Planning a bathroom or kitchen refit: who to hire and what the quote must include
A bathroom or kitchen refit is several jobs in one room: strip out, plumbing, electrics, plastering, tiling, joinery and decorating. Most problems come from gaps between those jobs, where each trade assumes someone else is responsible. The fix is to decide early who coordinates the work and to get a quote that covers every stage.
Design and fitting are different services
Many kitchen and bathroom showrooms sell the design and the units, then pass the fitting to a separate firm or a self-employed fitter. Others offer design, supply and fit as one package. Both can work, but you need to know which you are buying.
- Supply only: you buy the units, sanitaryware and worktops and hire your own fitter or builder. Cheaper on paper, but you carry the risk if parts are missing, damaged or do not fit the room.
- Design and supply, separate fitter: ask who is responsible if the design does not suit the room once the old one is removed, and who measured the room.
- Design, supply and fit: one firm is responsible for the whole result. Check whether the fitting is done by their own staff or subcontractors, and who you deal with when something goes wrong.
Whoever designs it should measure the room themselves and check where the existing water, waste, gas and electrics run. A design based on your measurements alone puts the risk on you.
Who coordinates the trades
A refit typically needs a plumber, an electrician, a plasterer, a tiler and a fitter or joiner, plus sometimes a gas engineer and a decorator. Someone has to put them in the right order and make sure each one leaves the room ready for the next. There are three common arrangements:
- A main contractor or refit company runs the job and hires the trades. You have one contract and one person to call. This usually costs more, but it is the simplest for most people.
- A fitter who does most of it and brings in an electrician and plasterer. Common for bathrooms. Ask which parts they do themselves and which they subcontract.
- You coordinate separate trades. It can save money, but if the tiler cannot start because the plasterer is late, that is your problem to solve.
Whichever you choose, write down who is responsible for each stage. Electrical and gas work also has its own rules; see our guides to hiring an electrician and boilers and heating. In England and Wales, much electrical work in bathrooms is notifiable under Part P, so ask how it will be certified.
What the quote must include
A good refit quote is itemised by stage. Use this as a checklist when comparing quotes, and ask for anything missing to be added in writing:
- Strip out: removing the old units, suite, tiles and flooring.
- Waste removal: skip hire or waste disposal, and who arranges any skip permit if it goes on the road.
- Plumbing: first fix (moving pipes and waste) and second fix (connecting taps, sinks, toilet, shower, appliances).
- Electrics: new circuits, sockets, lighting, extractor fan, underfloor heating, and the certificate you will receive.
- Walls and floors: plastering, boarding, levelling and waterproofing (tanking) for wet areas.
- Tiling: area covered, who supplies tiles and adhesive, and whether the price assumes a simple layout or a complex pattern.
- Fitting: units, worktops, cutting for sinks and hobs, appliances, doors and handles.
- Making good: repairing walls, ceilings and doorframes damaged during the work, and whether decorating is included.
- Materials: which items the contractor supplies and which you supply, with brands or product codes where possible.
- Contingency: how hidden problems such as rotten floorboards, damp or old wiring will be priced and approved.
If one quote is much cheaper, it is often because it leaves out stages. Compare like with like, as described in our guide to getting quotes.
Staged payments
For a job of this size, paying in stages linked to completed work protects both sides. A typical structure is a deposit, a payment when first fix is complete, another when tiling and fitting are done, and the balance after final completion and snagging. The exact split is something to agree, but the principle is simple:
- Never pay most of the price before work starts.
- Link each payment to a stage you can see, not a date on the calendar.
- If a large deposit is needed to order units, ask who the order is placed with and whether it is in your name.
- Keep back the final payment until any snagging list is cleared.
Paying by card or bank transfer leaves a record. Be wary of anyone who wants cash only. Our article on contractor red flags covers deposit warning signs in more detail.
Lead times
Refits often take longer to start than to finish. Good fitters are booked in advance, and units, worktops and made-to-measure items can take weeks to arrive. Ask for:
- The lead time for each major item, especially worktops cut to template after the units are fitted.
- A start date and an expected duration, in writing.
- What happens if items arrive damaged or late, and who chases the supplier.
- How long you will be without a working kitchen or toilet, so you can plan around it.
Do not book the strip out until all the main items have arrived and been checked. A stripped room with no units is the worst position to be in.
Questions to ask before you sign
- Who will be on site each day, and who is my main contact?
- Which trades are your own staff and which are subcontractors?
- Do you have public liability insurance, and can I see it?
- Can I see or speak to the owner of a recent job of a similar size?
- What guarantee do you give on workmanship, and what do the product warranties cover?
- How do you protect the rest of the house from dust and damage?
- How will changes I ask for during the job be priced and agreed?
Finishing the job
When the work is done, walk the room with the contractor and write a snagging list: sealant gaps, chipped units, uneven tiles, doors that do not close properly. Agree a date for fixing them. Before the final payment, collect the electrical and any gas certificates, product warranties and appliance manuals. For the general checks on any builder, see how to vet a builder.