Rights of consumer

Aylesbury_Duck

They might, they might not.  They might consider that it was unreasonable to expect a trader to find an exact colour match to old slabs.  Do the slabs match in other respects, i.e. type of stone, dimensions?

Anyway, as I said above, I don't think focusing on the colour is sensible.  Of much more importance is the professionalism of the way the slabs have been laid.

Dewdrops1420

Aylesbury_Duck said:

They might, they might not.  They might consider that it was unreasonable to expect a trader to find an exact colour match to old slabs.  Do the slabs match in other respects, i.e. type of stone, dimensions?

Anyway, as I said above, I don't think focusing on the colour is sensible.  Of much more importance is the professionalism of the way the slabs have been laid.

The slabs match in dimension but in one place it’s laid slightly higher and alignment is not correct.
Someone here said unless we have proof about the draining system in slabs we can’t claim that? So we thought since we have matching slabs written by the landscaper we will focus on that.
Also how will we know about the draining system in patio as we are not the professionals?
We can just ask for patio work so obviously there won’t be any proof written.

Aylesbury_Duck

That's where your report from the second landscaper is important.  Assuming he's competent, he will be able to assess exactly what's wrong (if anything), why it's wrong, and what it will cost to correct.

oldernonethewiser

As I posted earlier it may well come down to what exactly was agreed. 

You wanted a patio, you got a patio. 

The landscaper might argue that the slabs are as close a match as possible. They might also argue that the pooling of water is not an issue as there is no water affecting the building.  

You might be successful in getting some money back but possibly not 

I doubt whatever you do will affect the ability of the original landscaper to carry out work for other people. 

Dewdrops1420

In short, this case will favour landscaper even if we are suffering due to their poor work?

Aylesbury_Duck

No one knows the answer to that.

born_again

Dewdrops1420 said:

TELLIT01 said:

Slabs will not change colour in a few days, but the old slabs do look very dirty.  Pressure washing may reduce the difference in colour, but trying to match new with old is extremely difficult as slabs will fade over a number of years.

We did jet wash and found that the colour is indeed different and our old slabs were laid down in June 2021, so not many years have passed to fade the colour.
Also we have proof that landscaper said, ‘ Matching slabs’ will be laid.

so will the court not accept that?

2 year old slabs will be impossible to match to new. Given the weathering & growth that nature provides on them, even after jet washing.

Pooling is a different matter & it looks like the gullies round the edge need cleaning out, as they look really solid.

Given the hosepipe seen, is that how you have checked for pooling, or is it from normal rain fall?
As hosing will cause more pooling due to the amount of water & the time to drain away.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Dewdrops1420 said:

In short, this case will favour landscaper even if we are suffering due to their poor work?

In short no.

In a bit longer, as before have the work inspected, if faults are present what was agreed is academic, it has to be done correctly. 

I would ignore the issue of the different colours if you discover more pressing issues as it may well be you agreed to them reusing old slabs.

OP you say they are an LTD, did you check the filing history to see how many assets they have and check the history of the directors to see how many companies they have been associated with in the past?

You didn't mention what the patio was laid on? As in what ground work did they do before laying the slabs?  

Dewdrops1420

The company had not filed for the last two years since its incorporation in July 2021 and it has two directors -father son duo who did the work. Just one company. 

They put membrane before the slabs, rest I don’t know as we were busy with office work.Just trusted them 😔

SpudGunPaul

Dewdrops1420 said:

The company had not filed for the last two years since its incorporation in July 2021 and it has two directors -father son duo who did the work. Just one company. 

They put membrane before the slabs, rest I don’t know as we were busy with office work.Just trusted them 😔

They'll probably fold that business and start a new one once you file a claim. 

No point in laying a membrane under the slabs if theres a correct sub base.