How to Find Good Builders

Making sure you've got a trusted and reliable builder to carry out your home renovation or extension is vital. Here’s how to find good builders – and how to avoid cowboys.

How to find good builders

Here’s the step-by-step process of how to find good builders.

1. Start with recommendations

One of the easiest ways to find good builders is to use someone recommended to you by a good friend or family member, especially if you have seen their handiwork first hand.

2. Research online & check credentials

If you’re new to an area or haven’t been impressed by recommendations from friends in the past, then start your search online. We have partnered with the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) to help you find quality contractors. The FMB is the UK’s largest trade association for the construction industry. We’ve partnered with them because they check company history, financial records and proof of insurance. All their members’ work will also have been checked on site by an independent inspector to make sure it is completed to a high standard.

Plus, it has an alternative dispute resolution scheme you can use if things go wrong.  

Use our find a builder service to connect you with quality, local builders you can trust to help with a wide range of home projects however big or small.

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3. Check your local area

If you’ve seen builders carrying out work on houses in your town, and you’re impressed with the results, consider asking the homeowner about the builder they used and whether they would recommend them.

4. Ask other trades

If you’ve had a tradesperson like an electrician or plumber in your home and you rate them, consider asking them for recommendations for trusted builders. Similarly, if you’re working with other professionals like an architect, it’s worth asking for their builder recommendations too.

How to know whether a builder is reliable

Don’t be shy about asking for two or three references. Then call up the referees and speak to them directly about the work and service of the tradesman and whether they’d recommend the builder. If it is a big job, you might want to go and see the quality of the work. If the builder won’t provide references, ask why – it is often very telling about them if they don’t.

You’ll also want to know:

• Were they punctual and tidy
• Did they communicate frequently and politely?
• Did they give you advance warning of any problems and how were these problems dealt with?
• Did they keep noise to a minimum
• Did they complete the project on time and on budget

Getting quotes from builders

Here’s the step by step process of getting and comparing quotes from builders:

Always get 3 quotes

By getting a number of quotes, you can better judge the true price and you are also less likely to get ripped off. It can be astonishing how much prices vary. Also, each time you speak to a builder about the work, you will learn more about it – and will be better able to judge if a tradesman knows what they are talking about, or is spinning a yarn.

You’ll soon realise how surprisingly difficult it is to get a quote out of a builder, but persevere. Approach at least 5 tradesmen from the off so that you have enough quotes to be able to compare. Read more in our guide Getting builders’ quotes: Where do I start?

How to get a realistic quote

To get an accurate quote you’ll need to provide as much detail as possible including:

• The work that needs to be done, in the greatest detail you can
• Details on who will be doing what: Will you be project managing, hiring tradespeople and ordering materials? Or do you want the builder to do this?
• Details of planning permission requirements.
• The materials the tradesman will use. If you want high quality materials, state in writing what they are.
• What materials you will supply – will you provide the paint, tiles or lighting attachments?
• Plans or drawings for Building Control purposes if needed.
• Anticipated time scales. Good builders are often booked up months in advance. So finding out when they can start is important – but you may want to wait for your preferred builder.

How to compare builders’ quotes

So that you can effectively compare builders’ quotes, make sure you:

• Always get quotes in writing: Never accept a verbal quote, except perhaps for the very smallest jobs that are just a few hours work. Always get a written quote for the job, detailing the costs for the brief above.
• Don’t just go on price: It’s very easy to give a low estimate initially in order to attract business and then put the price up later. Low prices might result in lower quality too. Go with a tradesman you trust to do a good job rather than one that gives you low prices.
• Trust your instincts: ‘When you’re speaking to a builder, step back and think if things go wrong, do you feel confident that you’d be able to navigate any problems with them’, advises Allison Gay, FMB South West Regional President.
• Do they share your vision? Probe your builder – have they got the same expectations in terms of quality, speed and vision? says Allison. ‘Do they say with swagger, “Oh yeah, we do this all the time” or are they asking you pertinent questions? It’s about setting your expectations out verbally and in writing so there’s no misunderstanding.’

7 Key questions to ask your builder

Vetting builders before hiring is important when finding good builders. It also helps you avoid cowboy builders and making a costly mistake. Here are some important questions to ask:

1. Does the builder offer an insurance backed guarantee?

‘You should always look for a builder that can provide you with an insurance-backed guarantee for the work – it’s vital,’ says the FMB’s Allison Gay.

‘These guarantees are underwritten by an insurer so if your builder goes bankrupt, your insurance will stay in place. These can be in place for 2, 5 or 10 years – the longer the term the more expensive they’ll be,’ she adds. ‘As FMB members, it’s part of our TrustMark membership to provide an insurance-backed guarantee. Some builders will include the cost in their fee but others will charge for it.’

An insurance backed guarantee typically costs around 1% of the cost of the project, plus costs like admin charges. But it may be less for bigger projects.

Bear in mind your builder won’t be able to get a policy in place until you instruct them. But if you use a FMB builder, they will be able to send you a key facts document to show you what a policy will look like.

2. What insurance does the builder have?

It’s important to check what insurance a builder has in place. However, given the number of different types of insurance and taking into account how difficult it can be to find builders, the list is broken down into the essentials – the minimum standard a good builder should have, according to the FMB’s Allison Gay. Plus, it sets out the insurance you would expect a gold standard builder to offer.

