Taking Up a Builder’s References: How to Do It Properly
Which references to ask for, what to ask a past customer, and how to tell a useful reference from a polite one.
The short version
A reference is only as useful as the questions you ask. Ten minutes on the phone with a past customer can tell you more than a page of reviews.
Ask the builder for two or three past customers who had similar work done recently, and at least one whose job was finished long enough ago to show how it has lasted. Then ring them, ask specific questions about how the job actually ran, and, where you can, go and look at the work.
Most builders are happy to put you in touch with customers who were pleased with them. That is exactly why a reference needs a little care. The customer will almost always say the job was good. What you are listening for is how it was good: whether the builder turned up when they said, kept in touch, stuck to the price and dealt with problems without being chased.
This guide covers what to ask the builder for, the questions that get honest answers from a referee, the answers worth following up, and how references fit alongside the other checks you can make.
Step by step
How to take up a reference properly
Allow about half an hour per builder. It is some of the most useful time you will spend before choosing one.
Ask for the right referees
Two or three customers who had work similar to yours, done in the last year or so, plus one older job if you can. A reference for a kitchen tells you little about a roof.
Get proper contact details
A name, a phone number and roughly where the job was. The builder should check the customer is happy to be contacted before passing their details on.
Call rather than message
A conversation gives you tone, hesitation and detail that a text reply never will. Keep it short and polite: the referee is doing you a favour.
Ask the same questions each time
Use a short list, such as the one below, so you can compare builders fairly rather than going on whichever call felt friendliest.
Ask to see the work
Some referees will let you look, even from the street or the garden. If not, ask whether they would send a photograph of the finished job.
Write down what you heard
Make a note straight after each call. Details blur quickly when you are speaking to referees for three different builders.
What to ask
Six questions that get honest answers
Open questions about what happened work better than asking whether the referee was happy. Almost everyone says yes to that.
Did the job start and finish when agreed?
If it ran over, ask why. Weather and hidden problems happen. What you want to know is whether the builder explained the delay or went quiet.
Did the final price match the quote?
Extra costs are not unusual, but they should be explained and agreed before the work is done, not presented on the final invoice.
How easy were they to get hold of?
Ask how quickly calls and messages were returned, and who answered them. Communication is where most building jobs go wrong.
Did anything go wrong, and what happened next?
Every job has something. A builder who came back promptly to put a problem right is often a better sign than a job where nothing was said at all.
How did they leave the site?
Tidiness, waste taken away, care with the rest of the house and garden. These small things say a lot about how a firm works.
Would you use them again?
Ask it last. Listen to how quickly the answer comes. A pause, or a 'probably, for a small job', tells you something.
What to ask the builder for
Choosing references that tell you something
Similar work. A builder can be excellent at one kind of job and ordinary at another. If you are having a roof replaced, a reference from a customer who had a garden wall rebuilt tells you about the builder's manners but not much about their roofing. Ask specifically for jobs like yours.
Recent work. Firms change. The team that did an excellent job five years ago may not be the team that turns up now. At least one reference from the last few months tells you how the business is running today.
One older job. For roofing and rooflights in particular, how the work has lasted through a few winters is worth knowing. A customer whose job was finished a couple of years ago can tell you whether anything needed revisiting and how the builder responded if it did.
The people who will do your job. On larger projects, ask whether the team on the reference job is the team that would be working on yours. If the builder uses other trades for parts of the work, such as scaffolding or electrics, it is reasonable to ask who they are and whether they worked on the reference job too.
A real person, not a letter. Written testimonials and printed letters are pleasant to read but hard to check. A name and a number you can ring is worth more than any number of them. Our answer on whether you can ask a builder for references covers how to raise it without awkwardness.
Ask for references at or after the site visit, once the builder has seen your job and you are seriously considering them. Asking every builder you contact before they have even visited adds work on both sides.
Reading the answers
What a helpful reference sounds like
You are not looking for a perfect job. You are looking for a builder who behaves well when things are less than perfect.
