B&
The crimes of cowboy builders are well publicised, but AXA’s latest study fi nds the rogue traders may well be out-numbered by rogue customers. Customers having a cavalier attitude towards tradesmen’s safety and well being is common, as are attempts to belittle their expertise, but the worst behaviour would be considered serious workplace harassment in any other context. Eight in ten tradesmen told the survey they regularly encounter customers who attempt to knock down the agreed fee or avoid paying them on various pretexts – pushing back payment deadlines or disputing the fee only once work is complete.
Other types of behaviour are self- defeating, as clients unwittingly hinder
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Tradesmen lift the lid on cowboy customers
work or prevent the tradesman from carrying it out properly. The most common ways customers undermine a building project, as voted by tradespeople, are: 1 Insisting on cheap or unsuitable materials
2 Not providing clear job specs (contrary to myth, many tradesmen prefer a written agreement) 3 Ignoring advice
their
4 Asking them to do tasks they aren’t qualifi ed for 5 Hanging around while they try to work
Another bugbear is having to work around animals that are not properly under control: a third of tradespeople have been attacked by a home-owner’s beloved pet.
Unsanitary working conditions were the
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third biggest complaint, with 27 per cent of tradesmen saying they’ve had to walk off a job after being asked to work amidst dog mess, maggot- infested rubbish or fl ea infestations.
Meanwhile, twenty six per cent of tradespeople say they have had a customer fl irt or attempt to seduce them in a way that made them feel uncomfortable. Far from fi nding these situations comic, tradespeople often feel demeaned or threatened by this behaviour:
Becoming embroiled in people’s family lives is another danger, as a quarter of tradesmen say they have stood by while a major domestic argument went on. Others report attacks by irate neighbours. “We live in a society which tends to look
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down on skilled manual work in general, often undervaluing the knowledge, judgement and craftsmanship it involves,” says Gareth Howell, Managing Director of leading trades insurer AXA. “It’s hard to imagine someone in a white- collar role encountering such high levels of harassment or casual disrespect. People are quite happy to argue a builder’s fee down once he’s fi nished work, but would they do the same to a dentist, solicitor or architect?”
“Tradespeople are the best insured small businesses in
the UK and follow health and safety regulations designed to protect customers. But it cuts both ways, householders have a duty of care towards
people working in their home too: at the most basic level, provide a clean work space, and ensure animals and children are well out of the way.”
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reference: CWAM17
Cardiff & South Wales Advertiser – Friday 9th June 2017 - 23
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