Home building work is a costly business but, if you want to avoid upset and complaint, maintaining high standards is much more important than cutting corners, as this case study shows.
Costly Improvements And Cowboy Building Work
According to Consumer Direct, substandard home improvements are one of the top gripes for UK residents. With many of us spending nearly £1,200 a year on our properties, it’s no wonder we get annoyed when our home improvements don’t go according to plan.
Unfortunately there are a great many cowboy tradesmen out there eager to have a share of the sizeable investment in home improvements. One Birmingham resident employed a ‘loft specialist’ to complete an attic conversion on their three-bedroom semi-detached house.
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By the time the builder had finished, the owner was left with a botched bedroom conversion that woefully failed to meet required safety standards. A subsequent inspection found the conversion to be illegal, with the builder having had cut through major structural components of the roof, and failed to install the minimum required safety precautions. They also failed to fit sufficient insulation to the property.
The resident was forced to pay another builder £4,500 just to repair the serious structural damage caused to their home. Faced with a disastrous situation, and severely out of pocket, they complained to Birmingham City Council and as result a building consultancy team was sent out to inspect their property.
The cowboy builder was promptly taken to court and pleaded guilty to three charges of contravening Building Regulations under the Building Act 1984. They left the court facing a fine of £1,865 and a local reputation in tatters.
The case highlights the dangers the public face if they employ builders who fail to comply with planning and building regulations.
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Done By The Book
Home improvements can be an expensive business but attempting to keep costs down by employing less reputable builders who cut corners is a hugely risky solution. By doing so not only are you putting your family at risk by paving the way for unsafe building work but, as this case shows, you might well end up forking out a lot more money to rectify the damage caused.
If you make a complaint afterwards about a cowboy builder then you can report them to Trading Standards or the police, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get any of your money back or the damage rectified. As rogue traders often avoid standard practices like contracts and prefer to receive payment in cash, by agreeing to their services you are effectively giving up your consumer rights, and your right to complain.
Building is something that needs to be done by the book otherwise it can result in disaster. Without building regulations approval, you risk numerous potential problems and, when it comes to selling the property, instead of adding value to the house, the loft conversion might put people off who are rightly disconcerted by the absence of paperwork.
Following Building Regulations
When employing the services of a specialist loft conversion company – or any other building tradesperson - they should make the building regulations application for you. However, it is your responsibility to ensure the correct approval is granted. A reputable building company will be experienced in dealing with the procedures and will happily guide you through them. Any prospective builder that offers a quick and cheap job that avoids all that complicated and unnecessary ‘red tape’ should set alarm bells ringing in your head.
The so called red tape of obtaining building regulations approval is actually quick and straight-forward process. By obtaining official permission, you secure the safeguard of the council’s control officer who will protect you against cowboy workmanship. They will make sure the building plans are within the law and will make visits to the site to check that the work is up to standard.
If any home owner who has had recent building work completed the safety of which has given them cause for concern then they should contact their local council building department.
We have asked for our money back as they cannot deliver what they promised
Unfornuately these wooden poles are starting to rot away and giving cause for concern. I paid £330k for this house and do not want to go through excessive costs to fix this problem. I believe it was cost cutting from the home builders and i have been told this should have been a a stone retaining wall. I have contacted the home builder who do not want to know. I have contacted the NHBC who do not want to know (the 10 year guarantee has passed) and i have contacted the local council who say it's not their issue.
Does anyone have any ideas/suggestions and what avenue i should take. As i mentioned wood rots over time and i should not have to face this situation.
i appreciate any constructive feedback
Regards
I’ve contacted trading standards and they didn’t seem to care - they said due to lack of funds and they’ve not committed a criminal offence they don’t deal with things like this anymore. Not sure how making someone’s house unsafe isn’t a criminal offence.
I sent the company letters which trading standards adviced me to do. The company has been out 4 times to see me since - but still haven’t given me a plan of action I’ve asked for building control to be involved as I no longer trust them however they keep pushing me from one member of staff to the other.
I’ve already paid for a structural engineers report and I thought I could get building control out myself to take a look - I’m worried they’re going to put a black marker against my house ? Or something. I also wasn’t sure if I would or could get into trouble by not having planning permission? But I just took the companies word for it which yes in hindsight i now know I shouldn’t have but it’s a little to late.
We can’t afford to have it re done! We’re right in the middle of a complete home renovation and have no spare money - we’ve lost money having to delay trades men as we can’t go any further until this is resolved!
My builder keep saying he will do the repairs, but every time he says he will come back he either blames the weather or says he hasn't forgotten us and he will be back but so far hasn't.
We had a council inspector out as we weren't happy with the building work.
Because the building was less than 3 x 3, it didn't need building regulations.
We were quoted £9200 for shell with Windows and door and would include toilet and sink.
We had paid £2500 deposit and a further £1000 for Windows and door and then a further £2000 for the roof.
He pulled off site as he was fed up with us finding faults and we are left without Windows, door, toilet and sink and have quotes for about £3000 to put right the work that he hadn't done right.
The roof isn't pitched high enough, the pipes to toilet are in a drain that has been capped. There is insufficient leading in roof. The window isn't straight, neither is the lintel which is the wrong type of lintel and sticks out like a sore thumb and there is no insulation under floor so has to be pulled up and re-done. The roof isn't safe and not been fixed up correctly and some of the tiles are cracked. The door is too wide so needs to be filled in half a brick, the wall isn't square and the buildng is not tied in properly and the damp proof is not enough.
I have been trying everywhere , including trading standards and consumer rights to try to get a report that states all these faults which the council inspector pointed out, but can't give us a report as not covered by building regulations. We've tried institute of chartered surveyors without luck as well
Please could someone point me in the right direction in order to get a report to claim money back for repairs as I don't know who else to go to and need this cwboy builder to pay for his bad work.
Last year we had our house extended and the whole house re- rendered with Parex coating. After a few months small pieces of the render are falling out on one part of the new extension. The render company are blaming poor quality building blocks. The block suppliers say it was bad preparation. Who can I go to for independant advice please?
He carried out a home extension for me, and areas of obvious substandard workmanship became apparent. This man blamed everyone else, but himself. I found out from some of his previous customers near me that he has done this before. I employed the services of CiPHE for a professional opinion on his work, but as he would not accept ANY liability, we went to Court. He did not finish the work and had been juggling too many jobs. I needed bailiffs to recover my compensation, he tried it on with them too, no assets etc. but they told me they were used to his sort, and they got me my money. He now has a CCJ.
Whilst going to Court is daunting if you do it properly, its easy. Follow strict procedures, give the builder lots of rope to hang himself and the rest is easy, although time consuming. It is well worth it, to wipe the smugness from their face. There is lots of advice out there online.
My advice to anyone wanting to employ a builder:
Always check with The FMB ? Is builder recognized ?
Always check if they advertise on professional builder websites ?
Do they belong to any professional trade body, if not, they are completely unaccountable.
Always check Companies House ? .. Are their details correct and up to date ?
My builders company was dissolved !
Do they show / charge VAT ?
Always check Registry Trust, online CCJ register, for a few pounds you can check on their past. They cannot hide this, and it may save you thousands and years of heartache.
Existing regulations protect the cowboy builder. When customers who have been ripped off name these cowboy builders, to warn other people, they are taking a risk of possible repercussions and threats as highlighted by the posts from 'a' and Walter. So I very much doubt that posts on here are made up.
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