Day Rate vs Fixed-Price Painting Contracts: When Each Is Appropriate
When a day rate makes sense for painting work and when you should insist on a fixed price. How to protect yourself either way, and what a written agreement should include.
Two Ways to Price a Painting Job — and Why It Matters
There are two fundamental ways a painter and decorator will price work: a fixed price (sometimes called a lump sum or contract price) or a day rate (also called a time-and-materials basis). Both are legitimate in the right circumstances. The problem arises when the wrong pricing model is applied to a job, or when the arrangement — whichever type — is not properly set out in writing.
Understanding the difference, and knowing which to ask for in a given situation, will save you money and avoid the most common disputes between clients and contractors.
When a Day Rate Is Appropriate
A day rate is the right approach when the scope of work is genuinely unknown at the outset. The clearest example is remedial work on a property that has not been properly surveyed: a damp wall where the extent of the damage behind the plaster is uncertain, or a window frame where the rot may be superficial or may run all the way back to the lintel. In these situations, asking for a fixed price puts the contractor in the position of either pricing high to protect themselves or pricing low and cutting corners when the actual extent of the work exceeds their estimate.
A day rate is also appropriate for short tasks: touching up paintwork after building works have been completed, spot-painting following furniture removal, or making good after a small plumbing repair. For anything that will take less than a full day, a fixed quote is often unnecessary overhead.
Day rates for painters and decorators in London currently run from around £200 to £280 per day for a skilled, experienced tradesperson working alone, with higher rates for working in central London or on specialist finishes. Two operatives working together on a day rate should produce more than double the output of one working alone — if they do not, that is a conversation to have before the end of the first day.
When a Fixed Price Is Appropriate — and Why You Should Insist on It
For any clearly defined piece of work — redecorating a flat, painting the exterior of a house, repainting a staircase — a fixed price is almost always in the client's interest. It transfers the risk of the job taking longer than expected from the client to the contractor, which is precisely where that risk should sit. An experienced decorator should be able to assess a job correctly during a site survey and price it accurately.
The key condition for a fixed price to work is a detailed specification. A fixed price against a vague brief ("paint the kitchen") is almost useless, because the contractor can always claim that what was actually needed (filling the wall, washing down the grease, priming the new cupboard doors) was not included in the brief. A fixed price against a detailed written specification — specifying every surface, every product, and every preparation step — is a binding commitment.
Never accept a fixed price from a contractor who has not visited the property. Telephone or email quotes without a site visit are not fixed prices; they are guesses that will either prove too high (the contractor who built in a large contingency) or too low (the contractor who will find scope creep in every corner of the job).
What a Written Agreement Should Include
Whether you are engaging a decorator on a day rate or a fixed price, the terms should be in writing. This does not need to be a lengthy legal contract. A one- or two-page document covering the following points is sufficient for most residential painting jobs:
Scope of work. Every surface to be painted, every product to be used, every preparation step included. If the inside of wardrobes is not mentioned, it is not included.
Price and payment schedule. For a fixed-price job, the total and when it is due (typically a small deposit on materials, with the balance on completion). For a day rate, the daily rate, an estimated number of days, and the invoicing frequency (weekly is standard on longer jobs). Never pay 100% upfront.
Start and estimated completion dates. An estimated completion date is not a guarantee, but a contractor who refuses to commit to any timeframe is a risk.
What constitutes completion. The work is finished when both parties agree the snag list has been addressed, not when the contractor says it is finished and asks for the final payment.
What happens with extras. Any work beyond the agreed scope should be agreed in writing before it is carried out, with a price or day rate clearly stated.
Protecting Yourself on Day Rate Jobs
If you engage a decorator on a day rate, the most important protection is daily oversight. Check at the end of each day what has been accomplished and whether that is consistent with one full day's productive work. A decorator who spends two hours of an eight-hour day on a phone call or driving to collect materials they should have had ready is billing you for unproductive time.
Agree upfront that materials are purchased at trade price with no mark-up, or that a specified mark-up (typically 10–15%) applies. Keep receipts. The material cost on a painting job should be modest relative to the labour; if material invoices seem high, ask for itemisation.
For a free, detailed fixed-price quote on your London property, use our free quote page or contact us via the contact form.