Hawkesworth appliance testing?

[Dan oh!]

Considering a PAT testing job with Hawkesworth appliance testing, anyone got any info/ experiance with them?

 

[russty]

Hear they make all there employees on a self-employed basics, have them pay for all there own lables and kit and expect 100's + everyday. Not the best company in my opnion, heres a blog about pat testing ive come across, its a bit of a read.




PAT Testing | Jason Slater Technology Blog | Featured

 

[Dan oh!]

Thanks for that mate, the more I hear the less I Likes.

 

[Liberator]

I have experience with this company unfortunately.........

end result was a written off car, £8000 finance on a used peugot 206, and got told to hand in my tools if I couldn't afford to work after missing 2 days of work (1 day for docs, 1 day for new car)..... In december.

My new born baby girl spent her 1st xmas in a different house, with no power or heating, no furniture and no carpets.... we all slept on the floor.....

A little compassion can go a long way under the right circumstances....... treatment like this is what made me build my own PAT company.... sure hes already made his millions, has his mansion and porsche carerra GT the last time I saw him....... but he doesn't have the few customers that I have, and never will... even if I do their testing for 1p a test!!

 

[Dan oh!]

Thanks for the warning mate, I kinda made my mind up to go it on my own anyway. Why run around like an idiot for somebody elses profit, might as well be my own idiot.
Cheers

 

[Liberator]

Just out of interest, which part of the country do you live in?

 

[Liberator]

Also, a free bit of advice.....

1. find your own customers
2. charge your own prices (even if its £2+ per test)
3. offer some FREE things, and make the word free stand out...
fuses, etc
4. you may be more expensive than other companies, but people will use you if you look/sound professional

5. charging 50p per test or whatever low prices are out there is what you do when you're doing more than 73,000 tests a year..... thats when you can employ somebody to do the testing for you, and you can sit back in your home office focussing on getting bigger better jobs with your new low prices...

I shouldn't be saying all that seeing as though Im in business myself..... but its good honest advice. You should follow it.

~Liberator

edit: Id rather help others than help Hawkesworth!!

 

[Dan oh!]

Thanks for your help buddy, I'm in Wiltshire, Salisbury to be precise

 

[pattester]

Unbelievable, it backs up a lot of what i have been thinking about that end of the market. It makes you spit when companies like that get away with treating people that way

 

[Liberator]

Not only that, he let me work for 3 months with no training or insurance, knowing full well that I would take all the legal **** storm should anything have gone wrong. I'm sure the same as a lot if hi "engineers".

I know he prospers from taking job centre folk hanging on the premise of a £20-£30k a year job for pat testing a minimum 200 tests a day, 6 days a week... When you know he can't monitor all those people whom are most likely slapping stickers anywhere to make a quick buck.

It's scary that such a large proportion of the uk's pat testing is done by such a company.

Those are the clients looking for the cheapest pat Co. out there. Yeah it's cheap, no it's nit done properly but hawkesworth won't take any slack for death or damage cus each engineer is "self-employed" at his orders.

I'm working on deelopong a competitive, very safe and professional business that helps and cares for it's employees, I thin past and current engineers would say they are treated like family here.