Don’t get ripped off by the Cowboy Gardeners

An article in yesterday’s Telegraph has highlighted the problem there is with cowboy gardeners as well as builders and other contractors.

With money being tight, garden contractors have also come under the spotlight with Oxford County Council having an increase of 50%  in complaints to Trading Standards for garden work last year. 

There are of course two types of cowboy – there are those out there who set out to callously rip people off and then there are those who don’t know any better because they don’t have any knowledge of the work and are trying to make a living with no skills in that field, whether it be garden maintenance, tree surgery or building work.

Worryingly the article states that Martin Woodley, head of Oxfordshire trading standards, said gangs who previously offered to replace drives have switched to garden services.

He said “They get more profit out of it because there is no cost in materials. Neither do they need qualifications. They don’t care about the quality of the work. It’s just a way of making a quick buck.”

DIY Doctor’s ‘Find a Tradesman’ service can help you find garden related contractors including tree surgeons and garden landscapers. All you need to do is click into the Find a Tradesman page, then click on ‘All Other Categories’, on the next page click on ‘Gardening – Fencing – Tree Surgery’ and then choose your category from the list. You then fill in a brief description of the work you would like done and your details and you can receive up to 5 free, no obligation quotes from tradespeople in your area.