A marketing tactic designed to maintain appearances

NorbieG

https://uk.trustpilot.com/reviews/6817392b924ac1babe2a8f8d

I hired Anglian Home Improvements (AHI) for a project and explicitly told the salesman that I did not want the work to be subcontracted to a third party. He assured me that AHI manages all their projects directly.

However, as the work progressed, I discovered this was not true. AHI had, in fact, outsourced the job to a third party, whose team seemed unaware of the agreed-upon work plan despite the fee charged. After multiple complaints, the project was not completed to the promised standard, leaving me disappointed with the outcome given the price I paid.

Seeking accountability, I filed a complaint and a claim for the compensation scheme with Checkatrade against their recommended trader, Anglian Home Improvements. Shortly afterwards, I was informed that AHI was no longer a member of Checkatrade. The timing of this development seemed highly suspicious!

Furthermore, it became evident that there was no genuine effort to resolve my concerns, as my complaint and claim for their compensation scheme were deliberately avoided rather than handled in a professional manner. Instead of functioning as a reliable consumer protection service, Checkatrade's process seemed more like a marketing tactic designed to maintain appearances.

Checkatrade advertises traders who pay for recognition as reputable professionals, raising concerns about their impartiality. Having hired two separate traders through Checkatrade, I now believe that their endorsements do not necessarily ensure integrity or quality service. Regrettably, my experiences showed that these traders were no more trustworthy than unaffiliated businesses that exploit customers.

Going forward, I will be far more cautious when choosing a trader. Rather than relying on Checkatrade’s recommendations, I will use their leaflet as a guide to avoid their traders instead of hiring them.

Ergates

Do you have a consumer rights question?

If not, this might be better suited to the "Praise, Vent & Warning" board:  Praise, vent & warnings — MoneySavingExpert Forum

Okell

I think your complaint is with AHI rather than with Chekatrade

born_again

NorbieG said:

https://uk.trustpilot.com/reviews/6817392b924ac1babe2a8f8d

I hired Anglian Home Improvements (AHI) for a project and explicitly told the salesman that I did not want the work to be subcontracted to a third party. He assured me that AHI manages all their projects directly.

However, as the work progressed, I discovered this was not true. AHI had, in fact, outsourced the job to a third party, whose team seemed unaware of the agreed-upon work plan despite the fee charged. After multiple complaints, the project was not completed to the promised standard, leaving me disappointed with the outcome given the price I paid.

Seeking accountability, I filed a complaint and a claim for the compensation scheme with Checkatrade against their recommended trader, Anglian Home Improvements. Shortly afterwards, I was informed that AHI was no longer a member of Checkatrade. The timing of this development seemed highly suspicious!

Furthermore, it became evident that there was no genuine effort to resolve my concerns, as my complaint and claim for their compensation scheme were deliberately avoided rather than handled in a professional manner. Instead of functioning as a reliable consumer protection service, Checkatrade's process seemed more like a marketing tactic designed to maintain appearances.

Checkatrade advertises traders who pay for recognition as reputable professionals, raising concerns about their impartiality. Having hired two separate traders through Checkatrade, I now believe that their endorsements do not necessarily ensure integrity or quality service. Regrettably, my experiences showed that these traders were no more trustworthy than unaffiliated businesses that exploit customers.

Going forward, I will be far more cautious when choosing a trader. Rather than relying on Checkatrade’s recommendations, I will use their leaflet as a guide to avoid their traders instead of hiring them.

That does not say that they have their own staff to do the work.

If you are not happy any complaints should be addressed to AHI. As that is where your contract is.

TELLIT01

AHI told the OP that they manage all their projects directly.  They did not say that all the people doing work for them are direct employees.  There is a big difference and I would suggest the terminology used is quite deliberate.  They are not providing inaccurate information.

CliveOfIndia

Checkatrade is nothing more than a modern-day Yellow Pages.  Anyone can pay to advertise there, the fact that they're listed doesn't mean anything about their standard of work.  Indeed, it could be argued that any decent tradesperson doesn't need to advertise, as they get all the work they need via word-of-mouth recommendations.

NorbieG said:

Going forward, I will be far more cautious when choosing a trader. Rather than relying on Checkatrade’s recommendations, I will use their leaflet as a guide to avoid their traders instead of hiring them.

And on that note, personal recommendation is always the best way to find a good tradesperson.  Ask your friends and neighbours if they've used someone they would recommend.  Or ask on your local community Facebook page if you have one (again, ask for recommendations from people who have actually used the person, rather than just picking someone who happens to be advertising there).

NorbieG

Okell said:

I think your complaint is with AHI rather than with Chekatrade

I've repeatedly raised complaints with AHI, and while they acknowledged them, they did nothing to resolve the issue. The manager even told me directly over the phone that he wouldn’t take any action.

Frustrated by the lack of response, I reached out to GGF and Checkatrade, both of which AHI is a member of. However, they also failed to intervene. Eventually, I was informed that they had contacted AHI and relayed my proposed resolution, but nothing further was done.

NorbieG

TELLIT01 said:

AHI told the OP that they manage all their projects directly.  They did not say that all the people doing work for them are direct employees.  There is a big difference and I would suggest the terminology used is quite deliberate.  They are not providing inaccurate information.

I told the Anglian Home Improvements salesman that I didn’t want my work subcontracted to a third party because I wanted to avoid potential issues if anything went wrong. I also mentioned that I had previously rejected another trader who admitted he would need to subcontract part of the work, as he couldn’t handle all of it himself. It was at that point that the AHI salesman assured me that Anglian Home Improvements employees would complete the work directly. He knew that I would not have given him the job had he been honest, so instead, he deliberately lied to me. 

However, when I realized the job wasn’t progressing as agreed, I asked whether the workers were AHI employees, only to be told they were actually contractors. Frustrated, I called the AHI office to complain, and the woman I spoke to informed me that the tradesman shouldn’t have told me they were contractors.

cw8825

NorbieG said:

Okell said:

I think your complaint is with AHI rather than with Chekatrade

I've repeatedly raised complaints with AHI, and while they acknowledged them, they did nothing to resolve the issue. The manager even told me directly over the phone that he wouldn’t take any action.

Frustrated by the lack of response, I reached out to GGF and Checkatrade, both of which AHI is a member of. However, they also failed to intervene. Eventually, I was informed that they had contacted AHI and relayed my proposed resolution, but nothing further was done.

What is the resolution you offered?

out of interest is there a reason for you not wanting subcontractors and would this apply to every situation or only here?

born_again

NorbieG said:

Okell said:

I think your complaint is with AHI rather than with Chekatrade

I've repeatedly raised complaints with AHI, and while they acknowledged them, they did nothing to resolve the issue. The manager even told me directly over the phone that he wouldn’t take any action.

Frustrated by the lack of response, I reached out to GGF and Checkatrade, both of which AHI is a member of. However, they also failed to intervene. Eventually, I was informed that they had contacted AHI and relayed my proposed resolution, but nothing further was done.

You are looking at taking them to court then.

NorbieG

Ergates said:

Do you have a consumer rights question?

If not, this might be better suited to the "Praise, Vent & Warning" board:  Praise, vent & warnings — MoneySavingExpert Forum

Yes, I also have a consumer rights question.  However, I was informed by Citizen Advice that I may have to take legal action because the trader is in defiant.