Help, Cowboy builder!

madjay

Try to prove a person were not competent to carry out the work would be veryhard in law. It would have been down to you to check all Qualifications before thework is carried out. It is not illegal for a non competent person to carry outwork in a bathroom as long as electrics have not been touched. As Contract lawstands you employ someone to carry out the work without written agreement. Time Period cannot be fix in a contract unless an actual date for finishing is given. Delays for damaged or wrongly delivered (Not wrongly Ordered) will be taken into account. If the water has been pour out of the ceiling for four dayswhy did you not isolate the water supply? You fail to give a written notice or give a reasonable period of time for him to rectify the situation. As a Quantity Surveyor in the building trade I deal with contracts everyday and as far as I can see, you have a very weak case. Sorry it seems you jumped the gun a bit too quick

Leif

madjay wrote: »

Try to prove a person were not competent to carry out the work would be veryhard in law.

You do not need to do that. Just prove that the work was not done to a legally acceptable standard. As you suggest, the lack of regulation in the building trade means that anyone can claim to be able to do anything, apart from most electrics and some gas work.

cyclonebri1

Leif wrote: »

That is an interesting viewpoint, and it does illustrate why expert advice is needed. I must admit I would have contacted Citizens Advice before employing someone else to rectify the work, as it reduces the risk. The law is a strange beast.

Incidentally court costs are minor for the small claims court, unless the judge asks for experts to be hired to provide an assessment.

Thankyou, that was the point.

paulmapp8306

Seriously? If water is leaking from a ceiling, particularly via an electrical appliance - then ONE day is long enough for huim to rectify the fault. Its not a case of "I didnt have time to respond" - I susspect Health and safety may have a view on a suitable length of time for the fault to be fixed in this case.

If it was a fault NOT resulting in further damage (broken tap, cracked top etc) - or possible H&S issues then agreed 4 days is not long enough. In this case its more than enough time.