Poorly Fitted Vinyl

Al_Ross

I have just spent a lot of money on having a new kichen fitted.To finish
it off I had new vinyl fitted.We new what we wanted and spent some time till we eventually found what be both liked.It was from a local family owned store , we had never used them before but thought we had got a reasonable deal at £345.00 including fitting.

I was at work when they fitted it,they told my wife there were a coulpe of small air bubbles and they would come out after 3 weeks or to phone.

When I arrived home a short time later I checked their work.It was appaling,it looked like it had be fitted with a blunt stanley knife,not cut straight round the skirtings ,marks were hidden under a pile of off cuts,my newly fitted skirtings were scratched,the vinyl was torn where it went round a custom end panel.various air pockets some big some small,spray glue on the skirtings and half way up the custom panel and to top it off they had dirty black hand prints on the newly painted walls.

I phoned the store the first thing the following morning,the owner shouted at me and denied their was any problems and said he had met guys like me before. he refused to come out and look at the work but agreed to send his son when he got back from holiday.

His son never turned up,I had his son's mobile number and twice phoned him bu to no avail.

My local Trading standards contacted him today but he refused to speak to them and told them he would see me in court if thats what I wanted.

Trading Standards say my next step is to get an independant report on the quality of work done to have any chance of success if I wish to go further i.e to a small claims court,they suggest a retired vinyl fitter that is un biased,

I have no idea where to find this any advice,anyone had a similar problem and been to court ?

visidigi

You can get any other qualified fitter to give a view on the quality of work - this should suffice, as it shouldnt matter if the person is retired or not.

One thing though - in a single phone call it seems to have gone horriblly confrontational - were you calm and explained the problems etc, or was the guy just defesive from the outset?

Seems to have gone very confrontational for very little reason - something missing from the story?

Al_Ross

When I phoned the store he refused to listen to any complaint and said he would listen to his fitters not me.I never lost my temper although he did.As Trading Standards advised I have since sent a recorded letter listing my complaints and asked them to respond within 14 days which they didn't.

crazyguy

Looks like legal is your ownly route, get a new quote then put that in to a Small Court Claim with photos of the shoddy work, may take a few months but they should find in your favour !

lincroft1710

Also please name and shame so that any MSErs in your area can be warned about this company.

Al_Ross

Victoria Carpets,Victoria Road,Aberdeen

lindos90

I hope you get this sorted, Ive had experiences like this in the past, itrs the type of business that take your money and run, they are not interested in doing a good job, or even bothered about repeat business.
I would take photos of what you describe in your OP, so you have some clear evidence of how they left it. Marks on the floors and wall may become less apparent as time goes on. Call a larger independent carpet/vinyl fitting company, not too near the one you have a dispute with (incase they know each other or use the same fitters!). Prefrably someone who is a member of a trade federation as this is likely to have more clout than 'just another local carpet fitter' if it does go to court.

Al_Ross

Just an update,have not managed to find any carpet/vinyl fitter who is willing to report on the mess that Victoria Carpets Aberdeen left.

I phoned an idependant guy a few weeks ago and said he would but as he had just returned from his holidays he wouldn't manage for a few weeks.Phoned again tonight and he said that he had since spoken to other fitters and they told him not to get involved.

I appear to be in a catch 22 ,trading standards say small claims is a non starter without an independant report .

arcon5

Offer them a generous sum to do it.... maybe you will find one wanting a quick few quid.

You can also add this to your claim......

crazyguy

Al_Ross wrote: »

Just an update,have not managed to find any carpet/vinyl fitter who is willing to report on the mess that Victoria Carpets Aberdeen left.

I phoned an idependant guy a few weeks ago and said he would but as he had just returned from his holidays he wouldn't manage for a few weeks.Phoned again tonight and he said that he had since spoken to other fitters and they told him not to get involved.

I appear to be in a catch 22 ,trading standards say small claims is a non starter without an independant report .

If it as poorly fitted as you have said and you cannot get a report from anyone then surely photos of very poor quality workmanship should be sufficiant for a small court claim,

vax2002

You will need someone qualified to NVQ level 3 (supervisor) in impervious floor coverings to prepare a report.
Most fitters are level 1 or 2 so you need a higher qualification to expert opinion upon the work of lesser qualified fitters.
You can contact the Contract Flooring association who will provide the type or report you are looking for.
Some companies/ traders can prepare reports based upon photographic evidence, you could try
metrofloor on metrofloor@mail.com
they offer an expert witness report service on impervious floorcovering