Anna wrote:
On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 22:53:47 +0100, "Brian G"
wrote:

nospam wrote:
Two questions.
If a chimney is damaged on a semi detached house, what's the
protocol for paying for repair ?

If it's a 'shared' stack, then both owners 'chip in' for the cost of
the repair and you pay the builder upon satisfactory completion of
the work - NEVER pay before the work is done to your satisfaction.
If the builder insists on payment before hand, tell him to politely
go away and find another, bona-fide one.

You will have difficulty finding a bona fide builder who will do the
work without a scaffold these days (H&S looms it head) and the builder
is not going to front the scaffold cost which might be about £500


Anna,

I presume that you are replying to my post.

There will be no difficulty in getting a genuine builder or roofer to do the
job.

Under the current H&S legislation, there is nothing stopping a builder from
using the correct ladders to gain access to the chimney - and that is what
he would have to do to inspect and estimate the job (a quote rather than an
estimate is better though).

A builder can do minor works off the correct ladders - such as tile
replacement, pointing the stack flashing, fitting a chimney pot etc.

With major works such as a stack rebuild, a bona fide builder will include
access scaffold, materials, labour costs, removal of rubbish, transport to
and from the job and a small contigency allowance for unforeseen or 'guessed
at works' into his price.

He will 'front' all these costs and will not ask for any payment before he
starts the works - costs may be higher, but you get what you pay for after
all.

If a 'cowboy' builder is used, then your assumption is correct - he'll do it
off ladders irrespective of H&S rules (what's those guv'nor), demand payment
'up-front' (probably a small fortune), do unnecessary works and then add an
extra charge for it (he may well add the charge and not do the works anyway)
and then bodge the job.

As an old building maintenance foreman, if I have to get someone in to do
the work (rare), I invite several builders to look at the job and then tell
them exactly what I want done - no waffle or leaving the builder to choose
what he "thinks" is best or to "guess" at what I mean.

Those that ask for an up-front payment are told impolitely to go away and
then I usually take the middle of the road quotation (never an estimate)
that has been given to me, along with a description of the works in a
writing, from the remaining builders. All this may take time and effort,
but it pays in the long-run.

Brian G