We have just had a new drive installed which my partner and I aren't happy with and the builder is trying to fob us off with excuses.
The quote he provided us with stated that he would 'dig out and install 15ft by 13ft driveway area. Instead he has raised the drive by 5-6 inches on top of the existing path (which runs the length of our back garden) and only left about a foot at the end to install the slope up to the drive.
The cement block he has left us with doesn't have much of a gradient towards the back alley and he has put a 'fillet' into one side (leaving us with a nice dip in one side for water to pool) in order for the bi-fold gates to open. He's also not raised the slope enough on one side and I can see 1-2inches of wood where the slope meets the drive base. The slope itself isn't smooth and appears to curve over to meet the alley (not sure if that's the best way to describe it), I can also see what looks to be pebbles through the cement. He wants £600 for installation of this drive and to be honest I don't want to pay him for what I see as shoddy workmanship. This is the first time I have ever had to get contractors in to do work (and probably the last) and to be quite honest I know nothing about cement (but that's probably apparent). In my last conversation he said that if he had started the slope further back the gates wouldn't have opened properly - this I find hard to believe as they are about 1/2ft above the ground. Where do I stand and what can I do to get him to put this right.
Concrete drive - New drive not installed properly?
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Tony McC
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- Location: Warrington, People's Republic of South Lancashire
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You need to put your concerns in writing, and state that you are not prepared to pay at this stage because the work done does not match that described in the estimate, which stated the drive was to be excavated.
If the contractor believes their work is satisfactory, it is up to them to take legal action, if necessary, to force you to settle up. If they were to win the case, you would also be required to pay their legal costs.
It may be worthwhile for you to obtain an independent assessment of the work, just to make sure that a professional sees the same problems as you do. It's not unknown for a homeowner to be dissatisfied with some aspect of the work that is actually technically adequate, but just doesn't meet the expectations of the client for whatever reason.
600 quid though - it's not a lot and you don't really get much for that sort of money. What's 15ft by 13ft in proper measurements?? 4.6m x 4m = 18.4m². Qualitry concreting work on that sort of scale, including excavation, sub-base, DPM, shuttering and finishing would cost around 35-40 quid per square metre, say 700 quid, plus yer VAT....I reckon you have a cheap job. You'd be lucky to get a decent contractor to take on a job of that small scale without charging a premium.
If the contractor believes their work is satisfactory, it is up to them to take legal action, if necessary, to force you to settle up. If they were to win the case, you would also be required to pay their legal costs.
It may be worthwhile for you to obtain an independent assessment of the work, just to make sure that a professional sees the same problems as you do. It's not unknown for a homeowner to be dissatisfied with some aspect of the work that is actually technically adequate, but just doesn't meet the expectations of the client for whatever reason.
600 quid though - it's not a lot and you don't really get much for that sort of money. What's 15ft by 13ft in proper measurements?? 4.6m x 4m = 18.4m². Qualitry concreting work on that sort of scale, including excavation, sub-base, DPM, shuttering and finishing would cost around 35-40 quid per square metre, say 700 quid, plus yer VAT....I reckon you have a cheap job. You'd be lucky to get a decent contractor to take on a job of that small scale without charging a premium.
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