Poor building work

tigertrio

I've had some building work done, it was almost complete, but I told the builder to fix issues before doing the final bit of work. I have photos before after and during the work.

The issues include, damaging the membrane of the house when drilling out bricks. they claim these puncture marks could have already been there (doubt it). They have attached bricks to the soffit of my house with mortar. They have used the wrong type of joining clamp thing, and installed it incorrectly. This clamp was not agreed beforehand, something else was, but upon starting the work, they found out the original approved work could not be done. They started to change the job without telling me. Only when i questioned the builder was i told, I then had a call with head office and they assured me the new product going in was ok. i told them i am not familiar with building work and took their assurances as that it was the correct solution. i never formally agreed on the phone (I did not disagree either). Nor did I agree in writing (everything had been in writing up to this point).

The builder has insisted that they they have used the correct joining clamp. They have mostly ignored the issues of damage when I raised it with them.

I have contacted the manufacturer of the joining clamp thing who has old me, in writing, that they are not correct in this situation and even if they were correct, they have been installed incorrectly.

1. The builder has invoiced with 7 days to pay - payment terms are 28 days. I'm sure this is an admin error and can be sorted. They have knocked off some money as not all jobs were completed as I apparently refused them access - I actually told them not to send the final contractor until the issues were resolved. Do I pay the invoice? Pay under duress? I'm concerned about getting my money back!

2. I know I have to offer them a repeat performance. Which I will do. If they refuse, I suspect it will be small claims (under 10K). This seems daunting! Any advice? Is my evidence good from the manufacturer? Court wait times in my area are over a year, I can't afford to be out of pocket for over a year, nor leave the building work unfinished.

3. The work is part of a warranty claim. The initial estimate was approved by the loss adjuster. The loss adjuster tried to get me to sign a full and final settlement a few months ago. I refused as I am aware things can change during building work. Now it looks like the work needs to be redone by another builder, who pays for the first builders bad work (and hopefully get back in court)? Me or the loss adjuster? Then who pays for the builder who will rectify the work?

Thanks for any help

tigertrio

Can anyone help? Thanks!

Alderbank

Apparently not in this part of the forum.

Your issue is about a proprietary type of construction material, whether it was installed correctly according to the manufacturer's instructions, whether its application or implementation meets Building Regs, etc. and is probably too technical for us in this section.

You could ask for your post to be moved to In My Home in Mortgages, Homes & Bills where a number of experienced construction specialists are known to post regularly.

 https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/in-my-home-includes-diy-moneysaving

tigertrio

I've had some bad building work done. Manufacturer of product installed has told me in writing that it's wrong product and has not been installed correctly.

Builder demanding payment otherwise debt collectors, interest etc.

I don't want the stress and hassle of this, so should I pay the builder and go to court to claim back? I need to go to court anyway to claim for some damage to my property by the builder. Court way times are over a year. I have legal cover on home insurance, who have offered advice, but have said it's my decision to pay or not.

user1977

"Wrong" product in what sense?

tigertrio

user1977 said:

"Wrong" product in what sense?

Not suitable for the type of building used in.

Aylesbury_Duck

Need more information to advise properly.

What is the product, who recommended it, who purchased it?

Tucosalamanca

Probably worth catching up on OP's other threads.

Exodi

I think a lot more detail is needed to form any sort of opinion.

What is the issue? What was the builders response when you presumably presented the manufacturers view on the matter?

How much of the final product does the issue effect? If it's only a small part of the project, then maybe another option could be to pay a reasonable and proportionate cost for the other work satisfactorily completed (without taking the mickey), at least until you argue out the issue.

Personally if it was a genuine issue, I would do everything I can to be reasonable (e.g. pay them a reasonable amount for the completed work) and give them every opportunity to fix the issue. If it goes to court, you can be seen to have been reasonable. If you pay the full bill, you will lose any leverage you have.

The builder would be in the same position, he can't just magic court enforceable action like bailiffs and interest without taking you to court and convincing a judge you have been unreasonable.

Unfortunately if social media is anything to go buy and the work was exterior, they may come along and rip up the driveway/knock down the wall/remove the cladding/etc!

tigertrio

The product is likely to cause further structural issues.

The builder recommended it, started installing it without my consent, was not on estimate, I then asked about it, and was told by builder it was fine to use. Later found out from manufacturer it's not fine to use.

Have asked for repeat performance, have been refused.

Other than manufacturer stating i's not right (install method or product for application), the installation method also possibly breaks building regs too, and goes against various British standards.

So pay or not pay? As someone has said, I don't like the idea of them coming round and dismantling the work either ala social media!