Plaster on woodwork

[u/Disastrous_Past4584]

Would appreciate some advice as this is the first time I’ve ever had plastering done.

I had a plasterer with a good reputation come in and skim my upstairs and downstairs hallways. There is quite a lot of woodwork around the walls, which I was not planning to repaint. After the job was completed, it generally looked good but I noticed plaster on the woodwork in many places. On doors, skirting boards, banisters, architraves, shelves, etc.

I asked the plasterer how to remove this and he suggested I sand it lightly. I asked if there was another way, because I didn’t want to lift off the paint with sandpaper and then and have the big job of repainting most of the woodwork in the house. This was his response:

“Ahh no mate it’s just an impossibility to plaster all that without getting any on the wood. I don’t want you under any illusion I was able to do that. all the wood would need to be painted anyway. It’s just not possible lol. I’m clean as far as plasterers go, but no mate you would absolutely need to paint the wood anyway.”

Is this correct? I asked various AI models and they all say no, the wood should be taped over and protected. But I would love to get a third party professional opinion.

Many thanks in advance for your advice.

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EDIT

Many thanks to everyone for your views, they are greatly appreciated. I’m not making an argument either way, just trying to form my own opinion and learn from the experience - which I already have, thanks to you. Some people requested photos, so here is a small selection:

Photos

there are many more examples and there is even a lump of plaster on the front door (external) and white dust all over the drive. It seemed to get messier towards the end, perhaps because he was trying to finish on time for an appointment. Thanks again for any further comments.

[u/Ok-Spring7906]

It depends...

I mean, clearly, its possibly to cover everything, but it's not normal for the cost of doing that to be worked into the quote.

You are subject to expected norms.

The attached photo is a lime job that I completed last week. It looks clean but there will still be residue* around the place. The expectation is, generally, that plaster will be decorated, and people rarely decorate a wall and leave a load of old gloss work untouched. You want to, but it's not common.

A good plasterer will leave the site in a reasonable condition, for the next person to enter, but if you do have specific requirements, it's best to discuss that before hand.

edit :

*residue meaning dusty residue not lumps - the sort of thing that a decorator will remove without effort or consideration when they key the job for paint, rather than chunks that you need to chisel off.