So it's not gravel at all then. It's type 1, which is what it should be......

so who paid for the materials, you?

£150 is about the right money for labour.

OP has said himself the quote was too cheap so was expecting to pay more.

I would have run a mile if someone quoted £60 to be honest. 2007 Vogue TDV8 with 255/55/20's fitted

Yes. I bought the hardcore as I was planning on doing it myself. However, after mauling a ton in the freezing cold with a shovel and a barrow, I decided to pay someone to do it.
Travis Perkins delivered 2 ton of 40mm and a ton of 20mm for the top layer. The bags split and they sent replacements free of charge so I had 4 ton and 2 ton. The base needed another 3 ton when they started compacting it, but he said I can now park a bus on there, it's that hard.
He kept saying he'd got to pay his blokes (£70 each) and said he'd drop it to £200. I offered him £150 to cover his guys pay and he accepted it. He did say several times that he should've called me to let me know so all is good.

As long as you're happy Andy, you've paid the right money really.

It sounds a bit of an a*se to be honest, with the materials.

3 blokes for 6 tons is quite comedic 2007 Vogue TDV8 with 255/55/20's fitted

Ask for the names and NI numbers of all the men as you need this for your accounts when submitted to the tax man.

I appreciate he's happy to have a cheque but how will he be paying his men; and how much. 2017 5.0 Autobiography Supercharged
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It was a ball ache of a job to be fair. The gravel was dropped at the back of the (37ft) static and had to be moved to the front via very boggy grass both sides. I did see a quadbike with a large metal carrier on the back in one of the photos, which would make life easier I guess but it was still a job and a half.
The extra gravel was at the other end of the site as well so there would have been a bit of to and fro-ing there.
I don't mind paying his blokes-it's not their fault. Hes basically worked for nothing and supplied the equipment hire for free. It's his own fault and he knows it.

That puts a completely different slant on it, totally and utterly - when you mentioned tipper I made the assumption that it was a direct drop into the hole.
I would have charged about £250/300 for that as we would have properly boarded it for barrowing.
You've got a bargain.
I would be ignoring the "advice" about NI numbers and the likes........I'm sure you are....... 2007 Vogue TDV8 with 255/55/20's fitted

It's not the price that's the issue though. Had he have said £200/£250 beforehand, I'd have more than likely still agreed to it, or faced spending two days doing it myself.

It's not like we've agreed a price then I've knocked him down after he's done the work. That would have been unethical.

He even commented on the wet grass when he called me last week. He would also have seen where the bags of gravel had been placed. Perfect opportunity to say it will cost more. He didn't even say he'd need more men on the job. I thought he was going to JCB the lot into the hole himself.

I have a building company in north Cornwall and been in the trade for over 35 years , yes he should of said he had made a mistake , but at the end of the day you got done what you wanted at a good price

Oh no, I agree totally, it's not ethical in the slightest. Not something I would ever do, but then, I'm not like others, there's a lot of it about, for various reasons.
However, one has to have reasonable expectations of someone's ethics when they quote £60 for that job !!!!!

To answer an earlier point in the thread which, if I recall correctly, was tarring everyone in the trade with the same "ripoff" brush - it is never ethical to come along at the end with your handout for more, unnanounced, and without some form or prior conversation. I have seen countless people in the trade who are actually decent honest workers, but struggle to communicate effectively with customers, partly through lack of self confidence, and lack of explanation of what the job entails, and what costs what. Add in the wholly unreasonable expectations and lack of knowledge that quite a percentage of customers has, and it is a recipe for falling out. I always encourage subbies/my chaps to forge a good relationship with their client, explain (briefly) the processes, anticipate any changes/extra mid-job, and deal with the cost/implications on a day 1 basis. Pre-empting is the way forward. However, I detest greatly the perception that all manual workers are fly-by-nights, especially coming from customers who know less than nothing about how the work is actually achieved. That said, there are plenty of rogues out there!!!!!!

I'll chuck my soapbox back under the stairs now, shall I ? Lol 2007 Vogue TDV8 with 255/55/20's fitted

I think you got a more than reasonable price in the end, Andy. My observation is that you say you had two telephone conversations with him before he started the job. Although he didn't say anything about the final price then, my view is that was the time to confirm what he was proposing. Especially as you did say that you thought that £60 was very cheap. John
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