Chimney Liner Disaster

JakeNorris

Hello everyone. I'm new on here.
I wanted to have an open fire reinstated in my flat. This involved opening up the chimney and lining the chimney. I got a local company to quote and ended up going ahead. The fire was knocked out fine but on day two the liner fitting went wrong. They got the 8" liner most of the way down then couldn't get it past a turn. They said it would be debris blocking the liner from passsing. They swept the chimney beforehand with no issues. They broke into the chimney but too high up. You could see the liner but they couldn't move it and were unwilling to remove any more of the breast. They eventually said it's stuck and cut the top off at the chimney top saying nothing more we can do. In fitting the liner they knocked off part of the chimney and damaged the roof and concrete below :eek:. I paid £507 deposit and £500 to the scaffolder. They repaired the roof and chimney with a lot of messing about and chasing by me. I have now been invoiced a further £877. I have found another company who say they shouldn't have given up and it would be possible to complete the job. Do you think I should be paying any more money to them? Thank you

silverwhistle

No.. What would you be paying for? Their incompetence?

They should have put a coring ball down or done a camera inspection, the latter in particular after the liner got stuck to ascertain the exact spot. Are you sure it was an 8" liner as 6" is more normal (5" acceptable for very small stoves).

Wander along to the wood burning section on the green living forum where people with experience will be able to comment further.

Sarastro

You don't say how much the quote was for, but I guess less than invoiced. The quote and your acceptance of it make the contract. So I don't think you have to pay more than the quoted amount for the work as that was your agreement. The fact it was more expensive for them to do is their problem, not yours.

footyguy

JakeNorris wrote: »

Hello everyone. I'm new on here.
I wanted to have an open fire reinstated in my flat. This involved opening up the chimney and lining the chimney. I got a local company to quote and ended up going ahead. The fire was knocked out fine but on day two the liner fitting went wrong. They got the 8" liner most of the way down then couldn't get it past a turn. They said it would be debris blocking the liner from passsing. They swept the chimney beforehand with no issues. They broke into the chimney but too high up. You could see the liner but they couldn't move it and were unwilling to remove any more of the breast. They eventually said it's stuck and cut the top off at the chimney top saying nothing more we can do. In fitting the liner they knocked off part of the chimney and damaged the roof and concrete below :eek:. I paid £507 deposit and £500 to the scaffolder. They repaired the roof and chimney with a lot of messing about and chasing by me. I have now been invoiced a further £877. I have found another company who say they shouldn't have given up and it would be possible to complete the job. Do you think I should be paying any more money to them? Thank you

I think you should seek independent leagl advice.

No one is permitted to provide legal advice here, and IANAL.

However, there are perhaps a couple of aspects here which you may wish to discuss with a lawyer.

On the one hand, you entered into a contract which included opening up a chimney and lining it. In the normal course of events you would be liable to pay for that in line with the terms of the contract agreed.
On the other hand, the work was not completed as described.

It may be that as the original contractor is unable to complete the work they entered into to undertake, you can get another contractor to do that and bill the original contractor for any extra money you then have to pay.
It appears you have already found an alternative contractor who can complete the work as required, so it's not impossible.

JakeNorris

Thanks everyone. Yes it was an 8" liner as I want an open fire. The original quote was for £1615 plus £500 scaffolding paid to a different company but arranged by the contractor. He has knocked money off the bill to account for the parts not used but other than that it's the full bill. If he had used a coring ball or camera the job could have probably been completed. I was going to say the £507 was to cover the skip, lintel and labour for knocking out the fireplace but that was all I'm willing to pay. Do you think that's okay? I'd rather have a clean break and pay for the next contractor rather than claiming any costs back from the first company.

Richmc

JakeNorris wrote: »

Thanks everyone. Yes it was an 8" liner as I want an open fire. The original quote was for £1615 plus £500 scaffolding paid to a different company but arranged by the contractor. He has knocked money off the bill to account for the parts not used but other than that it's the full bill. If he had used a coring ball or camera the job could have probably been completed. I was going to say the £507 was to cover the skip, lintel and labour for knocking out the fireplace but that was all I'm willing to pay. Do you think that's okay? I'd rather have a clean break and pay for the next contractor rather than claiming any costs back from the first company.

Tell them they are getting nothing more and you will be using the small claims court to get back what you have paid as they have not fulfilled their contract, anything else would just be rolling over.
if they arranged for the skip and scaffold then the contract is between them and the sub contractor, all you did was pay for this part of the service in advance. Your contract is with them any other contracts are between them and their suppliers.