Reassuring
- Specific detail about the work and the team
- Delays mentioned, with the reason explained
- Extras agreed in advance, in writing or by message
- A problem raised and put right without chasing
- Calls and messages returned the same day or next
- Would use them again, without hesitation
Worth a follow-up question
- Vague praise with no detail at all
- The referee seems unsure what work was done
- A price that grew and nobody quite knows why
- Long gaps when nobody turned up
- Snags still outstanding months later
- 'They were fine' and not much more
A referee is a private person doing a favour for someone they have never met. Keep calls short, ring at a reasonable hour, and don't turn up at their door unannounced to look at the work. The builder should have their agreement before sharing their details, and it is fair to ask the builder to confirm that.
Between the lines
Getting past the polite answer
People are generally kind about tradespeople they have had in their home. Many referees will not volunteer a criticism unless asked directly, and some will not mention a problem that was eventually resolved. That is why specific questions matter more than general ones.
Be alert to references that are all from the same few months, all tiny jobs, or all from people who seem to know the builder personally. None of these is a reason to rule a builder out, but they do mean the reference tells you less than it appears to. Our answer on builders recommended by a friend covers the same issue from the other side.
A builder who struggles to give you any references at all is worth a direct question. A new business may genuinely have few customers yet; in that case ask about work they did for a previous employer and look harder at the other checks. A builder who has been trading for years and still cannot put you in touch with anyone is harder to explain. Our guide to red flags when hiring a builder sets that in context with the other signs worth pausing on.
Seeing for yourself
Looking at finished work
A reference tells you how the job felt. The work itself tells you how it was done. Where a referee is happy for you to look, even from the pavement, it is worth the trip. Neat lines, tidy flashing and finished edges are visible without any expertise.
If a visit isn't possible, ask the builder for photographs of recent jobs, ideally including some taken during the work rather than only the finished result. Photographs of work in progress are harder to borrow from someone else's portfolio.
Our guide to checking a builder's previous work goes further into what to look at and what to ask, and the answer on seeing a roofer's previous work covers roofing in particular.
The bigger picture
Where references fit among your other checks
References are strongest when they agree with everything else you have learned. A builder with good references should also be able to show you current public liability insurance, give you a full business name and address you can check, and put a clear quote in writing.
Reviews and references complement each other. Reviews give you breadth: many customers, briefly. References give you depth: a few customers, in detail. Our guide to reading builder reviews covers how to get the most from the first, and the contractor checking checklist puts every check in one place.
If you only have time for a few checks, the guide to vetting a builder sets out which ones to prioritise. For the wider picture of choosing a contractor, start at our guide to choosing and checking a building contractor.
If you use Mortaro
References are part of how our network is built
Mortaro coordinates domestic building projects. We appoint a contractor from our network, arrange the site visit, prepare your written quotation and handle the communication and payment administration from there. The work itself is carried out by an independent main contractor, who is named in your quotation, holds the insurance and provides the workmanship warranty.
Before any contractor is introduced to a customer, we check their reviews and references, along with their public liability insurance, the warranties they provide, their trade experience and work history, and their ability to meet our standards. Those checks reduce the risk of ending up with the wrong contractor. They don't remove it, and you are welcome to ask about your contractor's recent work yourself. Our page on our contractor network explains the checks in more detail.
Straight answers
Questions about builder references
How many references should I ask for?
Two or three is usually enough, as long as they are for similar work. One recent job and one older job together tell you more than several references from the same month.
Is it rude to ask a builder for references?
No. Good builders expect it and are usually glad to be asked, because it gives them a chance to show their work. Ask once they have visited and you are seriously considering them.
What if the referee only has good things to say?
That is normal, and it is fine. Ask specific questions about timing, price, communication and problems. A reference that is positive and detailed is a good sign; one that is positive and vague tells you less.
Should I ask a referee what they paid?
You can ask whether the final bill matched the quote, which most people are comfortable answering. The actual figure matters less, because every job and every house is different, and some people would rather not share it. Don't press if they prefer not to say.
Are written references or testimonials enough?
They are pleasant to read but hard to verify. A past customer you can speak to is worth more. If a builder only offers written testimonials, ask whether one or two of those customers would take a short call.
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