Was my Mum overcharged?

Arequipa

Morning,

I hope you are all well.

My Mum got a new gas boiler installed about 2-3 years ago.

It has worked really well to hear the rads and water since then.

Recently she has had issues with the heating and thought it might have been a small leak in the pipes.

She found it really difficult to get a plumber this time of year, but eventually got a guy who actually installed my new boiler last Christmas...

He said he would put a fluid through the system which would probably work to seal any leaks. The whole job took less than x2 hours and he asked her to pay €500, which she did.

We subsequently got in touch with the guy who originally installed her boiler, who said he would charge around €150 for that job.

So what do you think?

Was she taken advantage of & completely overcharged?

she is getting older now, lives on her own and I just feel angry about the situation

A

Hobby farmer

He's put a leak sealer in, about €20 a bottle. €500 is insane money for that. He did well to even stretch 2 hours out of it.

enricoh

One tradesman saying he would have done it cheaper or better, but wasn't around at the time to do it.

Its been going on since forever, pay no heed. Is the heating fixed now?

Aquos76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058429278/was-my-mum-overcharged

100% She was ripped off, I recently had a plumber come in and fit 14 replacement TVR's and returns, he also took two rads from the wall and washed them out. He put that sealant into the system too, I paid him €360 for that and also got a receipt so it wasn't a cash job. I provided the sealant, plumbing tape and all the valves.

Arequipa

Hi, yes it is fixed.. he was there for max 2 hours.. agreed the price

..for cash (agreed to be fair by him and my mother).. and said it may / may not work...

The boiler is verrry new and by all accounts the guy and company who installed it, were excellent.. they have just gotten too big and busy to do smaller jobs...but my Mum contacted him, explained what job was done and the original guy said he'd charge max, €150.

My Mum was very annoyed after hearing this & called the plumber (€500 guy) and said she was really annoyed and disappointed... he held his ground said ' is it working ? .. yes.. ' and we agreed on the price', but he didnt back down and offer a refund...

Hoboo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034425#Comment_124034425

Hit social media and ruin him. It’s hallions like this that give everyone else a bad name, and from experience they really hate being shamed for it. Agreeing a rip off price with an elderly woman, he should be cancelled for life. And to think someone like that was walking around your mums house, wtf else was he at.

enricoh

So you couldn't get anyone to fix it - except the e500 guy. he gave her a price beforehand, she agreed, he fixed it n got paid.

Then she rings a plumber who was never going to do the job n he says she was ripped off. The e500 guy was right to hold his ground. He could easily have saved e500 water damage to flooring, plasterboard while waiting for the e150 guy who was never going to do it for e150 by the way.

If u feel tradesmen are gonna rip off your ma you should organize them. I'm not a plumber before anyone starts, I wish I was tho!

Arequipa

fair enough.. she agreed ..but she is elderly now & has no knowledge of what was required to do & what price it would be..

I know everyone has to earn a living.. but I think this guy, knew my Mum hadnt a clue, might have had a few bob & just exploited her...

SC024

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034447#Comment_124034447

Wow

Glenomra

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034764#Comment_124034764

Why didn't you advise her beforehand. Less trouble than posting about it here would have sorted the problem for your mum. A bit late complaining about the transaction now imo.

Diddly Squat

I'm always fascinated by the argument regarding the age of the person especially if its an "elderly woman" as if they're not among the wealthiest age bracket in the country, elderly or not she agreed a price and got the job done to her satisfaction. If she could find no-one else she had little choice. Put it down to experience and a lesson learnt

Arequipa

She got the job done herself & only told us about it afterwards.. so i was unable to talk to her beforehand.

Jim_Hodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034900#Comment_124034900

Spilt milk TBH.

Diddly Squat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034447#Comment_124034447

And say what exactly, "he came and agreed a price and the job was successful" hardly a bad review in fairness

tayto lover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124034898#Comment_124034898

So its ok to rip off old people as they are reputed to be wealthy. FFS.

Diddly Squat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124035080#Comment_124035080

Show me where she was ripped off, after agreeing to the price and the job completed to her satisfaction she has absolutely no reason to say he ripped her off. If he did the job badly or tried to fool her in some way id fully agree with you. She could have been patient and waited for the other plumber but act in haste repent at leisure and all that

hold my beer

Sorry to hear your Mother was ripped off OP. Some people should be ashamed of themselves, but unfortunately they have no shame. It says a lot about their character.

Think you'll have to put it down to experience, and tell people to avoid this chancer.

Lenar3556

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058429278/was-my-mum-overcharged

We don’t know exactly what he did, so it’s hard to comment.

On the face of it, €500 seems expensive. €300 might have been more typical.

I would pass no remarks of the man who refused to call, and then said he would have done it for €150. He wouldn’t, and he didn’t.

con747

I know one thing, when I'm in the pine box or ash tray my O/H will be ripped off for everything like this and that's a fact. It was a rip off and anyone saying sure she agreed a price needs to realise a lot of people haven't a clue about anything like this so if it was €100 or €1000 they were quoted and the job sorted the issue they would be happy. Does that mean it was good value?

SVI40

This is why you get quotes from a number of sources. That way you have an idea of what is involved and the cost. However, if there is no one else available or willing to do the job you go with the one person who is, and pay what they ask. Really quite simple.

Rock Steady Edy

It's not clear if the your mum knew what was going to be charged before the job commenced - always a good idea to know so there are no surprises at the end.

There's not much you can do now. As calling him back elicited no satisfactory response, the best thing you can do is commit to not using him again, and getting 3 quotes before a job starts next time. Sometimes a neighbourhood Whatsapp is handy too for finding recommendations for tradespeople, and might come with a caveat like "they're good but not cheap", so you know what to expect. I certainly wouldn't go down the avenue of badmouthing on social media.

It sounds like the original boiler fitter would have been a good option. But that would have required patience in getting him and waiting until he was available. Importantly, he was also trusted, having done a good job before. Having a trusted tradesperson is like gold, you know they'll fix the job and won't overcharge you. Without one, wanting to resolve an issue immediately will rarely result in getting the best price.