Reading a Retrofit Quote

A retrofit quote is a description of work disguised as a price, and reading it well means reading the description first and the total last. Start with the scope: which rooms or areas, which products by name and specification, which preparation and making good, which controls and commissioning, and which extras such as scaffolding, skip hire or electrical adjustments. Then read the exclusions, which often sit in small print and can contain the most expensive surprises. Then check the price basis: fixed or estimate, VAT treatment, deposit and payment stages, and validity period. Only then does the total mean anything, because a total without that reading is a number attached to an unknown job.

Each line of a quote answers a different question, and the lines that are missing answer one too. Product lines should name the item, its size or rating where relevant, and its warranty, because two products with similar names can differ in performance and lifespan. Labour lines should cover fitting, preparation, protection of finishes, testing and handover demonstration, not only installation. Access and waste lines cover scaffolding, parking, skip hire and disposal, which are real costs that somebody must pay. Contingency lines cover what happens if hidden conditions appear, such as damp, damaged timbers or outdated wiring. A quote that bundles everything into one line may still be fair, but it cannot be compared with another quote until the bundle is unpacked.

Work through the quote with a pen and four marks: included, excluded, unclear and assumed. For every unclear or assumed item, ask the bidder in writing and keep the reply with the quote. Check whether the price includes VAT and at what treatment, whether the deposit is proportionate and tied to ordering or mobilisation, and whether later payments follow completed stages. Check the validity date and what happens when it passes. Check who is responsible for consents, notifications or scheme paperwork, and whether survey or design fees are included or extra. If a saving or payback figure appears on the quote, ask for its workings and assumptions on a separate page, and do not let a saving claim substitute for scope detail.

Quote conventions are shaped by national consumer and scheme rules. In the UK, TrustMark-registered firms work to a code that expects clear written contracts, and MCS-certified installers follow scheme documentation duties for microgeneration quotes, while consumer protections for contracts signed at home add further requirements. In EU member states, quote contents, contractor information duties and any scheme-linked documentation are national, and the EPBD framework does not prescribe a standard quote format. The reader's method is therefore portable even though the rules are not: read scope, then exclusions, then price basis, then total, and ask for anything missing in writing. A quote that satisfies one country's scheme may still omit an item another country's rules require.

The most expensive reading mistake is stopping at the total, which rewards the bidder who omitted the most. Another is assuming that a named product on one quote is the same product on another, when specifications differ. A third is overlooking the exclusions section, where items such as making good, controls or waste removal often hide. A fourth is accepting a validity period that has already passed, or a deposit that bears no relation to work done. A fifth is treating an estimated price as fixed, then being surprised by variations. Each of these is a reading error, not a technical one, and each is caught by the same slow pass through the document with a pen.

File the quote with your notes, the bidder's written answers and the comparison table for other quotes, and carry the winning quote's scope into the contract without silent changes. If the scope changes during the job, record each change as a written variation with its price before the extra work starts. At completion, check delivery against the quote line by line before final payment, including controls demonstrated and documents handed over. That closing check is the point of reading the quote carefully in the first place: it turns a document you understood at the start into a job you can verify at the end.