Anyone watching tv or looked at magazines designed for the elderly must have seen the adverts from these companies. How to make your bathroom more accessible.
Largely they are aimed at the idea of taking out your existing bath and replacing it with a shower unit. But, whilst researching on having my ensuite re-vamped, I (foolishly) requested a brochure from one of these companies. In order to do that I had to give them more information. Never did receive any brochure but a phone call very speedily came saying one of their people could visit my home within a few days.#
\i thought, what harm and agreed to this. The day before he was due to come, I received an email reminding me of this appointment and stating that I should expect tha visit to last up to two hours.
At least this did prepare me for a salesman, rather than a designer and that is what I got. Very charming salesman - made me feel very comfortable and easy with him. I did warn him that if he was expecting me to make a decision that day he would be disappointed. No matter how wonderful an offer you make me (I told him), I will need at least a further week to cosinder before I make a decision. He did admit that he had hooped for me to decide and sign that day.
I explained what I was wanting a re-vamped shower room (my en-suite), also telling him how I wanted the loo and wash hand basin to be part of fitted He gave me an enormous amount of information about the shower unit furniture, etc. etc. and it does appear to be a very nice unit.\ his drawing was intent on getting that fitted into my rather difficult shaped room, apart from that there was no 'design' just putting in a loo and a basin replacing the ones already there and very little different. He had me choosing panels for the wall; just a selection of four!!!, similar choice for the flooring.
When I enquire about costs of taking down existing floor to ceiling tiles, he told me they would not do that, just fit the panels on top of those!!!! He did produce a design, but as it was largely just about this shower unit and no real bathroom design et, I was not happy and even less so when his quotation for that came in as half as much again as the one I received from a local bathroom company, with loads of tiles and floor choices and a properly designed room.
I did tell him that he was half as much again above my top budget and he left. Did wonder if I was going to get the 'I'll just ring my manager........' scenario, but that deid not happen. Think he realised I was a hopeless case.
I am really horrified as to how much extra their quote was and for so much less.
The quote I have accepted is for all of the work, them to project manage, from a local company that has been around for over twenty years and for whom I had so many recommendations from people who have had work done by them at a third of the price that this company quoted.
William and Catherine’s Anniversary Photo
