Is my electrician dodgy? Ask questions and find answers to many subjects relating to electrics and electrical work

[sarahholder]

Hi, a Federation of Master Builders firm i am using for my house renovation recommended an electrician for the house rewire, they have used him for years and say he's very competent and reliable, he seems fine and his price is reasonable (i think) based on two quotes I got, but oddly his quote although written down and set out formally was just listed as total cost = £3350 when i queried if this inc VAT or not he said "I am not V A T registered so this is the price you will pay" ....what does this mean? How can anyone be not VAT registered, nothing has been said about paying only in cash?? I want to use him but am dubious and confused? Help? :?

[thedoctor]

A Company, or individual, must register for VAT when they reach (from April 1st 2007) a turnover of £61,000 per annum. If this company has not yet turned over, or does not look likely to turn over, this amount of money thay can operate without charging VAT. This, in theory, should make them 17.5% cheaper than their registered competitors. It is in no way an indication of dodgy dealing and I suspect that when he says "this is the price you will pay" he means that he will not, all of a sudden add a whopping 17.5% VAT to it, catching you unawares.

[DT77]

BEFORE using him, check whether he is a member of a recognised competent persons scheme such as NAPITT, NICEIC, ELECSA (there are others). You can double check with these bodies whether a tradesman is registered. These schemes should also be providing guarantess for any work carried out by one of their approved contractors/installers so it is worth using the proper people for peace of mind.

Also ask him what certificates he will be issuing with the work - if he can't provide you with the correct documentation, ditch him and look elsewhere. You dont want any problems when you come to sell the place..

As for the money, see above.

DT

[Ross]

[quote="sarahholder"]Hi, a Federation of Master Builders firm i am using for my house renovation recommended an electrician for the house rewire, they have used him for years and say he's very competent and reliable, he seems fine and his price is reasonable (i think) based on two quotes I got, but oddly his quote although written down and set out formally was just listed as total cost = £3350 when i queried if this inc VAT or not he said "I am not V A T registered so this is the price you will pay" ....what does this mean? How can anyone be not VAT registered, nothing has been said about paying only in cash?? I want to use him but am dubious and confused? Help? :?[/quote]

Most important is to ask if your electrician is Part P compliant, does he belong to Niceic Napit etc as a Domestic Installer. If you go to http://[b]www.niceic.org.uk[/b]/ it will explain fully what is required. If he is not ask if he has informed building control at your local council before he starts. He also needs to provide you with an Electrical Instalation Certificate upon completion the council will send you confirmation or notification. All this is important for piece of mind for a job done properly and insurance cover if things go wrong.
Finaly if you dont have the correct paper work you may have problems selling your property in the future.All this is now required by law.

[DONFRAMAC]

When I made use of the services of a one-man car servicing business, I was made aware of this turn-over limit, but I was also told that these people were obliged to charge the customer an equivalent amount, presumably so that he does not have an unfair edge over larger firms.

[sparx]

Hi, as a domestic customer you are in fact in theory better off using a non-VAT registered contractor as he will not put tax on your bill, however he will have been charged VAT on his materials so you only save on his labour VAT because his perfectly legal quote to you has nothing to do with 'cash' you can still pay by cheque or whatever argreement you make.
We were not VAT registered for some years but did register volenterily before reaching our turn over limit because our commercial customers could not claim back VAT on materiels otherwise,
so to VAT or not to VAT doesn't affect his work ability or status,
regards
SPARX

[BLAKEY1963]

[quote="sarahholder"]Hi, a Federation of Master Builders firm i am using for my house renovation recommended an electrician for the house rewire, they have used him for years and say he's very competent and reliable, he seems fine and his price is reasonable (i think) based on two quotes I got, but oddly his quote although written down and set out formally was just listed as total cost = £3350 when i queried if this inc VAT or not he said "I am not V A T registered so this is the price you will pay" ....what does this mean? How can anyone be not VAT registered, nothing has been said about paying only in cash?? I want to use him but am dubious and confused? Help? :?[/quote]

SARAHHOLDER
AS DT77 AND ROSS STATE, QUITE RIGHTLY SO
U CHECK THEY R MEMBERS OF A COMPETENT PERSONS SCHEME
IF THERE IS NO INDICATION OF MEMBERSHIP ON A SCHEME, LOGOS
ON QUOTATION OR CONTRACT PAPERWORK, LOGO ON WORK VEHICLE
ECT , THEN U QUITE CLEARLY ASK THE CONTRACTER WHICH COMPETENT PERSONS SCHEME HE IS REGISTERED WITH SO U CAN CHECK.
ANY BONA FIDE FIRM WILL SHOW U EVIDENCE OF MEMBERSHIP
ANY DOUBTS THEN DO NOT ENGAGE HIM TO WORK.
U CAN ALSO LOG ON TO THE GOVERMENTS TRUST A TRADER SCHEME
WHERE U CAN LOCATE A RECOMMENDED TRADESMAN, WHO R REGISTERED WITH COMPETENT PERSON SCHEMES
U R IN CONTROL ASK HIM WHO HE IS REGISTERED WITH !

BLAKEY1963

[sarahholder]

Thank you all sooo much for your extremely helpful and informative replies! I'm going to indeed ask him about all those points raised.

[Reynardine]

There is a website for approved contractors at trustmark dot org dot uk . From there you can enter a postcode, select a trade and find an individual or firm.