Here at Nova Insurance we often provide tradesmen advice on how they can improve their businesses, but what about their customers? In order for a tradesman to complete a job quickly, easily and cheaply customers need to know how to work with them, so here we look at how you can find the best trade quote:

Value for Money

All tradesmen have a specific product they offer their customers: their expertise. Whatever skills you need a tradesman for, it’s because of their training and experience that you’re going to pay the fee. For this reason, it’s often hard to price up trade work and, occasionally, you get many different prices for one job. Price is one of the most common things that tradesman find themselves in disputes over, and even tradesman liability insurance policies won’t always cover pricing difficulties. Because of that, as a customer, you need to be aware of what you’re really getting for your money, which will help you find a quote that is right for you.

Be Specific About What you Want

Builders very commonly hear things like ‘I want this fixed’ or ‘can you mend that’, and while very often they can fix or mend something, it’s not usually as simple as just getting something working again. Fixtures and fittings can be done with a range of different quality materials for different prices, so be specific about what you require.

This is especially important when it comes to things like redecorating where there is a variety of different ways to complete the job. If you can be specific about your requirements any trader will have a much easier time doing the research and giving you an accurate quote. It’s also much less likely that your quote will fluctuate over time.

Do Your Own Research

Of course, traders are experts at what they do, but they’re not always meant to be teachers. Even simple jobs often have a lot of options, and things like the choice of materials can be critical to both price and timing of the work. Better materials are often harder to stock, supply and fit, and as such they cost more.

When asking for a quote, if you have some idea of the choices that your tradesman need to make then you’re much better placed to make an informed decision about your preferences and get an accurate quote. After all, tradesmen can advise, but they can’t spend your money for you.

Be Flexible with Timescales

While most of us are used to being paid a salary which rolls in every month without too much regard to how much work we’ve actually done, it’s completely different for most tradesmen. Time really is money if you’re working in the trade industry, and a long job is obviously going to be much more expensive than a quicker, shorter one.

Because of this, if you can be flexible about when the work can be done you’re much more likely to be able to find a tradesman who can happily fit you in. This means you should be able to get a much cheaper quote for the work, which is especially important if it can wait.

Compare Like for Like

You’re inevitably going to shop around when you’re looking for a quote for building work, but too many customers simply plump for the cheapest option around. Unfortunately, this is often because the product that one company or tradesman is offering is very slightly different from another, and you might not be getting what you really want. This is, again, where researching the product you’re buying can really come in handy.

If you are comparing quotes from different companies, make sure the work they’re promising to deliver is at least similar. While plastic, single glazed windows will fill the gaps in your wall just as well as wooden framed, double glazed ones, they’re clearly very different products and, as such, they’ll command a different price. Don’t enquire different firms about different products unless you really are just at the enquiry stage.

When it comes to finding the best trade quote, it’s all about being informed. As tradesmen are offering their expertise to you, it’s critical that you understand the product they’re selling and how it works.

The more you know, the more specific you can be about your pricing and the better quotes you’ll receive. Because of this, the quotes you get will be more accurate and you’ll be able to see much easier which firm really represents good value for money.

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