Appalling decorating job done..Am I wrong?

lallysmum

Thank you everyone. I'll try to answer as much as I can.

arcon5 wrote: »

Just another thing, keep any correspondence factual and objective, being abusive as I consider your text to be will not act in your favor.

Do you really think it was an abusive text? He said it was, but I really can't see it. Possibly because I am very emotional about it - compounded by every time I see the rooms I get upset and angry again. I admit I shouldn't have used the word *crap* but the overall tone I thought was anger, not abuse. Happy to be corrected of course, seriously. Not saying that in a sarcastic way. It'll help me in further correspondence if I know. Thank you.

lallysmum

keyser666 wrote: »

That is extremely poor workmanship.

Does he have a company? Company name? Or is he a one man band as such?

Unfortunately it is notoriously hard to get money out of cowboy builders for various reasons and I dont see this is going to be any different. Dont let it get you down though.

He does have a company name, but not registered anywhere and I think he just has himself - and a young girl he said he was being paid by the government to train.

arcon5 wrote: »

Have somebody give you a quote for remedial work then give him the opportunity to remedy it himself, if he doesn't instruct the next decorator and pursue him for remedial costs.


Dreadful workmanship by the way!!!!

I know its too late now but you should have checked it before paying
Is he sole trader or ltd?

I have had someone else round this weekend who is going to try to fit me in quickly to at least do the living room. He can't do the hall stairs and landing until Sept.
I paid the initial decorator £600 not inc paint and paper. The new one wants around £315 for the living room and around £1000 for the h, s and l. As he said, £200 of that is making good the damage that has been caused.

paddyrg wrote: »

Were there any signs after the first day that he wasn't competent? Like the dust sheets issue? Perhaps that would have been a good time to sack him before he trashed the rest of your place :-(

Exactly. I am an idiot. Hold my hands up to it. Everything else has just gone so well. I was at work the majority of the time he was here, and when not I was attempting to keep my autistic 6 year old non stressed due to the change in routine/him being unable to get anywhere. No excuses, I should have seen and said something. Or fired him. You have no idea how angry I am at myself that I didn't. And that I didn't refuse to pay him.

arcon5

lallysmum wrote: »

Thank you everyone. I'll try to answer as much as I can.




Do you really think it was an abusive text? He said it was, but I really can't see it. Possibly because I am very emotional about it - compounded by every time I see the rooms I get upset and angry again. I admit I shouldn't have used the word *crap* but the overall tone I thought was anger, not abuse. Happy to be corrected of course, seriously. Not saying that in a sarcastic way. It'll help me in further correspondence if I know. Thank you.

I do. In the sense that personal remarks have been made at him, such as 'you should be ashamed of yourself'.

It's easy to get emotional when dealing with things like this (understandably of course) but its best to take a kinda impartial view on it... Tell him what you are unhappy with, what you want doing about it and when. Be objective.


If I'm honest though I probably would have done the same. It's easier to see things as an outsider than it is through the tears. Especially when he's made such a mess of it!


If you get someone else in the get a few quotes so you can demonstrate you mitigated your losses.

keyser666

What is his "company" name and which area in the country? What was his name too?

halibut2209

Telling someone they should be ashamed is abusive??

Best get my kids out of school now. The teachers are clearly abusing the naughty children.

YoungBusinessman

The name and shame does wonders but if your seeking money back, hold off on the name and shame but threaten it. He will think the damage is done if you tell everyone how bad he is and wont see the need to pay any of the costs. That is a shocking job.

arcon5

halibut2209 wrote: »

Telling someone they should be ashamed is abusive??

Even if you don't see it as abusive, it's certainly unproductive. Ops message to the guy isn't to focus on the work undertaken - the whole context of the message is to make a personal attack about the guys work and morality over taking payment.

There is no reason for the guy to reply, especially since he's been paid.

jacques_chirac

arcon5 wrote: »

Even if you don't see it as abusive, it's certainly unproductive. Ops message to the guy isn't to focus on the work undertaken - the whole context of the message is to make a personal attack about the guys work and morality over taking payment.

There is no reason for the guy to reply, especially since he's been paid.

I can see your point, with comments such as the following I would not reply, as I would not lower myself to the OP's level of name calling:

I don't expect you to have the decency to give me my money back, not after seeing the state you left my home in. In fact I don't suppose you will even respond to this message.

There is no doubt that he left a mess, however for a first message it would have been more constructive to say no more than "I am not happy with the work you have done. If we could arrange for you to come back and we can go through the parts I would like you to remedy". Then she could have done a list for them to go through in person.