Failed & mismanaged Extension

Furts

teneighty wrote: »

I do not understand what this means but just because you do not have a formal contract does not mean a contractual relationship does not exist.

The "architect" may not be a registered architect and may not belong to any professional institution but he still has a duty of care to perform his duties in a diligent and competent manner.

Likewise the builder has a duty of care.

Rather than naming and shaming you would be better off pursuing a legal claim against the pair and certainly complaining to Trading Standards.

I take Furts point that it is better to avoid these cowboys in the first place but once you have been sucked in the only way they can be stopped is if people take them to task.

But the reality of taking them to task is wasted effort. These people have done all this before, and many times as OP knows. Such people will continue to do so, and will be so savvy at playing the system meaning ordinary consumers have no ability to rein these folks in.

OP would be far better saying charity begins at home. Spend time and effort on all the issues which exist, rectify what has to be done, fund what is required, establish guarantees and Buildings Regulations and so on.

Taking the moral high ground now is loosing sight of immediate concerns, and risking an immediate need to retain stress levels and sanity.

Then be blunt - all the previous conned consumers must have adopted this type of approach because OP heard no warnings on the grapevine, and because the cowboys are still around.

teneighty

As I read the OP's original post they are still in the eye of the storm with outstanding invoices, defective work and materials going missing.

Unless they take stock of their current position and take a stand the designer and contractor will likely just continue to rip them off until they feel they have extracted the maximum amount of money. Then like the true fraudsters that they are they will just move on to their next victim.

Furts

teneighty wrote: »

As I read the OP's original post they are still in the eye of the storm with outstanding invoices, defective work and materials going missing.

Unless they take stock of their current position and take a stand the designer and contractor will likely just continue to rip them off until they feel they have extracted the maximum amount of money. Then like the true fraudsters that they are they will just move on to their next victim.

Whilst I agree my approach is different. I have been involved in an identical scenario, working discreetly to help. Here work was encouraged and sweet talked out of the cowboy's labour, and other items, until the cowboy vanished because they could see no more money was going to be milked from the job. However those few weeks of savvy counter action had an enormous positive effect on the outcome.

In addition I have many experiences of working for contractors people would, rightly, deem cowboy characters.

You know, I know and OP knows the cowboys should not be working on the scheme. They should be kicked off and a Plan B implemented. But kicking them off is what the cowboys want, because they will have set a point where they feel they have maximised what they are likely to get out of the job. Only OP knows at what point the kicking off has to occur. But if OP waits for the cowboys to dictate, or decide, this date then that is yet another sign of weakness.

It is brutal, but OP has to man up, and decide how this should be moved forward. Fight fire with fire, or else more burning will occur - and it will not be the cowboys who are burnt. A tip is to get someone savvy, and professional on their side to sort out exactly what has happened. Then establish the least costly route forward. But be under no illusions - matters will never be wonderful.