Hi
I am after some advice please - we are having a garage extension built on our own house (which is adjacent to our holiday cottages) - the builders were due to start a few weeks ago in order to get all the messy work - foundations dug and laid - before our season starts however they have been delayed and are now due to start exactly when our season starts!
We have a few early season bookings and I need to let the guests know what is happening. Do I offer compensation at this stage, or just notify them about the work stating that it shouldn't affect them? I've drafted an email to send them - does this sound OK? Any advice from the experts out there is more than welcome.
"Dear X
I just wanted to let you know that there is a chance that we will have builders in doing some work on our house whilst you are staying in Rose Cottage. Unfortunately it will be the early stages of the build (digging & laying foundations) so there may be some mess with earth movement and the like. We will make every effort to ensure that the area around the cottages is kept clean and tidy and that you are not affected by the work. Our builders are aware that the cottages will be in use and will only be working during the day so as not to disturb you.
As per usual, the builders have been delayed on another job - we were hoping that all the "messy" work would be finished before our guests started arriving, but sadly it seems that they will be starting just as our season starts!
We apologies in advance - if you have any questions please do get in touch."
Thanks in advance for your advice
Typical - builders starting just as our season starts!
Firstly - what a beautiful location your cottages are set in! Stunning.
Regarding the building noise; I had this last year (for 6mths) with my 'new' next door neighbours. There is a thread here;
viewtopic.php?t=21592
To cut a long story short, I was extremely worried and thankfully it only effected 2 sets of guests. Beforehand I warned the first set of guests ahead of arrival, which they thanked me for, and offered them the use of a minibus to take them out during the day should the noise be unacceptable. I also, because the noise was pretty bad, gave them a couple of bottles of champagne during their stay.
The 2nd set of guests where only effected for 2 days and I arranged something different for them as they had a car.
I think the difference here is that YOU can control the noise and works. I couldn't.
In that situation I would be speaking to the builders to find out exactly what they are doing each day and when the noisiest days may be. I would then be informing the guests.
It may well be that they can plan their days out around that information.
My biggest worry would be waking them early. Holidays are for relaxing not being woken at 8am, so again I would ask the builders not to do noisy work then if possible.
I wouldn't offer compensation yet (though I would be prepared to after judging the noise). I think however a nice 'gift' would go somewhere towards helping, after all they are putting up with something your other guests won't have to. This acknowledges that they are being thought off and that you care.
IF you have any guests who have chosen your place for the quiet surroundings, that is when I think you may have a bigger issue.
Good luck.
Mouse
x
Regarding the building noise; I had this last year (for 6mths) with my 'new' next door neighbours. There is a thread here;
viewtopic.php?t=21592
To cut a long story short, I was extremely worried and thankfully it only effected 2 sets of guests. Beforehand I warned the first set of guests ahead of arrival, which they thanked me for, and offered them the use of a minibus to take them out during the day should the noise be unacceptable. I also, because the noise was pretty bad, gave them a couple of bottles of champagne during their stay.
The 2nd set of guests where only effected for 2 days and I arranged something different for them as they had a car.
I think the difference here is that YOU can control the noise and works. I couldn't.
In that situation I would be speaking to the builders to find out exactly what they are doing each day and when the noisiest days may be. I would then be informing the guests.
It may well be that they can plan their days out around that information.
My biggest worry would be waking them early. Holidays are for relaxing not being woken at 8am, so again I would ask the builders not to do noisy work then if possible.
I wouldn't offer compensation yet (though I would be prepared to after judging the noise). I think however a nice 'gift' would go somewhere towards helping, after all they are putting up with something your other guests won't have to. This acknowledges that they are being thought off and that you care.
IF you have any guests who have chosen your place for the quiet surroundings, that is when I think you may have a bigger issue.
Good luck.
Mouse
x
Last edited by Mouse on Wed Mar 11, 2015 10:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
One martini, two martini, three martini floor!
Thanks for the quick replies.
Mouse - your advice is great and I will speak to the builders once they start and get a break down of what is planned on a daily basis. He is actually a decent bloke and will accomodate us if we ask them to start slightly later in the morning etc. - especially as it is their fault that there is an overlap with guests.
In terms of a "gift" I was thinking of adding a bottle of wine to the usual welcome pack and then as you say, seeing how bad the noise/disturbance is before offering further compensation.
KathyG - we don't want to delay the build further as we have been waiting for it to start for a while - once the foundations are layed the guests shouldnt be affected, so we are only really looking at 2-3 weeks.
Cheers
Mouse - your advice is great and I will speak to the builders once they start and get a break down of what is planned on a daily basis. He is actually a decent bloke and will accomodate us if we ask them to start slightly later in the morning etc. - especially as it is their fault that there is an overlap with guests.
