDG Elecs]

I would not do anything that would bring repercussions in this situation. This chap has it weighed up, and compromise is the better part of valour.
The last thing you want is the Police at your door for criminal damage, and finding the prime suspect will not take Sherlock.

Another lasting piece of advice I was given was " It can take years to establish a good reputation , and you can lose it in a day"

Neither would I Ruston. Just thinking out aloud what I would like to do though!

 

[ruston]

I know , gets yer back up.

 

[Midwest]

Staged payments are mentioned, as are materials remain the property of .......

Were your T&C's in with the quotation he received?