One guy quoted but wouldn't write up the quote unless he got the job...on the spot! Another bidder didn't quote but simply sent a bill which had to be 50% pre-paid, by credit card, before we could be told when the job would be scheduled!
After the "Big flood of Doomsday 2012" (fire department pouring 10 000 l of water into the attic office two floors above where I live on 21 Dec 2012, partially flooding two other apartments with smelly, toxic water) we had several flooring contractors give estimates for removing 100-year-old oak floors intact, drying them out and reinstalling them. My uncle, who took care of the final decisions, picked the lowest bidder. When my parents were unhappy with the work he did they tried contacting one of the other bidders, who had seemed very knowledgeable, about just doing the work in our own apartment. When my dad called that contractor he immediately blew up because he felt cheated and thought he was somehow entitled to get the entire contract because writing a bid had been a whole day's work and he'd done so only in anticipation of being paid!
I mean how crazy is that? Getting a bid doesn't constitute any kind of obligation, especially not in construction! It's a real pity because I think this guy would have done an outstanding job and saved me a lot of work (I received 1200 Euros compensation from the insurance company for doing the work myself, a process that took me over a month since I could only do it on nights and weekends) but I don't think we'll ever be able to hire him because he'll go ballistic every time he hears our last name.
Pricing is something a few contractors around here seem to have serious issues with, mostly electricians. They calculate their rates so low that it barely covers their costs and make a living off the materials. Unfortunately the materials are the one thing every customer can compare prices on because the very same stuff is sold at every DIY store. How is a customer supposed to understand why the electrician then slaps 100% onto the retail price? To me that's simply poor advertising!
Then there's the totally crazy kind, contractors who complain bitterly about other contractors charging such outrageous rates, "If they get €100 per hour and I earn €30, how on earth am I supposed to be able to afford hiring them?", completely ignoring the fact that a) their own rates are much higher than their income and b) they work 47 weeks a year but only need to hire other contractors for a few hours or days. I think that's more of an issue with employees than with self-employed folks though. The latter should have at least a modicum of economic understanding in order to survive.