In terms of a "gift" I was thinking of adding a bottle of wine to the usual welcome pack and then as you say, seeing how bad the noise/disturbance is before offering further compensation.
KathyG - we don't want to delay the build further as we have been waiting for it to start for a while - once the foundations are layed the guests shouldnt be affected, so we are only really looking at 2-3 weeks.
Cheers
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French Cricket
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I feel for you, Grimmy.
We bought our little cottage in the Pyrénées-Orientales last spring, with a view to letting it this year. However, that was not to be ... our immediate neighbour announced last autumn that she'd be having major building work starting in November, lasting probably 6 to 8 months (for which read 12 months!).
We had no option but to decide not to let the cottage this year and having spent many weeks there ourselves this winter renovating it (inside, and quietly!) we know we made the right choice. As a guest I simply couldn't - and shouldn't have to - tolerate builders starting at 8am every day and using all the noisy machinery that goes with renovation/building from the ground up.
I have to say that in your shoes I'd be delaying the build. Sorry - not what you want to hear, I'm sure ...
We bought our little cottage in the Pyrénées-Orientales last spring, with a view to letting it this year. However, that was not to be ... our immediate neighbour announced last autumn that she'd be having major building work starting in November, lasting probably 6 to 8 months (for which read 12 months!).
We had no option but to decide not to let the cottage this year and having spent many weeks there ourselves this winter renovating it (inside, and quietly!) we know we made the right choice. As a guest I simply couldn't - and shouldn't have to - tolerate builders starting at 8am every day and using all the noisy machinery that goes with renovation/building from the ground up.
I have to say that in your shoes I'd be delaying the build. Sorry - not what you want to hear, I'm sure ...
Is it possible for builders to be quiet?! Sorry I'm with FC, I'd be upset if I arrived to building work that had been organised by the owners. When it's outside of your control it's different as in Mousie's instance, or if for example there was weather damage etc.
Is the type of holiday you offer mean that guests go out and about every day? Is it ok to assume that any noise during the day won't affect them? As you're on site you must have a good idea but it's not always safe to assume that all guests behave the same way.
A really awkward situation to be in I must admit I don't envy you! As an aside I wouldn't add a bottle of wine to the welcome pack. How would they know it's compensation or an extra? I would start a dialogue and see what feedback you get if you plan to continue with the work.
Is the type of holiday you offer mean that guests go out and about every day? Is it ok to assume that any noise during the day won't affect them? As you're on site you must have a good idea but it's not always safe to assume that all guests behave the same way.
A really awkward situation to be in I must admit I don't envy you! As an aside I wouldn't add a bottle of wine to the welcome pack. How would they know it's compensation or an extra? I would start a dialogue and see what feedback you get if you plan to continue with the work.
+1 to this. Especially as it's your builders. SorryFrench Cricket wrote: I have to say that in your shoes I'd be delaying the build. Sorry - not what you want to hear, I'm sure ...
See the job, do the job!
http://www.premiumturkishvillas.co.uk
http://www.premiumturkishvillas.co.uk
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PW in Polemi
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Nemo's made some very good points.
In my experience, British builders (with or without "bum") are NOISY. Apart from the cement mixering, drilling, kango hammering, banging and sawing that goes with building works, they always seem to switch on the radio at one end of the site with the volume turned up loud enough to enable them to hear it (above aforesaid noises) at the other end of the site. And it's normally pop music interspersed with inane adverts, rather than "Listen with Mother" or "Just a Minute" type programmes.
Most of our guests seem to spend one or two days going out and about, followed by a day (or more) relaxing on the veranda or in the pool. So noise from adjacent building works during the day would impact on their ability to have a relaxing and enjoyable holiday.
I'm with Nemo on the wine, too - if you simply add it to the other stuff you provide, it will not be special to them. Turn up with it shortly after their arrival, or wait until you hear for yourself how bad the noise is during the day.
Another thing to consider - I've had a quick look at your web page (lovely property), and it seems there's no physical divider between the main house and the building containing the cottage accommodation. If this is correct, will your builder and his staff respect your guests' privacy and stay as far away as possible? Is there plenty of parking too, or will your guests have problems getting in and out the driveway when the piles of sand, bags of cement, cement mixer, wheelbarrows, site hut, port-a-potty, works lorry and staff cars all arrive on site?
In my experience, British builders (with or without "bum") are NOISY. Apart from the cement mixering, drilling, kango hammering, banging and sawing that goes with building works, they always seem to switch on the radio at one end of the site with the volume turned up loud enough to enable them to hear it (above aforesaid noises) at the other end of the site. And it's normally pop music interspersed with inane adverts, rather than "Listen with Mother" or "Just a Minute" type programmes.
