Get advice on your home improvement project
Straight and simple answers on deposits, staged payments, contracts, and top tips for homeowners by Trusted Payments.
Hiring a trade
See all 40Are Builder Reviews Reliable?
How much weight to give online reviews when choosing a trade, what patterns to look for, and why speaking to a previous customer tells you more.
Deposit vs Staged Payments: What's the Difference?
A deposit is paid before work starts; staged payments are released as work is completed. How each works, and why the structure matters more than the total.
How Many Quotes Should You Get?
Three quotes is the usual advice, but only if they're quoting the same thing. Here's how to make quotes comparable and what to look at besides the price.
How to Check a Builder Is Legitimate
Practical checks before you hire — company details, insurance, accreditation, previous work and payment set-up — and which actually tell you something.
How to Complain About a Builder
A step-by-step route for complaining about building work — what to put in writing, who to escalate to, and what to expect at each stage of the process.
How to Hire a Bathroom Fitter
The risks in bathroom fitting are hidden — waterproofing, floor build-up and electrical zones. Here's what to check before work starts and what to ask.
Costs and prices
See all 12How Much Do Solar Panels Cost?
What a solar installation costs in 2026, how to judge payback claims, what a battery does to the numbers, and why MCS certification affects the return.
How Much Does a Bathroom Renovation Cost?
What a bathroom renovation costs in 2026, broken down by scope and by item, what pushes the price up, and how to stage the payments sensibly.
How Much Does a House Rewire Cost?
What a full rewire costs in 2026 by property size, what drives the price, why making good is usually separate, and when a partial rewire is enough.
How Much Does a Loft Conversion Cost?
What a loft conversion costs by type in 2026 — rooflight, dormer and hip-to-gable — what drives each price, and what decides if one is possible.
How Much Does a New Boiler Cost?
What a new boiler costs installed in 2026, what drives the price, why the Benchmark paperwork matters as much as the installation, and what to check.
How Much Does a New Driveway Cost?
What a new driveway costs in 2026 by surface type, why the sub-base determines value, what drainage rules mean for the price, and how to stage payment.
Planning and regulations
See all 10Conservation Areas and Listed Buildings: What Changes
How conservation area status and listing restrict what you can do, what listed building consent covers, and why unauthorised work is a criminal offence.
Do I Need a Party Wall Agreement?
When the Party Wall Act applies, the 3-metre and 6-metre excavation rules, notice periods, and why starting late delays the whole project by weeks.
Do I Need Planning Permission for a Driveway?
The 5 square metre rule for impermeable surfacing, how permeable materials avoid needing permission, what a dropped kerb requires, and drainage options.
Do I Need Planning Permission for a Fence?
The 2-metre and 1-metre height limits for fences, why trellis counts toward the height, what changes in conservation areas, and when you need permission.
Do I Need Planning Permission for a Loft Conversion?
Loft conversions are often permitted development within volume limits, but Building Regulations decide whether the room legally counts as a bedroom.
Do I Need Planning Permission for an Extension?
The permitted development limits for a single-storey rear extension in England, what the prior approval route allows, and the conditions most often breached.
Key Terms
See all 45Scaffolding: What It Costs and Who Pays
Scaffolding is temporary access structure for work at height. It is a significant separate cost and should be itemised in your quote, not hidden away.
What Are Joists?
Joists are the horizontal timbers that carry a floor or ceiling. Whether they can take the load matters for bathrooms, loft conversions and tiled floors.
What Does a Structural Engineer Do?
A structural engineer calculates and specifies the structural elements of your project. On most extensions you engage them separately from the builder.
What Is a Benchmark Certificate?
A Benchmark certificate records that a boiler was correctly installed and commissioned. Without it, the manufacturer's warranty may not be valid.
What Is a Completion Certificate?
A completion certificate confirms that notifiable work has been inspected and complies with Building Regulations. You'll need it when you sell.
What Is a Conservation Area?
A conservation area is designated for its architectural or historic interest. Permitted development is restricted and some ordinary work needs consent.
How it works
Help your project succeed with Trusted Payments
