wholesalers ripping us off

[dragonspark]

hello fellow sparks
i was hoping there would be a fellow tradesman that could point me in the right direction.
having been a self employed electrician since 1991 i am aware that some wholesalers have some tricks up their sleeve in order to boost their salesfigures at the cost of us self employed electricians and companies, however over the last two years especially i have noticed that instances of these tactics have increased.
Due to this i am sure we all have to scrutinise our wholesaler invoices, if we find we have a query on an invoice, we complain and get a credit note,
personnaly i have noticed a huge increase in these instances, i know we should get prices first however when you run a business that relies on machinery breakdowns and we are back and to, to the supplier many times a day, getting prices is very time consuming and very difficult in a breakdown instance.
Wholesalers take advantage of this and will add money here and there and in many cases will try it on and add silly ammounts to your invoice hoping that you do not notice.
About six months ago i made a request about certain items to be given consideration, and again with no result, having very fortunately a great influx of work, i have to admit my concentration was diverted and the charges from this supplier increased.
I began purchasing items from RS Components as even they were cheaper, i began to purchase from Denmans and found their charges to be 50% cheaper, i opened accounts with two further suppliers all with the same result, the majority of items purchased are 50% cheaper, in the remaining 25% of items they are 60%,70% and even 90% cheaper.
The supplier in question has been informed of my concerns, as i have asked for items i feel have excessive charges upon them to be given consideration, i asked twice for this, also items we have returned we have not been given credit notes for and items that they delivered too late
was forced to purchase elsewhere therefore did no longer require , we also have not recieved credit notes for, they have been advised of all this and that we have one client delaying payment as items we ordered took weeks to arrive and therefore we completed job late.
As earlier requests have recieved no action, i have deferred payment, i have informed the supplier of why i am deferring payment and their response is to issue demands through their solicitor.
I was under the impression that wholesalers could only charge a certain percentage to their trade customers, i thought there were guidelines they had to work within, is there anyone out there could advise me if there are guidelines that wholesalers work to and what those guidelines are, or can a wholesaler just simply charge what they feel like, we have purchased from other suppliers over £4000.00 in each of the last two months, needless to say the supplier in question has lost that business however with their current charging regime their charges would have been more like £5500 per month or more im sure if they were allowed to get away with it.
any advice anybody please

 

[supasparxs]

This isn't a plug but wholesaler i use are in Welham Green, Welham Electrical Wholesalers near potters bar. Its run by 2 partners. Top guys in there.

I prefer the smaller wholesalers, more reliable.

On the whole I agree with you

 

[dragonspark]

many thanks for your replies
as noted above, i know we should all take very close scrutiny of our wholesaler invoices, the ideal is to get written prices for everything however as a small firm just myself and my two sons, this is very time consuming and in periods of pressure, as when a few clients all require jobs completing quickly, time really is of a premium.
i have been using other suppliers for the last couple of months and have found an average of a 50% saving, yes 50%
which is why i asked if wholesalers have guidelines they have to work within.
the supplier i have a dispute with, have not given credit notes for items returned, yes they have been asked, items ordered that took so long to come that we went elsewhere, therefore no longer required have still been charged to our account, i have asked for credit notes.
months ago i enquired how much double sockets are , to be told £1.50 so i then asked why we were being charged £3.70 and £7.00 even £13.00, nothing was done about it, i asked the same question to another employee with still nothing, almost everything bought from this particular wholesaler is 50% more expensive than the suppliers now being used, just one example for you they charged £168.00 for 25 x 6ft tubes, Denmans quoted £114,00, also a week after charging me £168.00 for 25 tubes i was sent another invoice for £130.00 for 6 x 6ft tubes.
as i have had no action at all from any of my previous requests and progressive silly invoices i have refused to pay them, now at least they are taking notice suprise suprise, they asked which invoices i have queries upon and i have replied the majority, after which i have recieved a solicitors letter accusing myself of employing delaying tactics and threatening court action, i have replied direct to the solicitor and the supplier stating that it is the majority of invoices i have a problem with.
If wholesalers can charge what they like then i suppose i am knackered and will have to fork out, i just thought there may be guidelines for suppliers to work to in supplyying trade customers
many thanks

 

[Marvo]

.... they asked which invoices i have queries upon and i have replied the majority, after which i have recieved a solicitors letter accusing myself of employing delaying tactics and threatening court action, i have replied direct to the solicitor and the supplier stating that it is the majority of invoices i have a problem with.

There's a big difference between not paying at all and withholding an amount that's under dispute. I would pay up to date all amounts that are due and are not being disputed. Them you'll need to give a full written report stating the prices you were quoted, when and by whom along with a list of every invoice numbers and items you were overcharged and stating by how much. If they're dragging their feet giving refunds for returned goods send them another list of refunds you're waiting for and add monthly interest at the maximum rate allowable under your local laws.

