Holland Landscapes www.hollandscapes.co.uk
Value For Money
Holland Landscapes www.hollandscapes.co.uk
User Reviews
Value For Money
When We Gave Them Our Ideas, Holland Landscapes Ei
When we gave them our ideas, Holland Landscapes either incorporated them into their design or, if our ideas weren't practical, suggested solutions based on their many years experience. Their quote was initially more than we'd thought, but by talking through exact costings, and by modifying at the design stage, the result is a very pleasing new garden with lawn, flowerbeds and a well designed in-and-out driveway, achieved within our budget but without compromising Holland Landscapes' high standards of design and workmanship. We would have no hesitation in recommending their work.
Value For Money
We Had Recently Decided To Do Something With Our G
We had recently decided to do something with our garden and began to collate various quotes from local landscapers in Essex and the South East.
Our garden is a basic rectangle, about 15m long by aroung 5m wide. We had planned two areas of decking and some re-turfing. Initially we began getting quotes around 2-3k, which seemed fair as I used to work in a timber yard and had priced materials myself.
I then went onto the APL (association of professional landscapers) site and found Holland Landscapes. They claim to do excellent work and to have won various prestigious awards.
Their site is excellent. Very slickly put together with a full portfolio including before, during and after photography of sites they have worked on. The completed works did indeed look very impressive. I proceeded to invite them round to look at the garden.
Their rep arrived and was very polite, refusing to walk through the house in boots and immediately got out a pad and tape measure....very promising I thought having seen cowboys pace around the gardens amid sharp intakes of breath.
He went on to tell me that the garden would take 10 working days to complete with two men on the job. Everyone else quoted for 2-3 days work! When asked to justify this he informed me that to build the deck below the air brick required much excavation of earth.....this was a topic already covered by previous landscapers who all stated this was not required as air can still circulate below decks. Oh dear.
It got worse. A few days later I received a quote via telephone for 7 thousand pounds. A written quote followed for £6,800. Three and a half times more than any other quote. When I mentioned this I was informed rather smugly that they were used to being the most expensive, but the final job would be worth it. Er, no. Quote filed appropriately.
The next company that quoted us saw Hollands quote and were thinking about reporting them to the APL.
Thank you. Good to see someone who can spell ridiculous…
Thanks for your review which has helped me. The use of words such as 'ridiculous' to criticise a review is counteractive and rude. Thank you for taking time to write about your experience with this company. You don't get a choice when accepting cookies on their website and personally I take this as a warning. They cite memberships and standards on their website which come at a cost. I cannot see any trade qualifications on their site. They do not appear in Checkatrade which seems to be one of the best ways to check out a company. Perhaps they are happy to pay for overheads and quote high to give an impression of quality to attract wealthy customers. But I'm non the wiser as to the standard of their work and found little more about them terms of independent reviews.
I appreciate your point, but this web site is designed to assist people make informed choices. My issue was the not only the price but the amount of site time required. The contractor I finally used had the job wrapped up in one and a half days. Holland stated the job would require ten. I think its reasonable to review this so that people considering using them will know that the job can be done equally well at a substantial saving. Which part of that are you confused by?
Your analogy regarding Aston Martin is irrelevant. Two landscaping companies appear very similar when viewed through an internet search engine. An Aston main dealer and a back street garage when visited are clearly different entities. This encapsulates the point of this site....well done for missing it.
You weren't obliged to accept the quote. I can't really see why you have even bothered to write a review? No work was carried out so you have nothing on which to judge their work. An Aston Martin dealer would charge three times more than a back street mechanic. The customer has a choice of where to take their car, and it doesn't make the Aston Martin dealership a rogue trader.
Counterpoints are clearly welcomed but disagreement of a review does not make it ridiculous. My review is based totally on fact, I understand that your experience of this company appears more positive, however this takes nothing away from what I experienced. Try respecting other peoples opinions when offering your own. When Holland quoted for my garden they WERE three times more expensive than two other companies, one of the reps from another firm did a double take at Hollands written quote in disbelief. This is fact. I am not interested in tarnishing reputations, as can be seen by my positive commentary on Holland's staff, portfolio and website. Accept that your experience was not mine and vice versa, this occurs in life, apparently.
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