electrician overcharged me!

[Snoop Drew]

I hired an electrician from the yellow pages to replace a faulty Ground Fault Circuit Interruptor (GFCI) in the garage, and install two new ones in the kitchen to bring it up to code.

The guy charged me $261 per GFCI, for a total of $783. He spent an hour to do the job. I told him before I signed the work authorization that this seemed expensive and asked about a discount but he just frowned. Is this really a fair price?

Their yellow page ad reads "reasonable prices" and "complete professional & reliable service" with "30 years experience!!"

I don't think someone who has 30 years of professional experience would say that $783 is "reasonable" for installing three GFCI outlets, with no new wires to be run.

i have no one to blame but myself, but do i have any recourse? Can't i just call the guy to complain and ask for a partial refund? Or can I really win in small claims?

yes, I deserve an award for stupidity and gullability, but i think there's a special place in hell for people like this...

[Greg O]

You got screwed, but you agreed to it before hand! Greg

[Drew Volpe]

You shouldn't have signed the work order. Tell your friends not use that guy and next time don't sign a work order unless you're comfortable with the price.

dv

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The geographical center of Boston is in Roxbury. Due north of the center we find the South End. This is not to be confused with South Boston which lies directly east from the South End. North of the South End is East Boston and southwest of East Boston is the North End.

[DaveG]

supply stores, probably less then $10. So you paid almost $800 for no more than $45 in parts and an hours labor. Add in drive time, and the total would be closer to $200 give or take. I'd say you were overcharged by perhaps $500 or more. Next time, get a least 3 estimates. I'd still call and ask a few other pro's in your area what they'd charge, then go back to the company you hired and ask them why they are so overpriced. If you get nowhere, offer to take your story to the local news "I" team, and see what happens.

[HeatMan]

This is called Flat Rate.

More at the bottom.

Flat rate is a program used by a lot of contractors that are supposed to reward the customer by using an average amount of time to do a certain job. Tech A can do this job in 20 minutes, but tech B takes 1 hour and 20 minutes. Average that out and you get 50 minutes. You get charged the 50 minutes whether tech A or tech B come out to do the job.

You have to sign a authorization before you start the job. That gives them permission to do the work at the price on the contract. You can also refuse the work and pay a diagnosis fee for them coming out.

In some areas you are allowed to request a pricing breakdown. Some techs will look at you funny if you ask for the breakdown.

It's also called up front pricing and several other names. It can be a good thing and it can be a bad thing.

I won't have anything to do with it. There are a lot of people in my industry that love it. They say it's really helped the bottom line. I think it's a way to help people that really have no clue how to run a business....

I have more if you want to hear my ramblings......

[RB]

The bottom line is you got screwed. But it was your own fault for not knowing the price before authorizing the work. Don't sign a contract until you understand it and agree with it.

RB.

Sno> I hired an electrician from the yellow pages to replace a faulty Ground

[xrongor]

you were royally screwed. purposefully. flat rate schmat rate. call it what you like, this is bullshit.

sometimes you have to be good to have good karma. other times, you need to be the karma. i think this is one of those times.

this guy deserves to be fished. you gotta get a few fish and place them in his car, under his porch, wherever you can. where they will die, rot, and stink. go in to the workplace to talk about the bill and leave a few fish above the tiles in the bathroom ceiling. be creative. it will take some effort but it will be worth it.

it wont really accomplish anything, but hey. like i said. sometimes YOU need to be the karma.

randy

[m Ransley]

How did you pay by ck , stop payment , credit card, call in and dispute charges. I hope not cash. Then negotiate. You signed a deal but so what they are crooks. Forget the bbb

[Childfree Scott]

No.

You might be able to sue them in small claims for false advertising. Emphasis on 'might'

No.

You can ask, but it probably won't do you any good.

Unlikely.

If you thought it was unreasonable, why didn't you get a second quote?

[Jim85CJ]

[Jim85CJ]

If you issue a stop payment on a check then you become the crook...

m Ransley wrote:

[dadiOH]

Barnum was right.

-- dadiOH _____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.0... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[m Ransley]

If I issue the stop pay I have my money for leverage to bargain . Dont forget I have the money the crook doesnt. Then we can let a court decide if need be. I have had to do it several times unfortunatly, 3. All three i prevaled. Its their immediate Ace card. Court will take a year and guarntee nothing even if they win. Spitting on the street is illegal to .

[Doug Miller]

No, it's not. Not even close. So why did you sign the work authorization if you thought the price was too high?

It's not reasonable. I make the decision not to do business with companies that charge unreasonable prices for their goods or services. You made the decision to do business.

Quite true.

Recourse for WHAT? You signed the authorization, knowing the price

*beforehand*.

Of course you can. And he can tell you to go fly a kite.

Don't be ridiculous. On what possible basis do you have a claim against this guy? He quoted you a price, and you AGREED to it.

If you take this to small claims court, you will lose. And you'll wind up paying *his* legal fees in addition to your own. Depending on the laws of your state, you might also open yourself up to civil or even criminal penalties for filing a frivolous, baseless lawsuit.

Yes, you do. And another one for chutzpah, for even dreaming that you might have a basis for a small-claims action.

Why? He quoted you a price. You agreed to it. Was someone holding a gun to your head, forcing you to sign that work order?

Yes, you were cheated. But you had _full_knowledge_ that you were being charged more than you wanted to pay, and sat there and watched it happen. You've just paid your tuition at the School of Experience. Instead of blaming the electrician, take responsibility for it yourself, make sure it doesn't happen to you again -- and above all, be thankful that you only had to pay seven hundred bucks for this lesson. What if you'd been having an air conditioner installed, and paid seven *thousand* dollars for a job that should have cost two?

[Jim85CJ]

please include all or part of the post you are replying to so that we know what you are talking about. Issueing a stop payment on a check is the same as "passing a bad check". Period. The guy didn't get ripped off. He agreed to pay a price for a service. The service was performed (and he was happy with the results) and now he has buyer remorse.

Go buy a car. A few days later you decide you got taken > If I issue the stop pay I have my money for leverage to bargain . Dont

[zxcvbob]

Shrimp work better. They stink more, and they are smaller.

HTH, :-) Bob

[indago]

040519 0654 - DaveG posted:

And definitely report this to your local Better Business Bureau...

[MLD]

[Curmudgeon]

Frankly I have a lot more sympathy for the electrician than for you. He was upfront and above board about what he was going to charge you to do the work. He didn't raise the price afterwards and hold your feet to the fire. You, on the other hand, agreed to the work and the price and now, after the fact, are whining about being overcharged. Yes, you got overcharged. But you called him...he didn't call you. You dropped your pants, bent over and said please. Don't bitch about it now!!

[Jeff Wisnia]

Years ago I heard a story (probably apocryphal) about a guy who got so pissed off at the screwing he got from his bank that he placed a raw fish in his safety deposit box and walked away smiling.

I had visions of bank personel in the vault holding a cat up and moving it arond like a stud finder trying to locate the safety deposit box the stench was leaking out from.

Jeff