Bathstore bathroom needs repair

sp2021

Hi, I’d be grateful for any advice and experience regarding this problem. I had a complete bathroom installation  by Bathstore with a completion date of end of January/ start February 2019. I discovered 2 things today; it has developed a leak and my living room ceiling and wall underneath the bathroom are both feeling wet with some mould behind the pictures that were hanging on the wall. The other thing is discovered is that Bathstore have gone into administration . Given that I was sold a bathroom with a lifetime guarantee a few months before they went into administration I’m seeing if anyone has been able to reclaim costs of repairs. I paid the deposit and the remainder with Hitachi finance through bathstore. Thank you for your advice .

pinkshoes

Have you had a look at the pipes to establish if you can find a leak yet? If not, do this first as it might just be a simple connection issue.

 After a year, it will be up to you to prove it wasn’t inherently faulty.

Aylesbury_Duck

Two years, isn't it?

sp2021

It is 2 years now. I haven’t checked the pipes yet. The entire bathroom, from ceiling to the floorboards and floor tiling are all from bathstore. I’m enquiring about experiences with repairs etc as I suspect there’s hidden water damage. There’s no visible leak with water damage, so I suspect that when the bath panel comes off I’ll find the water damage is there. Thanks

Aylesbury_Duck

Until the cause of the leak is established, it's a bit early to be thinking about the warranty. The good news is that the finance company are jointly liable with bathstore if the problem is related to their poor workmanship or a failed component. 

It could be a leak in a pre-existing pipe or join that's nothing to do with bathstore.  I suggest you get a plumber out to investigate and diagnose the cause, then take it from there.

eddddy

sp2021 said:

The other thing is discovered is that Bathstore have gone into administration . Given that I was sold a bathroom with a lifetime guarantee a few months before they went into administration I’m seeing if anyone has been able to reclaim costs of repairs. I paid the deposit and the remainder with Hitachi finance through bathstore. Thank you for your advice .

So a guarantee was included as part of your purchase. Do the terms of the guarantee say that Bathstore should repair the problem that's arisen?

Homebase bought the assets of Bathstore - but didn't take over any of their liabilities, including Bathstore's warranty/guarantee responsibilities. So Homebase won't help.

But if Bathstore isn't providing the repairs that that it's guarantee said it would, that's a breach of contract. So, as the credit provider, Hitachi Finance might be jointly liable under section 75.


Alternatively, you could try the argument that the bathroom installation service wasn't carried out with reasonable care and skill - which would also be an implied breach of contract. So again Hitachi Finance might be jointly liable under section 75.

Either way, I suspect you'll need to gather a lot of evidence - including an expert's report.

Al_Ross

A colleague of mine had Bathstore fit him a new bathroom, and twice it has caused damage and leaks downstairs, first the aqua panels failed then the shower waste wasn't properly attached. He did get them back okay, that was when they were still trading.

It is most likely due to poor workmanship.

sp2021

Thank you for your replies, yes I’ll get a plumber out to have a look. I think I got in a panic mainly because I only found out about the administration issue today, somehow I never saw that in the news and the stores are still open, albeit under Homebase, also didn’t get anything from Bathstore itself. Do you know if Hitachi Finance are still liable if the payment; it was an 18 month payment plan which is now finished. Thanks

eddddy

sp2021 said:

Do you know if Hitachi Finance are still liable if the payment; it was an 18 month payment plan which is now finished. 

You have up to 6 years to make a claim for breach of contract (in England/Wales), which includes a section 75 claim. It doesn't matter that you've paid off the credit.