You, Your Builder and Your Nervous Breakdown
The Making of a Driveway: A Photographic Essay
The photos on this page trace, in chronological order, the construction of a "crossover" - out goes the front garden, in comes a paved parking area with dropped kerb.
This seemingly quick and simple job was anything but. After the old garden was dug up and the rubble removed, materials for the new surface were delivered in several phases.
Skips, lorries, bags full of sand and cement, tiles, tile cutters - at one point, six men were working simultaneously. And near the finish line, winter set in. Too cold to mix cement, proclaimed the builder.
Approximately six months after work began, this crossover was finally completed, when the weather and the builder's schedule finally cooperated with one another.
Don't do this - 1
Don't DIY if gas or electricity is involved. By law, gas fittings require a CORGI-registered professional, and major electrical tasks must be preformed by a certified professional electrician. The website of the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation (niceic.org.uk) provides useful legal and practical information.
Don't do this - 2
If you hire a builder, don't pay the entire amount in advance. You may never see your money, or the builder, again. Don't even pay a lot of money in advance. Aim to limit your payments to amounts covering material the builder has to purchase. "Try and keep back enough money to keep pressure on the trader to get on with the job and to finish it properly," suggests the OFT. Payment arrangements, including schedules, should be part of the contract.
Don't do this - 3
Don't use the Yellow Pages to find a builder. Many people have gone the Yellow Pages route and lived to tell tales of excellent service. But many others didn't. Personal recommendations are best. Remember, too, that builders, electricians, plumbers and so forth who are listed in your local phone directory may not actually be local, even if they have a local phone number.
Don't do this - 4
If you must fix the sink, boiler, central heating or other vital and tricky item yourself, don't do it late on any day (especially Friday) or on Saturday or Sunday. If you can, wait for Monday morning so that, when you cock it up, you can hire a professional without paying exorbitant weekend or overtime rates.
Don't do this - 5
Don't take a backseat or be passive with any building job, small or large. If you hire a builder to erect a fence or gate for you, and you leave it at that, he will get the materials and do the job. But in every job, there is a choice of materials - in appearance, quality and price. If you don't specify, you will get your builder's choices.
I know of two separate cases in which a builder was about to install conservatory doors on the wrong side of the structure. The builder was prevented from making the mistake only because both owners happened to be present at the time.
Owners usually can't oversee every aspect of a big job, so it is all the more necessary to review as much of the project in advance and verify exactly what will be done.
Don't do this - 6
Think carefully before agreeing to pay cash to save on VAT. You may indeed save some money but you will be doing so illegally. As a result, if you have a dispute with your builder, your hands may be tied: if you pursue your claim, you may get into trouble with Her Majesty's Customs and Excise.
Do do this - 1
Costs - and Cost Overruns. You and your builder can agree an estimate or a fixed fee. The latter - a precise amount - makes it easier for you to budget for the job. But also allow for extra expenses. Some extra costs arise because, as the work is being completed, you see things in a new light. Other costs arise because most jobs are more complex than the homeowner realises (and many builders do not enlighten them in advance). When the builder completes the specific job for which he has been hired, follow-up work often has to be done as well. Allow a contingency fee of at least 20%.
Do do this - 2
Visit and browse DIY shops, timber yards, merchants's suppliers, and even the garden and outdoor supplies sections of department stores to get an idea of the range of products and materials that are available.
Read books, newspapers and magazine articles to learn more about the kind of job you are contemplating.
Self-build, kitchen, bathroom and DIY magazines provide up to date information - advertisements as well as articles are informative - on products and equipment.
Benjamin Mee's Which Guide: Getting the best from your builder comprehensively covers the human as well as technical side of building.
Do do this - 3
If your builder claims to be a member of a trade association, verify that assertion by contacting the association concerned.
Do do this - 4
If your builder claims to be VAT-registered, contact HMCR to verify the claim. If the builder is not actually registered, you may be paying an extra 17.5%. You may also want to consider changing to a more honest builder.
