Now, more than ever, homeowners are made aware of and warned against rogue tradespeople. With TV programmes such as ‘Cowboy Builders’ highlighting just how badly a job can go, it’s no wonder consumers are being advised to seek professional tradespeople who can provide a written quotation, payment schedules and legally binding contracts.
Whilst provision of a written contract is not mandatory, many problems can arise through misunderstandings (whether this be the client’s or the tradesperson’s) about the work that is going to be undertaken. Consumer advice groups such as Which? stress the importance of obtaining a contract before work commences.
With this in mind, it’s time to ask yourself whether this is something you provide to your clients. If it is, do you draw the contract up yourself? Is it legally binding? Do you pay a fee to a legal company each time you want a contract drawn up? If you don’t provide your clients with a contract, why not?
Providing a clear, concise and legally binding contract to your client will not only safeguard both of your interests but provide that priceless commodity “peace of mind”. There will be no long-winded disputes if payments aren’t made on time. This is not to say providing a contract will stop disagreements taking place, but with a contract in place you will be ensuring that if something was to happen (e.g. the client does not pay on time) you have clearly outlined that you reserve the right to refuse to continue with any more work until the payment is received and can take the matter further.
There are a number of avenues you can go down to write a contract, most involve paying someone else to produce one every time you send a potential client a quotation. The most economical way would be to generate them yourself, in-house, but how do you go about that if you don’t have the legal knowledge? And how do you maintain the contract so that isn’t filled with legal jargon that your client won’t necessarily understand (unless they are a solicitor)…
If you are looking to produce a written contract yourself, here are some of the basics you will need to include;
• Your name and address
• Your client’s name and address
• The price you have quoted the client for the job (mention VAT if VAT is applicable)
• Your legal commitment to carry out and finish the work as per your quotation
• The client’s legal commitment to pay the agreed price for the work
• Defects liability period (if applicable)
• Refusal of payment
• Changing of timescales – possible reasons for taking longer to complete a job (e.g. severe illness, altered instructions from the client etc.)
• Changing the job (how the client should proceed if they want to make amendments to the original specifications they gave)
• Stopping the job – reasons why you, the contractor, can stop or cancel a job
• Insurance
• Responsibilities
• Materials and services
• Planning permission and other documents
• Working hours
You could write a contract by hand every time you send a client a quote, or you could use Easy Price Pro’s management program Easy Builders Contract™ that can produce a legally binding, written contract in just a few clicks. Not only is the contract legally binding but it’s also been approved by the Plain English Campaign which means that there is absolutely no confusing jargon.
Want to see it in action? Call them on 0845 612 4747 and they will arrange a free, no obligation demonstration at a time and place that suits you.
