How long ought a good mechanic take...

[Blue5]

What an amazing range of trade rates. I have been in the woodworking game since leaving school, I have spent thousands on tools and machinery in that time and know full well that in working out a quote if I charge more than £25 per hour I will be wasting my time quoting and this is getting worse.

I can accept paying for experience but what grates with me is paying the full rate for the accountant or garage and getting the apprentice.

 

[boaterbaz]

Dont forget the charges imposed by marinas/boatyards when working on their premises. On yard local to me adds 10% on a bill for work carried out. p.s they do not have facilities for engineering but still charge

 

[michael_w]

Being self employed, it is utterly pointless working for such a low rate you can't make a profit.

 

[Sandyman]

I'm not disputing his hourly rate - he was upfront with that.

I did ask for a quote beforehand, but was told it's hard to tell until he's done some investigative work. Yes, next time, I'll set a ceiling.

As long as there is not water coming through it. In which case you will need an expensive plumber

What an amazing range of trade rates. I have been in the woodworking game since leaving school, I have spent thousands on tools and machinery in that time and know full well that in working out a quote if I charge more than £25 per hour I will be wasting my time quoting and this is getting worse.

I can accept paying for experience but what grates with me is paying the full rate for the accountant or garage and getting the apprentice.

Lost count of the number of times I was called out to fix a boiler only to find that someone else has tried but failed.
Usually youngsters or trainees. What used to amaze me is that the stupid customers would still pay there bill even though they had failed to fix the problem.
Good way to train your apprentices and let your customers pay for it.

 

[laika]

Really??

Basic IT graduate costs £600 day.

Did your £220 ph accountant tell you that?

 

[Paddingtonbear]

You don't have to make a profit if you are a sole trader just wages and I am overcome with joy if I can get £10 nett.

 

[cryan]

Is the boat in the water or even next to the water in a boatyard/harbour/dockyard etc? The reason I ask is the reason for the high labour rate: Insurance! If you want basic public liability as a service engineer it is about £200-300 per year. If you want the same basic insurance but want to work anywhere near a harbour/marina/dockyard/the sea, it jumps to about £850/ year and you will likely have to go through specialist brokers. If like me tou want to do commercial work as well as leisure boats that price jumps again. If you want more than basic cover, yip you guessed it it rockets up the price.
I charge £50/hour although I occationally give discounts. I would not expect to take 20 hours to solve a cooling issue but I have been on jobs which grow arms and legs and take three times what you thought. In these cases I decide if I should have known better in which case I'll take the hit but if its due to misinformation etc I will charge. However I always try and let the customer know the score before if a job is about to double in size. If someone is quoting you well below average though I would be checking their credentials and insurance cover.

 

[ukmctc]

How long ought a mechanic take to sort out a cooling issue?

Let's assume a worse case scenario - there's a blockage somewhere, and it takes a long time to find, involving stripping all the sea water hoses off the engine, and putting them back on again. In this case, engine access is excellent, and he doesn't have to dismantle the accommodation to get to anything.

The mechanic I'm using seems to be working in lawyer hours. Or maybe my expectations were overly optimistic.

should take a couple of hours to identify the area blocked, then depends on which area it is as to how much time and money you are going to pay. If its the heat exchanger, block or pump get a mortgage.