 

[baldelectrician]

many thanks for your replies
as noted above, i know we should all take very close scrutiny of our wholesaler invoices, the ideal is to get written prices for everything however as a small firm just myself and my two sons, this is very time consuming and in periods of pressure, as when a few clients all require jobs completing quickly, time really is of a premium.
i have been using other suppliers for the last couple of months and have found an average of a 50% saving, yes 50%
which is why i asked if wholesalers have guidelines they have to work within.
the supplier i have a dispute with, have not given credit notes for items returned, yes they have been asked, items ordered that took so long to come that we went elsewhere, therefore no longer required have still been charged to our account, i have asked for credit notes.
months ago i enquired how much double sockets are , to be told £1.50 so i then asked why we were being charged £3.70 and £7.00 even £13.00, nothing was done about it, i asked the same question to another employee with still nothing, almost everything bought from this particular wholesaler is 50% more expensive than the suppliers now being used, just one example for you they charged £168.00 for 25 x 6ft tubes, Denmans quoted £114,00, also a week after charging me £168.00 for 25 tubes i was sent another invoice for £130.00 for 6 x 6ft tubes.
as i have had no action at all from any of my previous requests and progressive silly invoices i have refused to pay them, now at least they are taking notice suprise suprise, they asked which invoices i have queries upon and i have replied the majority, after which i have recieved a solicitors letter accusing myself of employing delaying tactics and threatening court action, i have replied direct to the solicitor and the supplier stating that it is the majority of invoices i have a problem with.
If wholesalers can charge what they like then i suppose i am knackered and will have to fork out, i just thought there may be guidelines for suppliers to work to in supplyying trade customers
many thanks

They don't really have a leg to stand on

I would, however detail every invoice you have with them and then go through them all
Put, also in writing the ones you have a problem with and state what price you will be paying for each item

Did you cancel the order for the items that took ages? If you did you should expect a restocking charge - I would offer 15% to them as a restocking charge for these items

You need to make sure all the problems detailed are in writing and it looks as if you are being fair.
Pay all the items due (use BACS to make sure you can prove you have paid), and request them to either write the remainder off or justify the extra costs

 

[telectrix]

i wouldn't offer them any restocking charge as they failed to deliver goods as promised.

 

[pennywise]

Wholesalers are a nightmare best to use one guy in branch, then theres no hiding when it comes to questioning an invoices and agreed sounds like CEF from the OP:33:

 

[telectrix]

last week i went into a certain wholesalers, wanted an alarm battery. he tapped away on his keybord and then said £15.78 with the vat. bloody ell . i says, last one was only about a tenner. he taps away again then says best i can do is £10.45.!!!!!!!

 

[i=p/u]

im gonna get themin headlock next time they try fool me, im new to the game and i can spot a fruit when i see one, mking it up as he goes, then you say do you not mean around this price and they say , yeah there abouts....

 

[baldelectrician]

I pay about £5 for an alarm battery- you are using a wrong wholesaler

 

[baldelectrician]

last week i went into a certain wholesalers, wanted an alarm battery. he tapped away on his keybord and then said £15.78 with the vat. bloody ell . i says, last one was only about a tenner. he taps away again then says best i can do is £10.45.!!!!!!!

I pay about £5 for an alarm battery- you are using a wrong wholesaler

 

[i=p/u]

now that sound like the shafters i speak too, do staff get sent on a sales course, cause they all act the same.... ir i know another one who when you agree the price to material list, you go to collect they even bring it all out to counter and then tell you dont have this, this this and this.. what we gonna do about it, telectrix take lead role and spray pain there shops in england il do it in n,ireland

last week i went into a certain wholesalers, wanted an alarm battery. he tapped away on his keybord and then said £15.78 with the vat. bloody ell . i says, last one was only about a tenner. he taps away again then says best i can do is £10.45.!!!!!!!

 

[Marvo]

There's a million and on reasons one wholesaler might be more expensive than another. With alarm batteries you'll get better prices at a battery wholesaler. An electrical wholesaler would only move small quantities so their prices will be higher. In that case you're paying for the convenience of not having to use multiple suppliers and spend longer driving around to acquire your materials.

 

[Rockingit]

There's a million and on reasons one wholesaler might be more expensive than another. With alarm batteries you'll get better prices at a battery wholesaler. An electrical wholesaler would only move small quantities so their prices will be higher. In that case you're paying for the convenience of not having to use multiple suppliers and spend longer driving around to acquire your materials.

I have always thought that sometimes it's counter-productive to spend two hours on the phone to find something for 50p cheaper - despite the principle!

 

[Marvo]

I have always thought that sometimes it's counter-productive to spend two hours on the phone to find something for 50p cheaper - despite the principle!

I completely agree for materials or parts that aren't bread and butter for your business. If we build a one-off PCB or we're making a prototype item we'll purchase all the components from 2 or 3 suppliers, you can't justify sourcing the best prices on 300 components when you're only using one or two of each. Obviously the customer is paying ultimately but if the cost wasn't the premium priced materials he'd be paying for more of our time so it's a lose-lose scenario.

 

[alarm man]

I pay about £5 for an alarm battery- you are using a wrong wholesaler

at £5 your using the wrong battery..