Small Claims Court guide

doowkcol

Afternoon!
I was reading through the comments on here because i myself may soon have to take a business to small claims court, and i thought id flesh out what has happened and stand before the jury of the public to see what you guys think and to gauge if i am peeing into the wind.. 

So, im a self employed Automation engineer, i install, service and repair electric gates. As part of my job i have to source gates, wooden and steel from others to allow me to do my job.Since beginning my business i have been using one supplier for my wooden gates. i am a big believer in right man for right job.. What i mean by that is:- I am an automation engineer, i automate.. I dont build wooden gates, and would not try. So because of this i always use professionals for these services Carpenters/Fabricators etc. 
Ive had about 6 sets of wooden driveway gates from the same supplier, there has been issues in the past (wrong sizes by 10-20mm/paint finish ruined by wrapping in bubble wrap whilst still wet) but i have corrected them myself, whilst informing the manufacturer mainly to keep the water clear for future business. 
Just over a year ago the gate builder supplied me with a pair of expensive hardwood  driveway gates (£2000) i installed them and up too a couple of months ago all seemed ok.. But i got a call from my client, the one whom i had supplied and installed the gates for informing me that the gates had dropped somewhat and were looking tatty. Wooden gates dropping over time is not unusual, and i agreed to go round and make adjustments.. No problem. Well i attended and met the client, on looking upon the gate i was dumbstruck.. Its not only dropped but has really shrunk. The joints have all opened up, enough that i can get my finger in them, the support rails have all gone like bananas and the gates have dropped to such an extent that the whole gate on each side has changed shape. not something i can fix.
Being an automation engineer i see old gates often when repairing automation or servicing, most good quality gates should last a min 4/5 years in a reasonable condition and i often see them last well over a decade. 
So to see a gate i installed just over a year looking like it was 10 years old was shocking and embarrassing to say the least.. I told my client that its not acceptable and that this is my problem to deal with and it will be corrected one way or another. 
So..
I took lots of pictures of the gate, videos, measurements and emailed them to the gate builder asking what could be done and if they could remake the gates because they are coming apart and looking terrible.. The first response was basically No, they offered to send me a tube of sealant to fill the gaps. Obviously this is no good. I understand that wood is natural and moves about.. But this is not natural movement, im convinced the wood was wet when the gate was built which has them caused it to really shrink to the point that its integrity is compromised. Knowing that a gate like this reasonably should have a longer life than just over a year, its not something that should need to be replaced for a decade at least really. So i moved to ask the supplier for a refund because i was going to have to get another pair made at my own cost.. i have a duty to my client and i will fulfill it. 

So i asked the builder for a refund because they had already refused to remake them, They agreed in writing that they had heavily shrunk but basically tried to absolve themselves of responsibility. 
Now i am having another pair made, i have paid for them and i expect a refund for the value of the gate from the original supplier. They have dug in their heels and are refusing, now claiming that i have not given them a chance to remake or remedy.. I have obviously gone back to them and reminded them that my first request was to have them remade and due to their initial refusal i have had no choice but to go ahead and have another pair made. 
My main interest here is that of my client and my reputation.. I dont do crap work nor do i dodge the responsibilities i have and in all fairness to my client i would expect the gates to last in reasonable condition for certainly more than a year and would never try make it my clients problem. 
As it stands right now i have in writing their refusal to remake, their acceptance of the failure, their refusal of refund. They did offer a 50% refund but im not prepared to accept anything less than full, even with the full refund i will still lose money and time and need to limit the damage of this as much as possible. It seems at the moment that we may be heading towards small claims. Its not a course of action i want, id rather just sort it out direct but feel im running out of options. I have warned the builder that i will apply costs for removal/refitting/return or disposal of their gates in a hope that they will acquiesce to my demands and return the money, but i think it will get to court Im still hoping sabre rattling will get us to a solution before anything drastic has to happen. 

What do you guys think of this? Am i being unreasonable? 
P.s
i asked the new gate maker if he thought i was wrong.. He said that he expects his gates to last 10 years and that my expecting 4/5 years was actually well under what they should be. 

what do you guys think?

cariad7

Can someone help please? 

• We moved into a house sept. We started on our renovations.  We contacted a roofer to replace the fibreglass roof on the extension. He asked for half the money up front for materials and the rest on completion. Well he didn't even start. We kept ringing or messaging him every few days to be a different reason why he couldn't come. Then the storms hit the uk and we found water coming the ceiling onto freshly plastered walls upstairs, had bowls catching water in the newly installed upstairs toilet, we rang him again and told him he would have to pay for damages if this continues, so he turned up and put a plastic sheeting over the roof nailed it down. Anyway this has been going on since then. It is now June. He keeps saying he will be up tomorrow with the money then doesn't turn up.  In the end we had to get another roofer to do the job, it was done in one day. but we are out of pocket. As had to pay the second roofer but the 1st one has not returned any money.  So after a long essay.
• Where do we stand? Have we got a claim against him.   We have no idea where to start or which way to turn, luckily for us on the day I handed the money over my wife hastily scribbled a note saying how much it was  and what it was for etc and got him to sign it and the electrician in the house witnessed it. I know now in hindsight it was stupid but didnt think at the time and handed it over but as we are on pensions we cant afford to leave it go.

DoaM

Do you have an address for him to which you can send a Letter Before Claim, and subsequently a court claim? (You need a serviceable address).

In what capacity did you engage him? (Limited company? Sole trader?)

cariad7

Thank you for replying. We have managed to get his address this week. I am unsure what he is to be honest.  Hi cards and vans display his company name but there is nothing to be found at company house. What makes this all the worse is the fact that  I handed it over willingly as he was so convincing. What is a letter before claim- we are totally clueless? TIA

DoaM

There's Google for questions like that - where you'll also find example templates.

Doc_N

Just a thought. Probably a longshot, but do you happen to have legal expenses insurance included with your house insurance?

Cover varies from company to company, but taking court action isn’t the most straightforward of processes unless you’re confident in what you’re doing, and obviously if you have insurance it’s best to use it.

There’s also the warning that even a judgment against an individual or company certainly doesn’t guarantee you’ll get the money.

DoaM

A good point well made. An LBC costs nothing though (other than a first class stamp), and sometimes that's enough to prod the other party into action.

AndyQAZSE

 I have a contract with a builder that contains a payment schedule - can I make a claim to recover a single payment that has been made and the work delivered without it affecting my ability to make a another claim on the same contract?

AndyQAZSE

If I a make a small claim against a builder to formally make them bankrupt, can I then make a much larger full claim in the county court following a criminal prosecution (for Unlawful Trading - knowingly trading when insolvent without any prospect of coming out of insolvency) against the directors of the builders?

777236

I have a current dispute with the owner of a car wash, where my car was damaged during a wash. Communications have now got to the stage of deadlock and I've sent a letter before action. Which of the ombudsman services would apply to this situation?