Potton Homes(Kingspan) out of business

[Post and beam]

I got an e mail this morning that Potton homes, who supplied my SIPs frame have shut up shop and are out of business.

[Redbeard]

See also 

 

[nod]

Lots of companies going bust 

I’m fitting a TP for a neighbor 

The local Tank company I’ve used for years has just gone into liquidation 

Take care handing over deposits 

A lot of companies are now insisting on full payments upfront 

[Nickfromwales]

16 hours ago, nod said:

Lots of companies going bust 

I’m fitting a TP for a neighbor 

The local Tank company I’ve used for years has just gone into liquidation 

Take care handing over deposits 

A lot of companies are now insisting on full payments upfront 

A lot of companies go through due to cash flow issues and non payment, iirc Beattie was one that suffered the same demise; an otherwise fine and function-able company with a good reputation.

 

Them going down affected other smaller companies that I deal with, which nearly put them under too.

 

This is a 2-way street tbf, but clients can use CC’s to get covered whereas when someone didn’t pay their bill to me (more than once) I just had to suck it up. It’s near impossible to prove a client owes a contractor money, when mid multi-disciplinary turnkey works, unless your paperwork is as good as your practical work; mine wasn’t so I got screwed.

 

I charge a fair bit up front these days, but only nominally and at as little risk to the client as I am willing to risk myself. I come via recommendation, clients fee to reach out etc, so the risk is with me; one client last year said they had 6-figures of funding in place, so I cleared my calendar for 4 months, and then said “oops, what we meant to say is, we’re flat broke and a year away from progressing”. Ffs. Left me in limbo looking to pick up another job then, with the resulting impact to my pocket book.

 

Recommendations and trust are the best you can hope for, but both parties take a leap in one way or another, for sure!  

[saveasteading]

17 hours ago, nod said:

Take care handing over deposits 

It can suit client , contractor  and supplier, all 3, for the client to pay for goods direct.

That is easy for some things like a TP, or a load of bricks. 

Not so straight forward where there is a skill in measuring and  risk of errors, eg window sizes, or roof panel lengths.

 

It has to be discussed really early in the process.

 

[nod]

2 hours ago, saveasteading said:

It can suit client , contractor  and supplier, all 3, for the client to pay for goods direct.

That is easy for some things like a TP, or a load of bricks. 

Not so straight forward where there is a skill in measuring and  risk of errors, eg window sizes, or roof panel lengths.

 

It has to be discussed really early in the process.

 

I’ve two large jobs on hold due to Timber Frame Companies going into liquidation 

I wonder how many deposits they have taken into liquidation with them 

Pay part with a credit card and pay the suppliers credit charges 

[nod]

17 hours ago, nod said:

I’ve two large jobs on hold due to Timber Frame Companies going into liquidation 

I wonder how many deposits they have taken into liquidation with them 

Pay part with a credit card and pay the suppliers credit charges 

We paid for the supply of  the kitchen units on card for this reason  29k The supplier pointed out that Hacker are one of the largest kitchen unit suppliers in Germany and card charges would be £700 We paid the charge 

[Mr Punter]

39 minutes ago, nod said:

We paid for the supply of  the kitchen units on card for this reason  29k The supplier pointed out that Hacker are one of the largest kitchen unit suppliers in Germany and card charges would be £700 We paid the charge 

 

I understand that the full amount is covered even if you only pay a small percentage on credit card.

[SteamyTea]

51 minutes ago, nod said:

We paid for the supply of  the kitchen units on card for this reason  29k The supplier pointed out that Hacker are one of the largest kitchen unit suppliers in Germany and card charges would be £700 We paid the charge 

So why did they not up the quote to £29,700.

That way they would have made almost an extra £700.

 

Most of our business is by card, that just gets priced in. It is the cheapest way to handle transactions now. Cash is by far the most expensive.

 

If a company will not take a Credit Card payment, which has inherited credit worthiness checks built in (not AmEx payments), then ask why.

[nod]

6 hours ago, SteamyTea said:

So why did they not up the quote to £29,700.

That way they would have made almost an extra £700.

 

Most of our business is by card, that just gets priced in. It is the cheapest way to handle transactions now. Cash is by far the most expensive.

 

If a company will not take a Credit Card payment, which has inherited credit worthiness checks built in (not AmEx payments), then ask why.

They simply wouldn’t budge 

I don’t think they wanted to take a card