Most of our guests seem to spend one or two days going out and about, followed by a day (or more) relaxing on the veranda or in the pool. So noise from adjacent building works during the day would impact on their ability to have a relaxing and enjoyable holiday.
I'm with Nemo on the wine, too - if you simply add it to the other stuff you provide, it will not be special to them. Turn up with it shortly after their arrival, or wait until you hear for yourself how bad the noise is during the day.
Another thing to consider - I've had a quick look at your web page (lovely property), and it seems there's no physical divider between the main house and the building containing the cottage accommodation. If this is correct, will your builder and his staff respect your guests' privacy and stay as far away as possible? Is there plenty of parking too, or will your guests have problems getting in and out the driveway when the piles of sand, bags of cement, cement mixer, wheelbarrows, site hut, port-a-potty, works lorry and staff cars all arrive on site?
Dogs have masters. Cats have slaves!
I've been in this position before when we have carried out building on site. The difference is that I was able to warn guests at the booking stage. I did this for a long period (not knowing an exact time frame) and many of the guests were pleasantly surprised to arrive to no building work at all. Because I'm in a tourist destination rather than a lounging by the pool type cottage, most of my guests are out and about all day. I was amazed at how many guests still booked. I never offered a penny in rental reduction and I never had a single complaint because they knew the score. Advising guests after they have booked is quite different of course. Saying the builders will only be working during the day is too vague. If it were me, I would try to give the guests a bit more detailed information with assurances of the actual times that the work will be carried out to and from i.e. 9.00am to 4.00pm and stick to it. I think most people's concern would be being woken very early in the morning by noise. I would also take out the word 'unfortunately' as it just makes it sound more negative. I would also tweak the last sentence to say something like:
We apologise in advance for any inconvenience - if you have any concerns please do not hesitate to get in touch to discuss, as we may be able to work around any particular issues this may cause.
We apologise in advance for any inconvenience - if you have any concerns please do not hesitate to get in touch to discuss, as we may be able to work around any particular issues this may cause.
By law, the builders will have to erect a physical barrier, probably heras fencing with screening.PW in Polemi wrote: Another thing to consider - I've had a quick look at your web page (lovely property), and it seems there's no physical divider between the main house and the building containing the cottage accommodation.
I would also add that I recently stayed in a B&B that was having major building work. They didn't warn us at all. It didn't bother us because we were out all day but it shows how many owners don't think it necessary to be open about it. I think most people actually really appreciated my openness and honesty and some were even quite interested in the work going on. HOWEVER, you do have to be prepared that it will be a big issue for some and you may well have to compensate or completely accept refundable cancellations. I would take each booking on a case by case basis depending on their reaction to the news.
Thanks all - and all have valid points.
One thing to note is that we are in Wales, and at this time of the year the chances of the weather being nice enough for guests to be relaxing outside are pretty slim
. Most guests over the past few years have generally gone out in the morning and returned late afternoon, so if we agree a work schedule with the builders of 9-4:30 this should be acceptable - I work from home so will be fully aware of noise issues so can deal with exceptional issues on a case by case basis.
Fortunately the building work will be taking place at the far end of our property, away from the cottages and there is a seperate entrace that the builders can use for all the machinery etc. None of the cottages overlook the site where the builders will be.
I have tweaked the email I have sent - so far I've had no reaction/response, but early days.
Many thanks again for your input.
One thing to note is that we are in Wales, and at this time of the year the chances of the weather being nice enough for guests to be relaxing outside are pretty slim
. Most guests over the past few years have generally gone out in the morning and returned late afternoon, so if we agree a work schedule with the builders of 9-4:30 this should be acceptable - I work from home so will be fully aware of noise issues so can deal with exceptional issues on a case by case basis.Fortunately the building work will be taking place at the far end of our property, away from the cottages and there is a seperate entrace that the builders can use for all the machinery etc. None of the cottages overlook the site where the builders will be.
I have tweaked the email I have sent - so far I've had no reaction/response, but early days.
Many thanks again for your input.
Good point Nemo - maybe I will keel this for when they leave and give it to them as a "thank you for your patience and understanding" - obviously as long as they haven't had any issues!Nemo wrote: As an aside I wouldn't add a bottle of wine to the welcome pack. How would they know it's compensation or an extra? I would start a dialogue and see what feedback you get if you plan to continue with the work.
Good luck Grimmy. As owners, this sort of scenario is one of our biggest worries. I can only say that in my experience a lot of guests are far more understanding than we imagine they will be. It's how you manage the situation that's key to getting through it. I've had men come to chat and see the building work progress whilst waiting for their wives to get ready to go out! 