The surfacing industry is plagued by stories of rogue traders who provide substandard surfaces and shoddy workmanship in return for their clients hard earned cash. It is a sad fact that many customers are left wholly dissatisfied with their surfacing contractor, so what can be done about it?
The good news is that there are some superior surfacing companies out there who will offer excellence in both their professional knowledge and deliver as well as their customer service. If you are looking to hire a paving or
surfacing contractor for your home or business follow these handy hints to ensure you don’t feel this sting of a bogus surfacing company.
Do your homework
Some less reputable contractors may be trading under several business names, and if this is the case then alarms bells should be ringing. One of the main reasons contractors do this is to disassociate themselves with previous complaints or bad reviews from unhappy customers. Check review websites carefully to see what past clients have said about the service provided.
Get quotations
All reputable contractors will happily provide free no obligation quotations, and rarely will they all be the same. If there are large differences in price check that each contractor is quoting on the exact same specifications and check the standard of the materials they plan to use. A cheap quote is usually too good to be true, and on careful inspection of the quote you will discover that substandard materials may be being used.
Determine how long the contractor has been in business
As a rule, the more experience they have the better the quality of work provided, however if your contractor’s business is recently registered this may be indicative of a previous history of bad credit or customer complaints so check their current and past company websites of online reviews.
Check that your contractor is fully licensed and insured
By law, contractors must be licensed and insured, and most companies will provide details of their compliance with government legislation, health and safety policies and any accreditations gained on their website.
Ask around
Any successful contractor knows that their reputation is only as good as their last job, so ask friends, relatives and colleagues if they would recommend any surfacing companies, and if they have had new surfaces installed then go round to visit and see the finished result for yourself.
