Poor quality of EDF tradesmen - who not to trust!

[RPK073]

Having now been let down for the THIRD time by a tradesman off here, I have given up on looking. On a deadline at work I have rushed home despite being on an important deadline, to meet "Nick" who couldn't nw bothered to turn up, or in fact, bother to tell me he wasn't coming.

This is on the back of having my bathroom wrecked by another tradesman whose name I would be happy to share via PM on request and a third who promised three different start dates before saying he couldn't in fact do it, despite formally agreeing to and asking me to spend money on additional materials he apparently needed to start...

I am at the conclusion that the general quality of tradesmen on here is unreliable at best and downright rude at worst - based on my own experience of course..

If anyone knows anyone who is,a qualified bathroom fitter, tiler, installer who could start now i would welcome their recommendations.

Very disappointing

RPK073

[monica]

Hi

Sorry to hear about your situation, I promise you, not all EDF tradesmen are bad. I have a lovely collection of tradesmen I use, i have property rentals, so I use these guys often, with no problem at all.

If you need someone to install your bathroom, then I can highly recommend Eddie, who maintains my rentals. He is very good, reliable and has many years of experience within the building trade.

Eddie 07522523415

Take care and good luck.

[citylover]

You got off lightly,I almost got ruined by a builder off here.I couldn't believe he'd been recommended so I tried to look up his rec. post again and it had disappeared. Luckily I'd copied it and I contacted the poster and he was really nice, he said he'd subsequently realised he was not all he'd said he was so he'd removed the post and he was really sorry. When I have time I'll post more on the forum,the warning signs and how to avoid similar disasters!

[siousxiesue]

Charlie O'Brien on 07875 442 992

Fab guy

RPK073 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Having now been let down for the THIRD time by a

> tradesman off here, I have given up on looking. On

> a deadline at work I have rushed home despite

> being on an important deadline, to meet "Nick" who

> couldn't nw bothered to turn up, or in fact,

> bother to tell me he wasn't coming.

>

> This is on the back of having my bathroom wrecked

> by another tradesman whose name I would be happy

> to share via PM on request and a third who

> promised three different start dates before saying

> he couldn't in fact do it, despite formally

> agreeing to and asking me to spend money on

> additional materials he apparently needed to

> start...

>

> I am at the conclusion that the general quality of

> tradesmen on here is unreliable at best and

> downright rude at worst - based on my own

> experience of course..

>

> If anyone knows anyone who is,a qualified bathroom

> fitter, tiler, installer who could start now i

> would welcome their recommendations.

>

> Very disappointing

>

> RPK073

[Sue]

citylover Wrote:

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When I have time I'll

> post more on the forum,the warning signs and how

> to avoid similar disasters!

There is already a thread somewhere along those lines, I think it was started last year.

When I have a bit more time I'll see if I can find it.

PS You should edit your heading to tradesmen/women. I've had a few bad experiences over the years, and one was with a woman. Which was very disappointing as there are so few women working in the building trade, and when I employed her I thought I was striking a blow for equality :(

The bad experiences do make you really appreciate and treasure the good tradespeople you come across, though :)

[Pugwash]

I always look for a surname, an address and a landline phone. I have been known to check out references etc. I will not employ anyone on the basis of a mobile for expensive/large/complicated jobs. So far I have been lucky.

[imogena]

I haven't had awful experiences, just found that a lot of the recommended tradesmen quote very highly so i don't use them (who cares if someone is good if they are coasting on their EDF reputation and ripping off those they think they can) and a couple of cases of very mediocre work from people who've come highly recommended. However i have found 1 or 2 on here who are brilliant, good value and very reliable.

[Jittlelo]

One of the three tradespeople Ive used on here was a disaster!

An oft recommended builder who had done extensions, fitted kitchens, re-roofed... People raved about him! But the 2m long,50cm high garden wall he rebuilt for us honestly looked like it had been done by the Cat in the Hat! When I pointed out that the gate post was leaning (dramatically) he said he'd had to do that so the gate would reach across?! After Id got him to redo the work (to an acceptable rather than great standard) I contacted all the people who'd recommended him. The recommendations were all bona fide?! So Im not sure that even checking out references would have helped...

[Lowlander]

We have had poor work from builders with a landline, so even that is not something to rely on.

Southwark do a trusted trader scheme and the builders / tradesmen we've used from there have so far been good.

http://www.southwark.gov.uk/info/200098/trading_standards/286/10_builders_award_scheme

And for gas/electric just always make sure they're Gas-Safe / electric qualified (e.g. NECIEC)

[Administrator]

Feel free to post details about bad workmen/women but please include some evidence if possible i.e. photos of the bad work. Don't post anything slanderous e.g. "they stole from me" but do say "Bob on 078xx xxx xxx failed to turn up/communicate etc" so that others are aware, the phone number will help clarify who they are.

