The questions that separate the contractors who will deliver from the ones who will leave you mid-project. Use this on every first call.
We get called in to rescue builds other contractors have walked off: projects another contractor walked off, schedules that slipped six months, jobs where the homeowner found themselves with no recourse. In almost every case the warning signs were visible on the first call. These are the six questions we use, and the answers you should be hearing back.
01 · Chapter
A real builder with five-plus years of trading has dealt with the full cycle of the industry, boom periods and tight periods. They have seen what bad clients look like, what good clients look like, and they have a portfolio you can verify. New traders are not automatically bad, but they have not yet had the years to develop the operational discipline that a serious build requires.
02 · Chapter
Getting scope and price agreed in writing before work starts protects both parties. The builder commits to a price for a defined scope. The client knows exactly what they are paying for. Agree a process for pricing variations too, how they get flagged, quoted, and signed off, so nothing is a surprise later. The alternative is day-rate work with no agreed scope, which is where most of the worst stories start. If a builder will not agree a price in writing for a defined scope, the conversation is over.
03 · Chapter
Three policies matter. Public liability covers third-party injury or damage on or near the site. Employers liability covers anyone working on the project (legal requirement in the UK). Contract works insurance covers the build itself against fire, theft, and damage during construction. A serious contractor has all three and will email you the policies on request, same day.
04 · Chapter
Some builders quote a project, then hand it off to a different crew on day one. If the founder is the face on the proposal but the day-to-day crew is rotating agency labour, that is a quality control problem waiting to happen. The right answer is: one named project manager running it from start to finish, with vetted trades on every package.
Some builders quote a project, then hand it off to a different crew on day one. That is a quality control problem waiting to happen.
05 · Chapter
Not a list of project addresses on the website. Five clients you can phone, today. A serious contractor maintains a permission-given reference list and will hand it over within 48 hours. If your phone calls go nowhere, you have your answer.
06 · Chapter
The honest answer is: every UK construction firm is exposed to insolvency risk. The right contractor has thought about this and structured their commercials accordingly. Stage payments tied to demonstrable progress. No upfront deposits beyond materials already on site. Customer-direct supplier accounts where appropriate. If a builder dodges this question, they have not thought about it.
If a builder dodges any of these six: walk away. The cost of finding another contractor is dwarfed by the cost of the wrong one.
For the right build only
We take on substantial building work across Stoke-on-Trent and the Midlands: extensions, conversions, full refurbishments, commercial works and repairs after fire, flood or damage. Properly scoped projects, not odd jobs or reactive maintenance.
We're VAT registered, so on smaller jobs a non-VAT builder will always undercut us. That's just the maths. Our work pays off where doing it properly matters more than the cheapest quote.
If that sounds like your project, tell us what you've got. We'll tell you straight whether we're right for it, and if we're not, we'll say so. Either way, we wish you all the best x.
