Variations, and why ours are rare

What a variation actually is

A change to the agreed scope and price after work has started. Some are your choice — you decide you want underfloor heating after all. Some are not — the floor turns out to be rotten. The second kind is what damages trust, because it arrives as a bill you did not plan for at a moment when you cannot say no.

Why they happen so often in renovations

Because renovating means working on something nobody can fully see until it is opened up. A new build is drawn before it exists. A 1950s bathroom has sixty years of undocumented history behind the tiles.

That is a real difficulty, and it is not dishonest for a builder to encounter surprises. What is dishonest is pricing a job as though surprises never happen, winning the work on that number, and then recovering the difference through variations.

How we work differently

We investigate before we price, not after we start. We look under the floor, check what the walls are doing, and think through the likely problems in your specific house — then we price for what we expect to find. Our quotes are sometimes higher than the cheapest one you get, and our final invoices are usually much closer to them.

How to read a quote

Compare the scopes, not just the totals. Ask what happens if the subfloor needs replacing. Ask whether the price includes waterproofing certification, rubbish removal and making good. A quote that is vague about these is not cheaper — it is less finished.

When something does come up

We tell you straight away, in plain language: what we found, what the options are, what each costs, and what we would do. Then you decide. No work proceeds on a changed scope without you agreeing to it.