M Collins Builders Ltd

Where to start? I hired Michael Collins Builders to install a kitchen and my entire interaction has been stressful, slow, expensive and aggressive. They will promise things verbally and go back on their word, provide budgets and timelines to win business that they have no intent on keeping. My job took more than twice as long, cost 50% more than quoted and was left unfinished and in a dangerous state (which I was only informed of many months after it was supposedly finished). Michael presents himself as a reliable, genial local builder, but after he is engaged quickly deteriorated into being stubborn, unhelpful, defensive and at times outright threatening. He presented invoices for thousands of pounds without informing us of the cost of extra work beforehand and then demanded to be paid within 2 days, leaving aggressive messages on phone, text and email. It is a shame because he has some nice, capable people working for him, but his leadership and approach to customer interactions is abysmal. Do not be fooled into hiring this outfit. It will cost way more than you will expect in time, money and hassle. Avoid. p.s. I write this in the full knowledge that I will receive more hostile messages from Michael over the coming days. However, on reflection this site was how I discovered and hired this outfit and only works if people leave honest reviews of their experiences.

We found water on our kitchen worktop and realised that water was coming through the wall as the downpipe from the guttering had become disconnected. Luckily for us Michael was working nearby and responded to our call for help with amazing speed and reconnected the pipe. He was so helpful and I have never had such wonderful service.

We had an extension done on the back of our house. This was a large job done in winter. Despite the weather we found the whole project far less stressful than I anticipated. The workforce were always cheery to have around. They were prompt, hard working and competent. The work has been done to high standard and there have only been minor tweaks that were always promptly attended to. The after service was so good we used them to refurbish our bathroom last year. We are also very pleased with that too. We were slightly over time and budget, but nothing that I didnt expect.

Michael and his team were asked to correct poor drainage on our patio and re-lay the patio, patio walls, reinforce garden fencing etc. We live in a ground floor flat so there is nowhere for excess water to go. The work was completed on budget (quote was reasonable). Michael was the only trader who turned up to quote for the whole job, was willing to give us a start date and turned up to complete the job! During that time, his experienced foreman was unable to work due to unforeseen circumstances but this did not unduly affect the completion of the work. While work was under way, Michael called in person to check on progress and was always polite and returned our phone calls. The work done by his team has stood the test of time.

Very professional and considerate - very happy with the quality of work and those employed to carry it out. Highly recommendable

Michael and his team have completely renovated our house including an extension in the back of the house, raising the roof, replacing the old garden, repositioning and installing a new kitchen, building a new wc on the ground floor, putting in two new fireplaces, replacing wooden floor, putting in new boiler and heating system, and removing two chimneys in two bedrooms, all according to the architectural plan. The work was completed to a very high standard. Michael is very friendly and very reliable - always provides his honest opinion. Some builders disappear after the work is done, but Michael is always there. There was a time when there was a leaking pipe problem, we called a plumber for emergency call-out and he suggested to break the floor and the antique floor tiles. We then called Michael who came with his son immediately and fixed the pipe without damaging the floor and the tiles, which showed how knowledgable he was in comparison to the other builder. We highly recommend him.

Michael and his team helped refurbish my 3-storey Neo-Georgian house and created an open plan layout for the kitchen. This involved the installation of 9 beams as specified in the construction drawings. The team also skimmed and painted the house all to a very high standard. trades even told me that this work was a high standard! I am very pleased with the end result and I enjoyed working with the team.

Michael responded quickly to my initial enquiry, coming to see and discuss the work required within a day or so and providing a quotation the next day. There were two jobs required - repairing the floorboards and extending the joists under a bay window, and installing a new Velux window in the loft room. The latter involved the erection of a scaffold tower to give access to the roof. Apart from a small delay due to his scaffolders having to go away at short notice, all the work was done promptly and on time. The different tradesman were all considerate and polite. The standard of work was excellent, and we were very pleased with the outcomes. Throughout the process, Michael maintained good communication with us and visited most days. Overall he was attentive, flexible and reliable. His invoice at the end was the same as the original quotation. We will certainly use him again if necessary and would recommend him to others.

Michael and his son Niall responded very quickly when my landing ceiling collapsed. They completed a great job and worked all day Saturday to finish the work. I warmly recommend this building firm.

Michael is a very experienced builder whose work was of very good quality. Michael completely renovated a bathroom, kitchen, dining room and conservatory. His work was of good quality, and at a reasonable price. After the work was completed there were a couple of small snagging jobs and he was very responsive. Happy to recommend him and we'd use him again.