@kezo they just wouldn’t do it. I did ask for a breakdown/itemised invoice, but it was not going to happen.
This is where Motability’s charger installation principles breaksdown and quite frankly wrong, especially where a non standard install is concerned.
Telling you they may and did break slabs is ludicrous! Any reputable trade will put back as found, even if an unexpected breakage occurs its paid for and put right by the tradesman. You wouldn’t expect a double glazing firm to fit you a new window only to break the glass and ask the customer to pay for another. The principle remains the same regardless of trade, unless they are cowboys or after a quick buck!
What makes it worse, especially for a disabled customer whio maybe unsteady on their feet is, if the ground material (slabs in your case) aren’t put back down properly they will eventually sink and become uneven, made worse by breakages caused by them. The DNO can put back as was, so there is no reason any other so called pro can’t.
When I was unstalling chargers untill I was take ill, I occasionally came across some of the work done by outsourcing companies and thats one of the problems Motability customers can sometimes see. The problem with these type of companies is contractors sign up to these outsource firms as means bringing money in when their own work is running dry. What happens is the outsourcing company keeps a percentage of the profits, pay’s a lower rate to the installer, than would normally be if it were their own job. The installer then try’s to make his money up at an often inflated price, which then goes into their back pocket, hence no real reciept for the extra work carried out. This is then compounded with Motability wanting something for as little as possible!
A standard install would include the labour, charger, 5m of cable, 2 or 3 holes drilled depending on the installer, plus certification. £950 – £1050 by your local electrician, with as many holes drilled as necessary for the job and a meter or two extra cable if needed.
15m SVSE cable extra £100-£120 by the meter trade (cheaper if they have a drum) A full days work to complete the job wouldn’t cost much more than a standard install other than extra material. Thats because a customer is charged extra for part or there of a day.
Retail price for 20m of cable is £8.50 (£170) Ohme Pro £548, Stand alone consumer unit with surge protection and required sundries £60-£85 (depending on internal or external placement) £800. Depending on the size of the comany, more so the yearly value spent at the trade shop you can knock around 50% of retail prices. I use to get 40-43% with the rest of the cost being labour plus a few quid notification to the local authorities and test certificate.
Needless to say it still cheaper than you would have been quoted pivately in the grand scheme of things but, no I don’t like how Motability are going about it, with non standard installs. I also don’t like how disabled customers or even the general public are requested to do their own surveys. Its bonkers and not how I would have gone about it. Luckily I stuck with commercial installs, with domestic as a sideline 🙂