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Cowboy Gardener :(
*Kat*
Posts: 1,829 Forumite
Long story short. I paid a company £1,200 to lay a patio in my garden. They finished the job 25 April.
Since then, I've had slabs sliding out of place and the slabs are constantly moving. He's been out 4 times to fix it (he's re-grouted). I have put it on Reddit and also had 2 landscapers come out and give me their opinion. They said it needs to be relaid as there's not enough hardcore underneath it to keep it level and that's why the slabs are moving.
He said it's totally normal and to wait a few more weeks. I messaged him on Friday because another slab fell out and asked him when he could come out to discuss my concerns. He has read my message, but not replied and has since blocked me from contacting him.
What are my next steps? He is a trusted trader on the West Lothian council website and also has great reviews. He provides customers with a 5 year guarantee.
I don't want to contact him again.
Since then, I've had slabs sliding out of place and the slabs are constantly moving. He's been out 4 times to fix it (he's re-grouted). I have put it on Reddit and also had 2 landscapers come out and give me their opinion. They said it needs to be relaid as there's not enough hardcore underneath it to keep it level and that's why the slabs are moving.
He said it's totally normal and to wait a few more weeks. I messaged him on Friday because another slab fell out and asked him when he could come out to discuss my concerns. He has read my message, but not replied and has since blocked me from contacting him.
What are my next steps? He is a trusted trader on the West Lothian council website and also has great reviews. He provides customers with a 5 year guarantee.
I don't want to contact him again.
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Comments
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Contact the council who made him a trusted trader and ask them to come and inspect the work. Does the council have a mediation service for traders they recommend?0
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These sites aren't worth the paper they are written on0
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These sites aren't worth the paper they are written on
The council trusted trader schemes should be ok. We had a problem with some bathroom fitters on the Trading Standards scheme who wanted most of the money upfront before they even started work and so we contacted Trading Standards and they ensured that we got our deposit back straight away.
OP, you need to contact Trading Standards immediately.0 -
What a pain. The guy sounds like a cowboy. Grouting / Pointing isn't designed to stop slabs moving. It sounds like he hasn't used enough harcore base, or it wasn't compacted properly before laying the paving. Did he use a sand base or cement under the slabs?
Contact the council, contact trading standards and if all else fails send him a notice that you will be taking him to the small claims court - and then do it.0 -
"He provides customers with a 5 year guarantee"
How, in writing?0 -
Yeah, 5 year guarantee in writing and on his website, flyers etc.
Here's the response from trading standards who contacted him on my behalf.He stated that he advised you there would be very slight movement with a couple of slabs for a few weeks and they must be given time to settle. I queried the foundations and he stated that due to the warm weather, there is no moisture to help the slabs to bond with the sand and cement.
It would not appear that he is willing to look at this work again but I’m unsure whether he would do so if there are still issues in another week or two. I can ask if he would agree to honour the findings of an independent report however this may need to be done at your cost initially and we unfortunately do not have details of anyone who could do this.
If the matter remains unresolved and you are looking to pursue Garden Craft Scotland for the cost of putting the work right, you would need an independent opinion, rather than that of another trader.
Please advise if you wish me to ask Andrew whether he would agree to honour the findings of a report.
Should I just go to Small claims court now? I don't know what to do.0 -
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Silver-Surfer wrote: »You'll need Citizens Advice to refer it to Trading Standards.
Oops, sorry, I mean should I go to small claims court? The email above is from trading standards0 -
Well at least people know not to use Garden Craft Scotland in the future , that`s somethingNever, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.0
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