[Pugwash]

I have use the trusted trader list and also the 'Which' approved traders

[Nate]

That is the main reason I started using companies. They care about their reputation more in my opinion...

[Jacqui5254]

Atanas and his team...

http://kitchenandbathroombuilderdslondon.co.uk/

100% the best company I have ever had work on my property. Recently renovated my flat.

The most reliable, honest and hardworking team. Totally does what he agrees to in a very decent timescale. His standard is way above all the other renovations I have had done over the years.

Jacqui.

[ED07]

Avoid Rick the plumber, whose number is 07721060037. He is a cowboy pretending to be a plumber. He does not fix things properly, is late when he bothers to turn up and then promises to refund you, which of course never materialises. There are a few users on here who have had the misfortune to have been ripped off by him recently.

[kouch]

I too had a bad experience with Rick the plumber on 07721060037. AVOID!

[Charlie1471]

I echo the comments re avoiding Rick 'the cowboy' plumber whose number is 07721060037. What a joke.

He does not turn up when he says he will, doesn't even call to say sorry. Do not pay him a deposit up front - he will promise to refund you, which takes weeks of chasing, and then doesn't refund in full due to his admin fee.

If you look at other posts on the EDF there are many who seem to have had similar experiences.

[Jeremy]

Charlie1471 Wrote:

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> He does not turn up when he says he will, doesn't

> even call to say sorry. Do not pay him a deposit

> up front - he will promise to refund you, which

> takes weeks of chasing, and then doesn't refund in

> full due to his admin fee.

A non-refundable "admin fee"? Sounds like a scam, should be reported to trading standards at once.

[Rosetta]

When reporting to Trading Standards, cc in your local councillors. Apparently this means they have to take notice and deal with it.

[ED07]

Having been ripped off by this cowboy, I am more than happy to report him to Trading Standards. Does anyone have a surname or an address for him. Not only is he ripping off people, he also taking work away from hard working reputable local plumbers.

[ED07]

An update on Rick the Plumber:

I have done some digging and he operates through Rye Plumbing & Heating Ltd, which is registered at Companies House. His sidekick Dean is listed as director (nothing for Rick). The company website (https://sites.google.com/site/dplumbingandheating/)also has the Gas Safety Register logo on it, but the Gas Safe Register website has no record of this business. I have notified Southwark Council Trading Standards (copying in James Barber). I have also notified the Gas Safety Register.

[ED07]

For those of you have been ripped off by Rick, his real name is Daniel Ebrahimy and he is listed as a former director of Rye Plumbing & Heating Ltd. The details below are the information from the Companies House website on Rye Plumbing & Heating Ltd:

RYE PLUMBING AND HEATING LTD

Company number 09723024

RYE PLUMBING AND HEATING LTD (09723024)

Registered office address: 73 Knighton Park Road, Sydenham, London, England, SE26 5RN

Current Directors:

FRANCIS, Dean James Cameron

Correspondence address: 73 Knighton Park Road, Sydenham, London, England, SE26 5RN

Former Directors:

EBRAHIMY, Daniel

Correspondence address: 73 Knighton Park Road, Sydenham, England, United Kingdom, SE26 5RN

Appointed on: 8 August 2015; Resigned on: 12 August 2015

[Sue]

ED07 Wrote:

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>

> Appointed on: 8 August 2015; Resigned on: 12

> August 2015

He was only a director for four days?

[ED07]

Apparently so. From my experience with him in December, he turned up with Dean, as he has also done for a number of people on the EDF since 12th August, 2015. It is possible to be associated with or work for a company without being a director.

[kimp]

Cosign on Rick. Not a bad job but certainly not worth ?80 to unblock a sink and certainly not worth the ten pounds discount to post a review on EDF.

Can the moderator ask others posting recommendations to post whether they are receiving a benefit to recommend a tradesman? I only called Rick because he was strongly recommended by this board.

[Sue]

kimp Wrote:

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> certainly not

> worth the ten pounds discount to post a review on

> EDF.

>

> Can the moderator ask others posting

> recommendations to post whether they are receiving

> a benefit to recommend a tradesman? I only called

> Rick because he was strongly recommended by this

> board.

I suspect that this happens quite a lot, and sadly I am becoming quite cynical about EDF recommendations unless I know (on or off-line) and trust the person making the recommendation.

I have only once been asked to make a recommendation on here, and there was no discount involved, but it did go some way to explain why the tradesperson in question (who I wouldn't use again) had so many EDF recommendations.