There are a lot of people out there who literally fear anything going wrong with their property because they have such grave concerns about the practices of some tradesmen. This is very understandable in the general population as they have little to do with tradesmen on a daily basis and have no idea who to trust.
I was a little surprised to find out that landlords suffer from the same fears. According to a survey commissioned by eGenie.co.uk 75% of landlords delay repairs to their properties because they fear over charging by the people they hire. That is an awfully high figure.
According to Tim Meyer UK manager of eGenie.co.uk “It is understandable people feel scared about having shoddy work or getting ripped off, particularly when money is tight”. In normal circumstances I would agree with Mr Meyer but as professional landlords I think we are in a unique position to develop a set of trustworthy contacts that can help us out in these situations.
It is important that you keep a list of all tradesmen that have worked for you and done a good job.
Even if a tradesman you have used in the past is not in the area you need, he can probably recommend someone who is. Once you have a list of contacts you can trust you need never fear these events again.
Don’t forget, failing to keep your property well maintained can lead to serious trouble down the line.
