Consumer Affairs: Six tips on hiring a tradesperson

Are you building, renovating or having some work done on your house? If you are, or are planning to in the future, remember: when hiring a tradesperson you are buying their service and under the Supply of Services Act 2003, they must deal fairly with you as a consumer.

Her are six key facts outlined in the Supply of Services Act 2003 that you should know:

1. A supplier of a service must carry out that service with the same reasonable care and skill that is set by a person trained and practised in that discipline;

2. If no definite date has been set for time of completion then the work must be completed within a reasonable time;

3. If no price has been set, then the charge must be reasonable. A reasonable price would be judged by the standard costing for that particular service;

4. If a supplier of a service breaches the conditions of the contract (e.g., fails to carry out the work ordered), the consumer has a choice of continuing with the contract and claiming compensation from the trader for his failure to carry out what was agreed, or the consumer can treat the contract as cancelled;

5. Any goods (spare parts) supplied in the course of the service must be of satisfactory quality and fit for their purpose. If they are not, the consumer is entitled to a repair, replacement, or compensation. Again, it should be remembered, that as the contract is between the consumer and the supplier of services, it is the supplier against whom the consumer has an action should the goods supplied be of unsatisfactory quality;

6. A supplier of a service who has broken a contract may also be liable for any consequential loss which is suffered by the consumer. Ultimately, it is for the courts to decide whether or not a breach of contract has occurred and the remedy to which the consumer might be entitled.

The entire Act can be found on our website, www.ca.gov.bm. It is worth the read, good information for consumers and essential if you are a business that supplies services to consumers.

At Consumer Affairs, we offer guidance to consumers, businesses and other organizations. Before contacting us we recommend that you first visit our web-site, www.ca.gov.bm and read the relevant advice. If you are unable to find the information you require on our web-site, please e-mail us at [email protected]. 

Honey Adams Bell is the education officer for Consumer Affairs.