Whether it’s home repair, auto repair, or some other service, it’s important to validate the estimates that repair folks provide.
We’re all busy (even me, and I’m retired) and it’s often tough enough to get one professional to provide an estimate, never mind 2 or 3.
So today we’ll talk about the importance of verification, some lessons learned, and some ways to make it easier.
Gutters
My house is 35 years old. Last year we replaced windows (yuck!), this year gutters. It’s always something.
Start Your Search With AI
Given my new budding relationship with Grok (xAi’s assistant), I decided to start with him. I asked for some highly reviewed gutter replacement contractors and he provided 4 recommendations with highlights from the reviews. As always, he checked many sites and read every review before making a recommendation.
He provided websites and phone numbers.
Even with his explicit instructions, I made a faux pas. I contacted New England Gutter Protection instead of New England Gutter Systems. More on this in a minute.
I also contacted several others who will be coming next week.
Don’t Sign Anything
An experienced professional and salesperson is going to make a compelling case. That’s their job. They do this 5 days or more per week every week so they’re good at it. If they weren’t, they’d be in another business.
I have nearly fallen for a convincing sales pitch for an overly expensive product twice now.
Years ago, a guy came to my door selling replacement windows. I know, I’ve said hundreds of times to never entertain an offer that comes to you. Always find someone reputable and go to to them.
But in a weak moment I invited him in. And to his credit, he had a great presentation and even showed a demonstration of how his windows protected from light and sound. The price was high, but the presentation got me jazzed up. Remember, this is their job to get us jazzed up – they’re good at it.
My wife was not home at the time (so I was unsupervised) but I was smart enough to know not to make a big purchase decision without discussing. So I sent the salesman away saying I needed to discuss with my wife.
Expert Tip: If either the husband or wife is not home for the initial sales pitch, it’s an easy out to say we need to discuss first.
Expert Tip 2: Any deal contingent upon deciding now is a bad deal. This includes a financial bonus or incentive for signing today.
Take a Breath
For both the window guy and the gutter guy, I felt like they had a great product, they were knowledgeable, and they seemed honest. They probably were.
But is this the best deal for me?
And often we’re not talking about a few dollars difference. For auto and home repairs, this can be thousands of dollars.
I’m working with a 2nd gutter vendor right now. It looks like I could hire him and take a trip to Bermuda for the price I would have paid vendor 1.
How would I know unless I got a second estimate?
Grok Can Evaluate Your Estimate!!!
If you only take away one thing from this post, this is it.
I uploaded the quote from Gutter Guy 1 to Grok. I dragged the file onto the Grok search bar and asked him what he thought.
Grok was polite but said this estimate was way too high and he formatted a response for me to send to the vendor asking a number of follow-ups and requesting a quote inline with current prices near my home.
Here’s an excerpt.
In this discussion was where Grok informed me that I had contacted the wrong vendor. This was not the one he had recommended and all his recommendations were fully licensed and insured with reviews he would stand behind.
Apparently he does a good job of vetting the vendors because his vendors provided much lower quotes.
Do Not Sign (2)
And the waiver of right to cancel makes no senses. I hadn’t gotten this far in the proposal as I was stuck on the high price. Good thing Grok reads everything.
Though tempted, I didn’t sign. But, if I had signed, I would have been stuck had I come to my senses in an hour or after my wife beaned me on the head for being an idiot.
Again, in the moment we’re jazzed up, we’ve got a professional lined up. We can cross something off of our to do list, and heck, we’ll likely be in the house for 30 more years, why not go for the best?
The Best?
Gutter Guy #1 made a compelling case that his product and installers were the best.
How do I know? I’m not a gutter guy?
Gutter Guy #2 is making the same case today. He’s pretty compelling. He’s also a Bermuda vacation cheaper.
How do we know what’s best without some help?
How Do I Get Someone To Show Up For An Estimate?
I’m anticipating neighbor Mike’s question.
Grok can help with this, but sometimes we call and can’t get someone to show.
I will say that all 4 gutter companies had websites that allowed me to provide requirements and request a quote. 2 of 3 responded within 24 hours. One within 12 hours on a weekend.
The one that I called and left a message has not responded.
Often the websites will have an automated tracking and follow-up process that helps insure our request will not be lost. For old guys like me, this is even more incentive to move online.
Auto Repair
We’ve talked about home repairs, but same for auto. This is a bigger pain since typically we need to go to them for an estimate and then we need to drive away from someone who can fix our problem to go to the next one.
Start With Grok
Once again, Grok, or your favorite AI assistant can help. Ask in advance for reputable repair shops. Also ask what to expect for pricing. When you get a quote, upload it and have AI analyze the work to be done and the price.
BWM told me I needed to replace a corroded ground strap. Sounded funky to me. I asked Grok and he told me this was legit. The ground strap on my vehicle was susceptible to corrosion and not addressing this can cause future expensive electrical issues.
RepairPal
I can plug in my vehicle and the repair needed and get local recommended repair shops.
I trust RepairPal’s recommendations because…well, let me show you why Grok trusts RepairPal.
I can also put in my exact repair and RepairPal will tell me what I should expect to pay.
As helpful as RepairPal can be, it is old technology. I’ve found that Grok is much more comprehensive because he checks all available information.
Wrap Up
Most of us aren’t experts so we could use some help when selecting professionals for expensive projects or repairs.
Most organizations have well-trained sales folks who are good at selling us.
- They’re going to point out things we didn’t know to demonstrate their expertise
- They’ll demonstrate why their product is superior
- They’ll tell us why their installers can be trusted
And these are all the things we want to hear.
And if we’re not a professional in this area, how do we evaluate price – or even the claims they’ve made?
We need some help.
Second opinions are great. Give 2 or more professionals the opportunity to sell us. We’ll learn a little. We’ll find follow-up questions we may want to ask.
And make heavy use of AI assistants. Let them do the work.
- Grok will find reputable businesses with good reviews who are licensed and insured
- If we’re not getting responses, he’ll find more – he never gets tired or cranky
- He’ll tell us the price range to expect.
- He can review a detailed quote and provide insights.
As I write this, my 2nd estimate has come in. It is currently about 1/3 the price of the 1st.
It is a smaller spec system, 5 inches instead of 6, and does not include replacing 10 ft of fascia, but that’s small potatoes. I can choose vendor #2, and take a nice trip to Italy based on the budget I had set aside after estimate #1.
Gutter Guy 2 also has his take on Gutter Guy #1.
Unless I talk to 2 or more professionals, I’d never know.