Damage caused by workmen

boysim34

hi there, today we had sat/aerial workmen in who are upgrading the system in the council properties where we live. they caused damage to the decoration of the walls and also managed to drill through 2 electric cables and a speaker cable, these have now been made safe by there electrician.my question is do i have to let them make right the decoration first or can i just ask for compensation for the cost of the materials and labour, thanks all

1984ReturnsForReal_2

Speak to the council.

iamcornholio

Your have the right to be compensated for your loss, this is foremost and you can insist on it. If the council offers to make good the decorations that is really an option which you can accept or decline.

And if you have £500 per roll wall paper, then that is what needs be be paid for, so don't let the council try and just give you £5 for a roll of anaglypta

WestonDave

You do have the right to be compensated but you also have a duty to mitigate your losses - so if the council can do an acceptable job of replacing like with like for £100, you can't necessarily claim £200 because you want someone else to do it who is more expensive. That being the case if you turn down the council's offer to sort it, you may end up getting less cash in hand than it would cost for someone else to do it, but if you were going to do it yourself it might be more money than just materials cost.