overpayment

[vanessa.raine]

Overpayment
To whom it may concern,

I accidently cracked my basin in my flat and made contact with my agent to let them know.
i asked if the insurance covered this and was told no.

She said she would let me know the pricing, she never did. the next thing the plumber comes into the flat and repairs it.

I then receive a bill of £450. I was told the agent paid it directly and i was to reimburse them not the plumber.

I was shocked that a small job of replacing a sink which normally costs around £70 could take so long and cost so much.

After much upset and rudeness form my agency for the flat I have had to pay it but feel absolutely robbed.

Should I be? Is this overpayment?

regards

Vanessa

 

[Plumbstar Tom]

you need to make a claim and go to the CAB

It is about a cost of £70 give or take and then the vost of the basin itself

 

[vanessa.raine]

thank you for this, what is the CAB?

 

[Plumbstar Tom]

Hehe, click here http://lmgtfy.com/?q=cab

Citizens Advice Bureau

See if there is a name on the basin you have like 'ideal standard' or sumat so you can try and find out a price

How long was the plumber there for?

 

[vanessa.raine]

Dear Tom,

The basin cost £70 and the the labour he charged was £280 vat excluded and two congestion charge trips.

The plumber refused flatly to justify how much time he was there but to put in a sink surely it doesn't take a whole day?

Vanessa

 

[garrywhite]

You will have to read your terms of your tenency agreement. I am pretty sure in saying that they nobody can force you to pay this amount as there was no pricing agreement before work started .ie estimates, hourly rates, parts etc. In this case you then pay them a reasonable amount for the work done. Dont pay them till you seek legal help. My advice is for guidance only.

 

[turnpin]

smells a bit fishy to me ask to see a copy of the insurance many letting agencies employ handy men for just this type of work to keep the costs down if you are being asked to pay for the repair I would think it only reasonable to get a complete break down of the bill including the hourly rate and the time taken to do the job also ask to see evidence of invoice as they must have one to claim back the vat good luckregards turnpin

 

[Puddle]

The agent never paid anyone,the landlord did,incorrectly probably,which is why they were heavy to get paid to re-emburse,incorrect deduction

They should have got payment from you and then pay plumber,which is why ,they should have got your approval first

You should have been told the price up front and the agents have not acted correctly however now you have paid,you probably have lost any bargaining tool

Break down would be like below

You say basin £ 70.00
miscellaneous materials £ 29.00
Congestion charge*2 £ 20.00
Labour 4 hrs £ 274.00 (reasonable central london rates )

Sub Total £ 393.00

vat £ 68.77 ......or an extra hour

total £ 461.77

Its a hard lesson you have learned,through being honest,never trust a agent,the more you get to know them ,the more you realise this

you could ask to see invoice but you will see one total and they will have a credit note somewhere against part of it

 

[andyandlew]

hi,
Im new to this forum but not to plumbing and I'm with Puddle on this.The breakdown of charges is entirely feasable.There is,in the uk, a misconception that a guy who wears overalls "shouldn't be earning this or that".What many customers who fortunately for them are on PAYE, and work in someone elses office often fail to see is the logistics and admin behind the business.Training,business insurance,van upkeep and insurance, and repairs.Tool purchase, TAX, NI contributions and so on.The list is endless and lets not forget the weekends estimating jobs for free which you dont get and nights at the pc working out accounts.
£50 an hour to fit a basin...........PAH its a bargain..