15-06-2020, 05:15 PM
11
Re: Gardening charges...
Originally Posted by carol
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Thanks everybody.Yesterday evening I posted the job on 'My Builder' and have had 3 replies already.
One has quoted me by just looking at the picture - £120 which included removing clippings.
Another is coming to look at it this morning & give me an estimate & another coming tomorrow.
Also I put an appeal on face-book & found a message from a local man this morning so I am going to arrange for him to come this afternoon.
I'm very pleased with the positive response. Looks like I will have 4 estimates to choose from & in the region of £100 it's what I can afford & definitely worth it if they take away the clippings.
Well done I suppose its whoever you feel the most comfortable with overall. Happy clipping
25-06-2020, 11:55 PM
15
Re: Gardening charges...
How'd it go, Carol?Did someone turn up this time?
You're not alone, I get exactly the same treatment by some tradesmen. It has also happened to a friend of mine recently too.
Twice she has been let down by two different men who were supposed to be cutting her long hedge, neither of them turned up, she is now waiting to see if it's third time lucky!
Why don't these people just be honest and say if they don't want the job at the time, why give a starting date then never turn up? They don't even phone and let you know! Grrrr . . .
27-06-2020, 10:53 PM
17
Re: Gardening charges...
Originally Posted by carol
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He came on time & got the job done to my satisfaction.It was a red hot day - poor man was sweating cobs but he just got on with it.
He took all the clippings away with him which is what I wanted.
Well pleased.
Oh well done. I'm glad the job's finished Carol.
27-06-2020, 11:01 PM
18
Re: Gardening charges...
Originally Posted by carol
->
He came on time & got the job done to my satisfaction.It was a red hot day - poor man was sweating cobs but he just got on with it.
He took all the clippings away with him which is what I wanted.
Well pleased.
Hope you have kept the contact details of that chap for the next time you need the hedge cut Carol.
01-07-2020, 10:12 AM
19
Re: Gardening charges...
Hello CarolI know you have now had your hedge cut and am pleased you are happy with it. But I'm going to respond to your question anyway because it might be useful for yourself and others in future. Also, I'm going to respond in a slightly different way than most as I garden for a living and am, therefore, looking at things from the other end of the telescope. My first post on this forum having joined only yesterday.
Here are just a few things your gardener has to consider/pay for before he visits your house.
Typically a gardener will have to fund the cost of his van, including annual servicing, MOT, insurance, fuel and wear and tear. On top of that a gardener will need to pay for all the days he will not be working, that is, sick days, holidays and days when it's raining, snowing or too frosty to work. The fact that there is less daylight and available work in winter. If he disposes of your gardening waste then that is also a cost that has to be considered; how far is it to the recycling centre, will he spend time queuing and does he need to pay a license because he is a trader. The time he spends working at home working out estimates etc. The time he spends at the garden centre buying those plants you asked for. Then there's his tax and NI contributions. Not forgetting insurance. If he studied at a horticultural college then that also needs to be paid for. He might have an accountant to make up his books every year, or he might do this himself - still has to be funded. All those visits he makes for estimates where no work is forthcoming. Free estimates are a myth. All this stuff adds up and has to be factored into every job undertaken.
People can be funny. They don't baulk at paying £80 an hour for a plumber but if I was to turn up at a client and tell them that was my hourly rate then I guarantee you I wouldn't get much work! Is plumbing any more skilful than gardening? Of course supply and demand comes into it and, also, where you live. A gardener or plumber in London will cost more than one anywhere else. For some weird reason people think gardeners and window cleaners ought to be roughly on the same rate. Never understood that reasoning.
Now if you are successful in employing someone to cut your lawn, hedge or whatever, and he charges you a tenner then good on you but, when you work it out, you may be paying less than the minimum wage. Just like all those eastern European car washes that sprung up a number of years ago. Not criticising you or anyone here. Just saying.
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