Getting a quote from a builder

Building work on a home often starts with asking a few builders for a price. Citizens Advice suggests collecting written quotes from at least 3 different traders, and choosing only after that. Its advice is written for England.

Before you ask anyone

The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) is the builders' own trade association. It says the more detail you give, the more accurate the quote will be. Be clear about what you want, who will do what, the timescale you have in mind and any planning permission.

Detailed drawings with measurements help a builder plan and price the work. The FMB suggests giving every builder the same details, so that you can compare the quotes like for like. It also suggests telling builders your budget from the start.

The FMB says asking more than three or four builders can waste everyone's time. A detailed quote can take a builder a few weeks to put together, and some builders charge for one.

A quote or an estimate

Citizens Advice says a quote fixes the price. An estimate is a guess at it, and the final bill can come in higher.

Once you say yes to a quote, it is a binding agreement between you and the builder. That is true whether it is written down or not.

The builder can charge more than the quote in three cases. You ask for extra work. The builder tells you extra work is needed, and you agree to pay for it. Or the price in the quote was a mistake that should have been obvious to you when you got it.

What a written quote should show

Citizens Advice lists what a quote should include:

Comparing the quotes

The FMB warns against simply picking the cheapest. Check that each quote covers everything you need, and that it says what is left out.

Citizens Advice suggests caution when one price is far lower than the others. That builder may be quoting for different work.

Checking the builder

Ask for 2 or 3 recent examples of similar work, with contact details for the people the work was for. Citizens Advice says to get in touch with them, because written references are not always genuine.

A builder may say they belong to a trade association. You can check this on the association's own website, which lists its members.

Anyone can look up a limited company on GOV.UK for free. The details include its registered address and its officers.

Before you say yes, Citizens Advice suggests asking to see the builder's insurance policies. Public liability insurance covers someone being hurt, or property being damaged, during the work.

Agreeing how you will pay

Citizens Advice suggests paying in stages, so that problems can be put right before the final payment. Agree the points in the work at which each payment is due.

A long project may need a deposit. Citizens Advice suggests keeping it as low as you can, and agreeing to no more than 25%. If the deposit is for materials, you could offer to buy them yourself. You then own them if something goes wrong.

Pay by debit or credit card where you can, and not in cash. Your card provider may be able to help if something goes wrong.

Your rights, and the rules on planning

Across the UK, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says a business supplying a service must do it with reasonable care and skill. If the work falls short, you can first ask the builder to do it again at their own cost. If redoing it is impossible, or isn't done within a reasonable time, you can ask for a price reduction instead.

A contract agreed in your home usually carries 14 days in which you can cancel. If the builder never told you about this right, the time to cancel runs up to 12 months longer. The right does not cover a contract to build a new building, or to convert an existing one into a substantially new building. If the builder also supplies goods, such as new windows, the contract can count as a sales contract. The 14 days then usually start when the goods reach you.

Work can start inside the 14 days only if you ask for it in a lasting form, such as on paper. If you then cancel, you pay for the work done so far, in proportion to the full price. If the builder never told you about the right to cancel, you pay nothing for that work. Once the work is finished, the right to cancel ends.

A contract you agree at the builder's own office has no cooling-off period. Citizens Advice says cancelling it can then mean breaking the contract, and the builder may ask for a cancellation fee. It also says there is no automatic cooling-off period for urgent repairs you invited the builder in to do.

In England, GOV.UK says an extension or other major change will probably need planning permission. Building regulations approval is a separate matter, and a project might need both. The Planning Portal says the owner of the property is ultimately responsible for following both sets of rules.

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