Time to buy something count as hours?

[58baf03d]

Freelancer is billing for hours spent buying material and tools

Suppose I’m building a dog house.  The freelancer

1. bills me for the time to design the doghouse, then
2. bills me for the expenses in buying the tools and materials (wood, hammers), AND
3. the time to go buy the tools and return home.

Should I pay him for #3?

[aitringo]

as long as the time is not used by the freelancer for his own needs, or for other clients, I sincerely believe that he has the right to bill the client.

Since it is the client who benefits, not the freelancer himself.

In this case, based on the example above, the client can always ask to get back the hammer and other tools, once the job is finished.

[58baf03d]

I'm not sure on those points.
E.g. If I pay for a hammer, it is my hammer, not the freelancer's.
I'm paying a freelancer to do something on a computer like Solidworks or
Fusion360, but I don't want to pay at that rate for driving to Home Depot.
It's a lesser skill.

[colettelewis]

If you pay for the hammer, the hammer is yours.

However, if you ask someone to go out and buy the hammer for you, that will cost you the price of the hammer + the time that person spends buiying the hammer + the time that person spends making the article + postage and packing when eventually that person sends you your hammer. 

[tagrendy]

Some tools you are expected to have as the specialist. In your analogy, builders usually come with hammers. In my line of work, I have web development tools and definitely won't charge the client for buying those. But, if we're talking about 'materials' specific to your project, for example - if you hired a designer and they have to purchase specific images, fonts, and icons to create your design - yes, that is time that they spend working on your project and those are materials that they were not supposed to have. Personally, I never buy anything for a client and ask them to provide everything needed. If you don't want the freelancer to track time for it, let them know that you will buy and send over the assets needed, and they can just focus on creation of the product. 

[prestonhunter]

When I hire contractors to work on my home using an hourly rate, I pay them the same hourly rate while they are driving to Home Depot or Lowe's, and while they are shopping, and while they are working on the project at my house. I pay them the same rate throughout the job.

I typically go with them to Lowe's or Home Depot, so they don't need to use their own money to purchase supplies.

They have their own tools. But if there is a specialized tool that needs to be purchased then I buy it. (This is rare.)

This does not necessarily equate directly to the original poster's question.

[tagrendy]

I never built a house, but if I did, I'd work for you ))

[prestonhunter]

Peter, these are decisions you make, and decisions that freelancers make. Upwork itself does not have specific rules for every situation. Upwork simply says that clients are not allowed to ask freelancers to work for free.

There are different ways that this rule can be interpreted when it comes to your question.

[deborah-ponzio]

Peter, I hope that you will appreciate my honest view. Whenever the time is being spent to work on someone's behalf, that time deserves payment. As another option, you can arrange the purchase of the equipment needed for your proejct by yourself and have the materials delivered to your freelancer at your cost. That freelancer could have spent the same time working for another paying client instead of going out, doing a purchase on your behalf and then having to defend the fair payment of his time. For the next occasions, you may negotiate a different rate depending on tasks in advance, not after the work is done. Just my two cents 😉 

[58baf03d]

You raise a good point.
I think we settled on a solution that is 21st century: do all the shopping
online, which takes minimal time outside of the purchase.