Open to Trade

Since we announced the temporary closure of depots on the 24 March, we have received many requests from customers to help them where we can. To support our trade account holders, and our local communities, we have now opened our depots with measures in place to serve our customers safely. We are now also offering home visits as part of our design appointments for homeowners in England.

Safe at depot

Trading safely

Our depots are now open and trading with social distancing measures in place to ensure we continue to serve our account holders safely while following government guidelines. To find your nearest depot, please use the link below.

Find a depot

Depot guidelines

We are only operating this service where is it is safe to do so. All orders will be ready to collect from a safe area outside the depot and we will enforce the 2m, social-distancing rule at all times.

Making payments

Payments can be charged to a Howdens trade account to limit the contact required during the exchange. You can also pay by card at a depot, or over the phone.

Safe at home

Visiting homes safely

Following the latest government guidelines, we can now offer home visits as part of our design service for homes in England, where our designers can measure up and evaluate your space.

Service availability

Before carrying out a home visit, your local depot will complete a short questionnaire with you to confirm that it is safe for you and our staff to visit your home.

Home visit rules

Once an appointment is confirmed, we ask that social distancing rules are adhered to throughout the whole time of our visit. We have shared some top tips below on how to minimise risk in your home.

Working safely

Staying risk-free

For more information on how to stay safe during a home visit, or when visiting a depot, we recommend reading the government guidance found on the gov.uk website.

Visit gov.uk website

Safe working in homes

If you are in the trade, the government has also curated some useful tips and guidance on how to stay safe on the job when working in a domestic setting.

Go to gov.uk

Safe working on site

For those working on a construction site, here is a link to a useful article issued by the government on ways you can stay safe on site and outdoors.

Top tips for homeowners

Clean regularly

In places where work will be carried out or visited, within high-traffic areas of your home like hallways, and in shared facilities like toilets, it is important to clean surfaces with disinfectant, before and after your home visit.

Minimise contact

Try to limit how much contact your visitor will have with objects in your home. For example, keeping internal doors open will prevent them touching door handles, and ask them to supply their own food and drinks to keep them refreshed.

Reduce distractions

Getting the job done quickly will reduce the time you are exposed to potential contagions. This could mean keeping pets and children occupied in other rooms and limiting face-to-face contact with your visitor to less than 15 minutes.

Self-isolate

If you or a member of your household is self-isolating, only emergency repairs can be carried out. Additional measures should also be in place to reduce the risk of infection, for example, keeping vulnerable members in a separate room while work is completed.

Top tips for tradespeople

Travel separately

Try to travel solo to each job to limit contact with colleagues. If this isn’t possible, stay with the same people throughout the journey and on the job. It is also important to regularly clean your vehicle and ensure it is well ventilated.

Manage workers

It is important to allocate the same worker to the same household for each visit and task that is carried out there. This is to limit the number of people your staff, and members of that household, come in contact with.

Clean tools

Where possible, tools should not be shared between colleagues to minimise the risk of infection. If they need to be shared, please ensure tools are cleaned with disinfectant after use and all tools after each job too.

Social distance

It is recommended to stay 2 metres apart from others at all time, including while tasks are carried out. It is also important to ensure good hygiene is maintained throughout the day - using hand sanitiser regularly will help.

Manage your Howdens account online

Our new Trade account login system lets you manage your existing Howdens account whenever and wherever you choose. This allows you to pay bills, view invoices and statements, and review your credit limit or balance - all at a time convenient to you.