Trading Standards Poor Workmanship

Undertaking home improvement work requires a level of expertise and experience that few of us possess. As a result, we usually entrust the job to professionals, often paying them handsomely to do the job on our behalf. Most of the time, tradespeople are honest, trustworthy, and experts in their field, and complete the job to a high standard within a reasonable time frame. Sometimes, though, the individuals we choose sadly turn out to be so-called ‘cowboy builders’.  Their work might be substandard or even dangerous, or they might go AWOL, leaving the job unfished.

According to Trading Standards, poor workmanship is unacceptable. Sometimes, they may agree to take legal action against the builder.

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back. We have a lot of enquiries in this area that cannot procced as basic details are not available at the time of the call. 

When will Trading Standards prosecute Poor Workmanship?

Trading Standards are entrusted by the government to protect consumers against unfair trading. Examples of the types of punishment they have the power to request include imprisonment, fines and director disqualification.

Trading Standards take a dim view of rogue traders who defraud homeowners. Whether or not they will agree to pursue your cowboy builder depends on several factors, including the seriousness of the matter, the number of homeowners affected, and the department’s resources.

Examples of situations in which Trading Standards have intervened on behalf of homeowners who have fallen victim to cowboy builders include the following:

• When a builder conned his clients by fabricating references, issuing false invoices, and leaving jobs unfinished, he was prosecuted for his fraudulent and deceptive practices. He was found guilty and sentenced to four years imprisonment. He was also disqualified from being a company director for a number of years.
• When a builder took large deposits from homeowners, left jobs unfinished, carried out works to a poor standard and demanded additional money, he was sentenced to prison and given a Criminal Behavioural Order.
• When a builder took money upfront from homeowners for work he either didn’t start or left unfinished, he was ordered to pay sums in excess of £200,000, and banned from running a business for ten years.
• When a builder’s shoddy work left a pensioner with an unsafe roof and another homeowner with a chimney that posed a fire risk, he was sentenced to 6 months in prison.

When is it appropriate to contact Trading Standards about Poor Workmanship?

It is important to understand that Trading Standards cannot obtain recompense for individual consumers. Instead, they may take action against a builder who employs illegal business practices, often when those practices are deliberate, widespread and reckless. Trading Standards cannot obtain damages for you, so you will not be automatically compensated for any losses you have sustained. However, Trading Standards may ask the Court to order the builder to pay compensation to the victims.

Trading Standards are not obliged to take action against rogue builders. Any action they do take must be in the public interest, and there must be enough evidence to support a realistic prospect of success. Further, Trading Standards investigations can take many years to complete. So, if you require a quick, decisive resolution to the issue, you may need to consider alternative courses of action.

What are the alternatives to contacting Trading Standards about Poor Workmanship?

A homeowner has a number of options when dealing with a builder’s poor workmanship. In appropriate cases, litigation is an obvious possibility. If successful, you will be entitled to damages to compensate you for any losses you have suffered as a result of the builder’s actions.

However, there are many alternatives to litigation that are usually cheaper and less stressful than Court proceedings. For example, many building disputes are resolved through a process known as mediation. Mediation involves an impartial third party, known as the mediator, helping the parties to reach a mutually acceptable settlement. Mediations are confidential, so anything said during the process cannot be referred to in subsequent litigation. This facilitates open and frank discussion between the parties and often results in a positive outcome.

How can we help?

Contacting Trading Standards about poor workmanship or taking any other legal action against your builder can be a long and complex process. Our expert building dispute resolution solicitors have extensive experience assisting homeowners to achieve favourable outcomes.  They are expert negotiators and can often resolve issues through constructive dialogue with the builder or their legal representative without the need for formal legal action.

Our building disputes resolution team will review the circumstances of your matter and advise on the route most likely to achieve your aims in the quickest and most cost-effective way. They will guide you through the relevant process, providing clear, concise and practical advice throughout.  They are approachable, supportive and efficient, and will be on hand to answer any queries you may have swiftly and comprehensively.

 

We can offer initial fixed fee advice in this area but to aid homeowners with disputes on their home build projects.  We have provided a Disputes with builder page to assist you with the information you will need to gather and consider before contacting us. Where clients are looking for one off initial guidance to understand what steps to take  in relation to a dispute or if taking a dispute forwards is the correct step, we usually recommend a fixed fee consultation in the first instance. Residential Building Disputes are often expensive and may not always achieve the result you require.  The fixed fee allows you to understand how complex a dispute you may have, and the potential costs of any future legal action, as well as what steps you may be able to undertake yourself, before you commit yourself to any additional legal costs or actions. 

 

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back. We have a lot of enquiries in this area that cannot procced as basic details are not available at the time of the call.