Type of insurance	What it covers	Minimum standard requirement or gold standard
Contracts Works insurance	Covers the cost of works already undertaken if the project is damaged or destroyed before completion and insures against fire, theft, malicious damage, storm & flood until completion.	Minimum requirement. A red flag if not in place.
Public Liability Insurance	Cover for accidental damage to third party property or injury to third parties and may have contingency cover for the specialist sub contractors that the builder may use.	Minimum requirement. A red flag if not in place.
Employer’s Liability Insurance	A legal requirement where your builder has employees (permanent or temporary, sub-contractors, apprentices etc) – cover if an employee sues due to work related injury or illness (the claim may redirect to the consumer if this is not in place). A builder can be fined for every day they trade without this cover.  Sole traders are required to have this cover if they work with 3 or more principles/partners	Minimum requirement. A red flag if not in place.
Products Liability Insurance	Covers you if a product the builder has supplied or installed causes damage to your property or harms someone after installation. It’s always coupled with public liability insurance. Usually only applicable if the builder is installing their own products. If the builder installs products that ‘fail to perform their intended function’, and as a result causes damage, then usually this would be claimed against the manufacturer’s products liability.	Gold Standard
Cyber Insurance	Protects your data should your builder be affected by a cyber event that breaches your data eg interception of emails or invoices.	Gold standard
Professional Indemnity Insurance	Covers the builder for providing negligent advice/design.	Gold standard

3. What materials will they use?

‘It’s important to ask where materials, for example insulation, will come from because there are a lot of materials on the market that aren’t guaranteed – for example they might come from China and might not be to our standards,’ warns Allison.

‘One rogue trader trick is buying in the cheapest materials and then giving a cheap quote,’ she says. ‘So it’s about having those conversations and diving into a bit more detail. So ask what type of materials they’re going to use. For example, with insulation, I would ask a builder what the U value is likely to be – this is it’s insulative quality – you can then check what they say afterwards online.

‘You might want to ask for the odd receipt or ask ‘Can you show me what’s going into my walls?’

4. How long have you been trading?

It is an old contractors trick to build up debts with materials firms, declare bankruptcy, and close down the company leaving you with a half finished job and no recourse. So ask for their company details (company name and number) and check how long they have been trading, and whether the company is active, dormant or dissolved. You can do this with Companies House using their web-check service, and for £1 you can download annual accounts and reports.

5. Can you provide a building regulations compliance certificate?

For certain types of work – for example, electrical, plumbing, gas, and replacing windows – you need to get a building regulations compliance certificate from your local authority. The tradesperson can provide your certificate if he or she is a member of a Competent Persons Scheme – a government run accreditation programme – that confirms that the work has been done in line with building regulations. Alternatively, you will need to go to your Local Authority Building Control department so they can sign off the work.

6. Are you registered with a trade body?

Trade bodies and associations vary enormously in quality. Some check up on their members once a year to ensure they are performing to standard. Others are less rigorous and tradespeople effectively pay an annual subscription in return for a label that generates false trust. Check out whether your tradesperson is a member of a trade body and what it means.

7. Are you registered with a trading standards scheme?

• There are a number of schemes around which are designed to provide assurance of quality
• Buy With Confidence is a government scheme operating in certain counties in England which will confirm that businesses are operating in a “legal, honest, and fair way”. The level of service they demand is a basic one – it basically in line with official Trading Standards – but they do check up on their members periodically and have a mystery shopping service. The members are also vetted by trading standards officers who are paid for by the government and so are completely independent.
• TrustMark holds its members to a slightly higher standard. It also monitors its members, but sometimes only once every 3 years. Their website allows you to search for a Trustmark company by postcode, or search by company to see if they are in fact registered.

Builders qualifications: What to look for

• There are no formal qualifications builders must take which is another reason why it’s advisable to find your builder from a trusted source such as the FMB.
• Some builders may have a CSCS card (issued by the Construction Skills Certification Scheme) as proof that they have the appropriate training and qualifications for the job they do. There are also qualifications such as a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in construction.
• However, some trades must have certain qualifications. For example, make sure a plumber fitting a gas appliance is Gas Safe Registered. And when having electrical work carried out, choose a contractor who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme, such as NICEIC or ELECSA.

Find quality, local builders you can trust to help with your home project however big or small with our Find a builder service now.

Getting a contract with your builder

Using a building contract offers protection, reduces risk and helps make you feel more in control of your project.

With this in mind, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), offers the RIBA Domestic Building Contract, which is a simple and clearly laid out contract between a homeowner and a builder.

Endorsed and supported by HomeOwners Alliance, the RIBA Domestic Building Contract is suitable for all types of non-commercial work, particularly work done to your home, including renovations, extensions, maintenance and new buildings. Its key features include:

• Written in plain English that is simple to understand
• Guidance notes to help complete the contract
• Provides an effective way of managing payments to the contractor
• Gives you control over the timely completion of the project
• Provisions for collaborating with the contractor over events that may delay completion or add costs to the project

Find more information in our guide Building contract for home improvements.

The new RIBA contract is now available online

Paying your builder

Here’s how the process of paying your builder should work.

• A schedule of payment should be agreed before work starts and written into your contract.
• For bigger projects like extensions, it’s usual to split the payments into stages.
• Check you’re happy with the work before paying each stage.
• The FMB recommends that you agree the amount you’ll hold back as retention until you are happy to sign off the work, this is often 2.5%-5% of the total.
• Don’t pay cash. Pay by bank transfer, cheque or credit card.
• Don’t be surprised if you’re asked for a deposit. These vary but while 10% is reasonable, don’t pay more than 25%.

Find quality, local builders you can trust to help with your home project however big or small with our Find a builder service now:

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Find local builders with our partner the Federation of Master Builders.

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Frequently Asked Questions