Do do this - 5
Consider paying by credit card if you can do so. If your contract is breached, you may be able to claim against the credit-card company. Note: credit cards are different from debit and charge cards, which do not provide this protection.
Finding a Builder
Ask around. During the last decade enormous numbers of homeowners have had builders in. Some builders enjoy excellent reputations. Start your research early, as the best builders are busy and need plenty of notice.
A Woman’s Touch (awomanstouch.org.uk) provide decorating, plastering, tiling, plumbing, electrics, carpentry, interior design and general building services for residential and commercial properties. Most but not all of the workers are women. Founder Kerrie Keeling was BT’s 2007 Female Entrepreneur of the Year.
checkatrade.com is one of several websites that lists tradespeople according to speciality and provides ratings based on customer feedback.
Who Does What?
Is your builder a real hands-on builder with his own crew or does he subcontract all or part of the work to others? If your builder is, in effect, a "gangmaster," you may not be getting the builder you bargained on, and you may be paying over the odds (you will be paying someone who actually does little or none of the actual work).
Paying by Credit Card?
Credit cards offer certain kinds of protection but you can also run some risks. For example, if you withhold a payment, your credit rating may suffer even if you had good reason for doing so. You should also advise the credit company if you have a dispute with your builder.
Plan Ahead
Do you need planning permission, and if yes, how long will it take for approval? Do you need to hire a portable toilet? Will you lose the use of your kitchen, bathroom or other rooms or facilities? If yes, for how long, and what other arrangements can you make? You may have to organise some details well in advance of the actual work beginning. Obtaining permissions and other legal and regulatory issues also need to be dealt with well in advance.
"A painter had bound himself beyond all possibility of failure to paint the window on the morrow. He was to begin at six a.m., and Amy's alarm clock was altered so that she might be up and dressed to admit him. He came a week later, administered one coat, and vanished for another ten days."
Arnold Bennett, The Old Wives' Tale (1908)
Legal and Regulatory Questions
Planning permission differs from building regulations. For the kind of job you are doing, make sure you have the correct consents.
If you plan on extending your property, remember that it may have already been extended. This is important because your property may already have been extended to its maximum allowance.
Party Walls. If building work will affect your neighbour wall, you may have to notify them in advance in writing.
Insurance
You should consider several aspects of insurance.
If structural work is being done, you should notify your insurer (your buildings or contents insurance may make such notification a requirement).
Consider taking out legal expenses cover in case of disputes down the line.
Your builder and other tradespeople working for you or your builder should have indemnity insurance.
Obtain copies of their insurance certificates and contact their insurance companies to verify that the policies are still valid.
PWP Tip It is not enough to merely ask your builder if he is insured. It is important that you check into it yourself, and do so before any work begins. Don't worry about hurting the feelings of the builder. If the builder is a true professional who does indeed have the right insurance, he will not hesitate to provide the necessary documents. If a builder does hesitate, think twice before allowing any work to begin.
Lorries and their Loads
Sanding a wooden floor is one thing, building a loft extension another - and might require the delivery of large, heavy steel I-beams, even a crane.
If timber or conservatory panels or sand or concrete is being delivered, make sure the garden is protected with boards and ground cloths. And make sure the builder will remove all debris at the end of the job.
Federations, Institutions, Associations
Most builders' organisations allow their members to affix fancy letters after their names. These letters may signify that the worker is highly trained and skilled, and then again, they may not. Some associations have rigid entry requirements, and others accept anyone and everyone provided they fork out the joining fee. If in doubt, key the name of the organisation into an internet search engine and research their joining requirements.
Dirt and Dust - and the Containment Thereof
Even small jobs create large amounts of dirt and dust. Seal off the gaps under doors and other escape routes with plastic sheeting, tape, towels, rags or other items. For some jobs, debris can be vacuumed up as it is created.
Cutting Corners
Reliable builders are, in a word, reliable. Unreliable ones aren't. Unreliable builders take your money and either run or do a shabby, even dangerous, job.