Getting payed in advance

[sham]

Has anybody took half or full payment in advance before carrying out work. I went to look at a domestic property and when giving the quote, I decided to ask for 70% of the money in advance. This is because he has stripped the house bare to the walls and removed the 1st floor ceiling and being the electrician I will be there in the beginning and towards the end for second fixing. most other traders works will be done in-between and they will get paid. I am worried that the customer will run out of funds when it's my turn to collect. getting paid in advance will make me relax. So what are your thoughts , all work will be on contract.

 

[Leesparkykent]

Has anybody took half or full payment in advance before carrying out work. I went to look at a domestic property and when giving the quote, I decided to ask for 70% of the money in advance. This is because he has stripped the house bare to the walls and removed the 1st floor ceiling and being the electrician I will be there in the beginning and towards the end for second fixing. most other traders works will be done in-between and they will get paid. I am worried that the customer will run out of funds when it's my turn to collect. getting paid in advance will make me relax. So what are your thoughts , all work will be on contract.

If you can get it then why not? IMO it doesn’t look very professional though. There is no way on earth I would ever pay a tradesman upfront to the tune of 70%.

 

[telectrix]

i ask for 33% up front, then 33% on 1st fix, 25% on 2nd fix, remainder on hand over with cert. usually flexible, agreed with customer before i order any gear.

 

[SparkySy]

Yes I tend to work a staged payment system with some commercial and agricultural customers like tel says 33% and so on. Never done it with a domestic customer but yes why not!

 

[sham]

i ask for 33% up front, then 33% on 1st fix, 25% on 2nd fix, remainder on hand over with cert. usually flexible, agreed with customer before i order any gear.

Thank you, seems a good idea.

 

[Baddegg]

Always staged payments agreed in writing prior

 

[sham]

If you can get it then why not? IMO it doesn’t look very professional though. There is no way on earth I would ever pay a tradesman upfront to the tune of 70%.
[/QUOT

Always staged payments agreed in writing prior

Staged payment up front before the stages, getting paid in advance before each stage starts ? yay or nay ?

 

[Baddegg]

Staged payment up front before the stages, getting paid in advance before each stage starts ? yay or nay ?

Except the last payment which is on completion and customer satisfaction of the works.....

 

[SparkySy]

That is up to you, depends on how much you trust the customer to pay you if you say pay on completion of a stage. As long as it's clear to the other party and they agree in writing then I personally don't think it makes much difference. I have written contracts both ways in the past, especially new customers always make me wary if they are not word of mouth from another good customer.
End of the day your customer wants a good job and you want to get paid, as long as everyone knows where they stand from the outset and is happy with the arrangement then happy days.

 

[The Ghost]

Definitely a contract setting out the terms first. Calculate the cost of ALL materials and 20% of the total on top as separate items as a basis for the deposit. When the deposit is paid then materials on site ready for first fix. After first fix remainder to be paid on costs so far. Then final payment on completion. All itemised in the contract. I think that would mean around a 50% deposit. If you show materials and a 20% deposit it will look reasonable.

 

[The Ghost]

Paid not Payed and anyway it's payment in advance as paid is a past tense.

 

[ferg]

30% deposit, 30% after first fix with balance due on completion.

 

[telectrix]

Paid not Payed and anyway it's payment in advance as paid is a past tense.

i thought that but did not want to be pedantic. i'm a mite tense though before beer o'clock.

 

[pirate]

Better payed than spayed...

 

[telectrix]

Better payed than spayed...

just had to cover up little Misia's ears. she was spayed ages ago.
(she's the one on the right. her sister went to a new home, so don't know about her).

 

[The Ghost]

spayed

Speyed

 

[Devonchris]

Speyed

I thought that's what Cambridge graduates did in the sixties?

 

[The Ghost]

Cambridge

Oxbridge graduates dahling!

 

[pirate]

"Spayed is the past tense of the verb spay, which means to sterilize a female animal. ... Related words are spay, spays and spaying. Spayed appears in the 1400s, derived from the Old French espeer, which means stab with a sword, kill, and also remove the ovaries of a hunting dog. "

Actually, it seems both spellings are in common usage today.

 

[Andy78]

Speyed

That's when you partake of a good amount of a decent Speyside single malt which renders one as if said procedure had taken place.

 

[Devonchris]

Oxbridge graduates dahling!

I only meant the ones recruited by the KGB not the MI5 ones.

 

[Toneyz]

Has anybody took half or full payment in advance before carrying out work. I went to look at a domestic property and when giving the quote, I decided to ask for 70% of the money in advance. This is because he has stripped the house bare to the walls and removed the 1st floor ceiling and being the electrician I will be there in the beginning and towards the end for second fixing. most other traders works will be done in-between and they will get paid. I am worried that the customer will run out of funds when it's my turn to collect. getting paid in advance will make me relax. So what are your thoughts , all work will be on contract.

Then you will be one of the first to be paid for the 1st fix,do as Tel's advice
Consumer orginisations are always telling the public not to pay upfront the customer may have the same resivations about you thaking money upfront and not seeing you for dust. If you are ordering non stocked items from your wholesaler that would incure a restocking/return charge if not needed then maybe there is a point there to ask for that.

 

[stuarth]

I have staged payments as part of my terms & conditions (sent with quote) depending on the size of the job, so anything over £500 will have staged payments of 50% two weeks before starting works then the balance on completion, unless its over £1500 then theres a 25% payment due the day work starts and all materials relevent to the job are delivered, has worked very well for many years only ever been queried a couple of times and never been refused