A bathroom is a big chunk of your house and a bigger chunk of your budget. The job lives or dies on the quote — not the price, the scope. Here are the five things we'd want pinned down on paper before anyone lifted a tool.
1. What's actually in the price
"Supply and fit" can mean wildly different things. A proper quote tells you what brand of tap, which tile, which thickness of plasterboard, what kind of waste is going on the shower. If a line just says "bathroom suite" with no model numbers, ask. The price will move once the showroom has actually been picked.
Equally — what's not in. Decorating after? Removing the old suite? Disposing of rubble? Plastering the ceiling? These are the items that turn into "extras" three weeks in.
2. Who's doing the trades
Most "bathroom installers" sub-contract half the work. There's nothing wrong with that — the question is whether you know who's coming through your door, and who's on the hook if a tile cracks in two years. A quote should name the company doing the tiling, the electrics, the plastering. If the answer is "we sort that on the day", that's your warning sign.
3. A start date and an end date
Real dates, on the quote, before any deposit. "Two to three weeks from start" is fine if "start" is also dated. We give you both — and we hold them, barring something genuinely unforeseen behind a wall. If the dates are vague, that's usually because the trade hasn't finished a previous job yet. You can wait for that job, or you can start a new one. You can't do both at once.
4. Payment stages — and what each one releases
A deposit secures the start date and covers initial materials. The next stage typically lands when first-fix is signed off. Final payment is on snag-and-handover. The quote should say what each stage covers, and what triggers it. Anything that asks for a big up-front lump with no milestones attached, walk.
5. The guarantee
Two parts: the products, and the workmanship. Products carry their manufacturer warranties — the quote should list which ones and for how long. Workmanship is the trade's own guarantee — what it covers (leaks, failed seals, tile movement), how long for, and how to call them back if something does go wrong. Ours is in writing, on the quote. We'd rather come back and fix something than have you stewing on it.
If you're comparing two quotes
The cheapest quote isn't always the most expensive job, but it usually becomes the most expensive job. The headline price is whatever fits on the bottom line. The real comparison is in the small print above it — which of the five points are spelled out, and which ones are missing.
If you're weighing up a Plumbworks quote against another and want a hand reading it, drop us a line. Happy to talk it through, no obligation.