Why are my driveway quotes so far apart?
Because each contractor answered a slightly different question. You asked for your driveway to be sorted; one contractor heard 'fix the dips', another heard 'replace the whole surface', and a third priced only the laying of new blocks. All three may be honest, and their figures will still be far apart.
This is especially common when owners request driveway quotes from abroad, by phone or message, without a written description of the job. Each contractor fills the gaps with their own assumptions. The way to compare is not to look harder at the totals but to uncover the assumptions behind them. There are six that matter most.
Are they even proposing the same solution?
The first assumption is the type of work. A sunken drive can be repaired by lifting and relaying the affected zones, rebuilt entirely, or, if it is stable but tired, renovated on the surface. These are three different jobs with three different price levels, and a quote for one cannot be compared with a quote for another.
On our price pages, a repair of sunken pavers starts from 30 € per m² plus IVA, a surface renovation is 15 € per m² plus IVA, and a turnkey rebuild is 84 € per m² plus IVA up to 150 m². If one of your quotes is for a rebuild and another for a repair, the gap is not a sign that one contractor is expensive. See the factors that move the price for how the choice is made.
Do both quotes assume the same area?
The second assumption is the area. One contractor may have measured on site, another estimated from a photo, a third included the planted strip along the wall. A difference of a few square metres multiplied by a rate per m² is easily the size of the gap you are trying to explain.
Ask each contractor how many square metres they priced and how they got the number. Then measure it yourself, roughly, using the method in how to measure the m². If one quote uses a clearly different area, ask that contractor to recalculate before you compare.
Are the pavers and base layers the same?
The third assumption is the specification. 'Block paving' covers many formats, thicknesses and qualities. Our turnkey rate uses 10×20×6 cm concrete pavers on zahorra, soil-cement and a gravel bed, with kerbs included. Another quote may use a thinner block, skip the stabilised layer or reuse old kerbs, and each choice changes both the price and the result.
- Paver format and thickness: are they stated, and are they the same in each quote?
- Standard: concrete paving blocks are covered by UNE-EN 1338 and the Spanish complement UNE 127338.
- Base layers: aggregate only, or aggregate plus soil-cement or a concrete slab?
- Laying bed: a gravel bed, or something else?
- Kerbs: new, reused or not mentioned?
A quote that does not state the paver format and the base layers cannot be checked. Ask for them before treating it as cheaper. A contractor who knows what they are offering can answer in one line, and that answer is what makes the quote comparable at all.
Who carries the risk of a weak base?
The fourth assumption is about risk. Nobody can see the base under an old driveway before it is opened. Some contractors include a margin for that uncertainty in their main rate, which makes their quote look high. Others leave it out entirely and add it as an extra once the problem appears, which makes their quote look low.
The fairest structure is a conditional line: an agreed price for extra base correction, charged only if a weak base is actually found. When you compare quotes, add the conditional line to the total as a worst case and leave it out as a best case. That gives you a range for each offer rather than a single misleading number.
Is the tax the same, and where does each quote stop?
The fifth assumption is tax. One quote may be net, another may include IVA at 21 %. That alone creates a difference of about a fifth. Our quotes show the net figure, the IVA and the total separately, and any quote you compare should be put on the same basis before you read the totals.
The sixth assumption is the boundary of the job. Does the quote include lifting the old surface and removing the rubble? Does it stop at the gate or run to the street? Does it include the transition to the garage floor, the step at the front door or the drainage channel at the bottom of the slope? Each boundary is a place where two quotes can quietly diverge. Our article on items that are often left out of paving quotes lists these boundaries with the Spanish terms you will see in quotes, so that you can ask about each one by name.
How do I make the quotes comparable?
Write a one-page description of the job and send the same text to every contractor. State the area you measured, the problem you want solved, what should happen to the old surface, whether kerbs should be renewed and where the work starts and ends. Ask for the answer itemised, with IVA separate.
- Describe the problem, not just the solution: sinking, wear or broken paving.
- Give your own measured area and ask each contractor to confirm or correct it.
- Ask for the paver format, the base layers and the kerbs to be stated.
- Ask for any base risk to be priced as a conditional line.
- Ask for net, IVA and total to be shown separately.
- Define the start and end of the work, including rubble removal.
Quotes written to the same brief are usually much closer to each other, and any remaining difference is a real one you can discuss. To see the published rates behind our own figures, visit block paving cost per m². Send us a photo and the approximate m² – free, no-obligation quote.
Frequently asked questions
Why is one paving quote twice as much as another?
Usually because they price different jobs: a full rebuild against a partial repair, a measured against an estimated area, or a quote with IVA against one without. Put both on the same basis and the gap normally shrinks or becomes easy to explain.
Should I give contractors my own measurement?
Yes. Giving every contractor the same area makes the quotes comparable and reveals any contractor who priced a very different surface. Ask each one to confirm the figure or explain why theirs differs, before you compare totals.
How do I compare a quote with IVA and one without?
Convert both to net figures. If a quote includes IVA at 21 %, divide its total by 1.21 to get the net amount. Then compare net with net. Our own quotes always show net, IVA and total separately.
What is the most important assumption to check?
The type of work. A repair, a renovation and a full rebuild are different jobs with very different prices per m². Make sure every quote you compare proposes the same solution, or compare the solutions first and the prices afterwards.
Does the paver thickness affect the price?
It can, because a different format or thickness means a different amount of material and a different product. Our turnkey rate uses a 6 cm concrete paver in the 10×20 cm format. A quote with another block is not directly comparable until its format is stated.
What is a fair way to price the risk of a bad base?
A conditional line with an agreed rate per m² for extra base correction, charged only if the base proves weak once opened. It gives you a best case and a worst case instead of a single figure that hides the risk.
Should I send all contractors the same description?
Yes. A short written brief covering the problem, the area, the old surface, the kerbs and the boundaries of the job makes every answer comparable. It also shows contractors that you will read their quote carefully.
Can a cheaper quote still be the better one?
Certainly, if it covers the same scope and specification. Once the assumptions are aligned, a lower figure is a genuine saving. The point is to know that before choosing, not to discover the missing items after signing.
Why does rubble removal create such large differences?
Because breaking up and removing an old concrete slab or tiled surface involves labour, transport and disposal under construction waste rules. One quote may include all of it and another none of it, while both describe the same area.
Do you quote to a brief written by the owner?
Yes. If you send your description with photos and the area, the quote answers each point, adds any items the photos show are needed and marks conditional lines. That makes it straightforward to compare with other offers.