Browse Forums General Discussion Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 6Jun 08, 2012 4:06 pm Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 8Jun 08, 2012 8:02 pm rojak1 I tend to ask for quotation/invoice on paper prior anything to be carried out. Good advice rojak1 ... although it can be a bit hard when it's pretty obvious that work needs to be carried out to determine the extent of the problem. By extrapolation, I should have asked for a quote to conduct the work to determine the extent of the problem ... but how could they quote on that? They didn't know how much of the sewer they'd have to dig up to even estimate the work. I thought it was pretty safe to give them the go-ahead to put a couple of hours effort in (on a time-and-materials basis), and then go from there. The problem is that they put 15.5 hours (not counting the undisputed initial attempt with the sewer machine). That 15.5 hours got me a trench no more than 4m long at an average depth of around 80cm. Sure, I should have got something in writing stating the exact number of hours, but this all done over the phone, and remember that two houses are without plumbing until it gets sorted, so time was a factor. Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 9Jun 08, 2012 9:46 pm I wouldn't pay. I have been on the receiving end of "misunderstandings" with tradies and just explained quite clearly why I wasn't going to pay and didn't. I offer to pay what I think is reasonable (always explaining why) immediately in full and final settlement of the bill, otherwise they have the option of taking me to small claims court etc. and they can prove their claim for the full amount. In one case I was given a quote over the phone ex GST and I refused to pay the GST component ($350) when the final invoice came through. In the other I was told the charge is $X per hour (full stop) and later in the conversation told they would send two people. The invoice came in at $X per hour... per person... plus GST. Its a lesson to be learnt for them to be careful to be clearer about their pricing and in your case what they have been given the authorisation to do. Its a hard lessom for them to learn but at the end of the day if you did not agree to the charge you shouldn't have to pay for it. Tender /1/12 Contract 14/6/12 Planning 12/10/12 Site 23/10/12 Piers 27/11/12 Slab 12/12/12 Frame 15/12/12 Trusses 17/1/13 Roof 24/1/13 Bricks 13/2/13 Plaster 1/3/13 Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 10Jun 09, 2012 12:19 pm Quote: The two pieces I authorised were: - drain cleaning (which turned out to be less than $200) - a couple of hours of digging, at $88/hr, to allow the plumber to provide a more accurate estimate as to the repair cost. Do you have any of this in writing? If so you are half way there. If not it becomes a he-said, I-said argument which is hard to prove should it come to a Court hearing It seems you have gone into your renovating with eyes wide open and its unfortunate the plumber is trying it on. I still think the Office of Fair Trading will be the best for advice on how to proceed Good luck Arfur Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 11Jun 12, 2012 10:06 am oh well, even a quotation needs your signature as a proof that you actually accepted all the works to be carried out at xxx money, consumer affair will be on your side if the quotation $ amount is significantly difference from the final invoice $ amount, not saying you should ditch the tradie and not paying them after all they did carry out some extra works, but without your consent, maybe try using this as a haggle point? Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 12Jun 12, 2012 4:51 pm icf_ext They didn't know how much of the sewer they'd have to dig up to even estimate the work. It just looks like another case of fishing in muddy waters. This is a very basic thing. A true expert in his job would know how to estimate. My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... Re: Advice sought re plumber's invoice 13Jun 19, 2012 6:11 pm Spot on Lex, I will second that. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Hi, I am approaching end of the build. My final invoice will be given to me soon to pay. Some context before I ask my question. 1. My builder wont do the landscaping or… 0 3865 Ask yourself if the insurance company will be aware of the Reno. 4 7370 Versaloc is a mortarless besser block system that still needs a properly engineered footing. If you just do a 400x200 footing it will fail in time. At 17m long you need it… 1 17674 |