How much deposit should a tradesperson ask for?

The short answer

There's no fixed legal amount. A deposit is whatever you and your customer agree. What matters is that it's reasonable for the job, written down, and clear about what it covers.

Why ask for a deposit

• Materials ordered for the job, especially anything made to measure or hard to return.
• Securing a start date, so you're not holding a slot in your diary for nothing.

For small jobs with no special materials, many trades don't take a deposit at all and are paid on completion.

How to word it in your quote

Wherever you set out your terms, include three things:

• The amount, as a figure rather than only a percentage.
• What it covers, for example the kitchen units or the start date.
• When it's due, for example before materials are ordered.

For example: "Deposit of £1,200 due on acceptance, to order the made-to-measure units. Balance due on completion."

Staged payments for bigger jobs

On longer jobs, agree payments tied to stages you can both see, rather than one large deposit:

• Deposit on acceptance for materials.
• A stage payment when a clear milestone is reached, such as first fix complete.
• The balance on completion.

Write the stages and amounts down and confirm them with the customer in writing, so there's no surprise later.

The 14-day right to cancel

This catches many tradespeople out. The Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 cover two kinds of contract here: one agreed at the customer's home (an "off-premises contract"), and one agreed at a distance, for example when the customer accepts your quote online or by email (a "distance contract"). For most of these contracts, the customer normally has 14 days to cancel (for off-premises contracts, this applies when the price is over £42).

Accepting a quote online, as customers do with Bojit, is usually a distance contract, so the 14-day right applies.

• If they cancel, any money they've paid, including a deposit, is normally due back within 14 days of cancellation.
• You must give them the cancellation information. If you don't, the cancellation period can be extended by up to 12 months and you may not be able to charge for work already done.

Bojit doesn't add cancellation information to your quotes, so give it to the customer yourself, for example in writing alongside your quote.

Starting work within the 14 days

If the customer wants you to start before the 14 days are up, they must expressly ask you to start. For an off-premises contract, that request must be on a durable medium such as an email; for a distance contract, it's still sensible to keep the request in writing. Keep that record.

If they then cancel during the 14 days, they pay a proportionate amount for the work already done, as long as you gave them the cancellation information beforehand. If you didn't, they may not have to pay for the work at all.

Deposits and Bojit

Bojit doesn't take payments or deposits. Its quotes currently say payment is due on completion, and it sends one invoice for the full amount when the job is done. If you agree a deposit or stage payments, confirm them with the customer in writing, for example by email, take the money the way you normally do, and keep track of it yourself.

Sources

• legislation.gov.uk: Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, Part 3

General guidance for UK tradespeople, not legal or tax advice.