Could I take rogue trader to court?

Orca1995

Nearly two years ago my son had some flooring done throughout his first flat. The standard of work was horrendous and he'd put a ton and a half of levelling compound on the bedroom floor (third storey of a victorian terrace) trying to level it. An independent assessor said it was the worst job he'd ever seen and that the whole lot had to come out. Flooring installer said he'd declare himself bankrupt if my son took him to court. Long story short, my son ended up £25k out of pocket and had a breakdown due to the stress of it all, ended up on anti-depressants for over a year. However, we gave him the money to have the initial job done (10k) so, although he wrote the cheques, I can show that we transferred the money to him prior to this. As, in essence, we paid for the work, can I take him to court instead of my son?

Ayr_Rage

Pretty sure the answer is no as it was not you that had the contract with the installer, you just gifted the funds to your son.

I'm no legal expert, but I am sure one will be along later.

marcia_

Orca1995 said:

Nearly two years ago my son had some flooring done throughout his first flat. The standard of work was horrendous and he'd put a ton and a half of levelling compound on the bedroom floor (third storey of a victorian terrace) trying to level it. An independent assessor said it was the worst job he'd ever seen and that the whole lot had to come out. Flooring installer said he'd declare himself bankrupt if my son took him to court. Long story short, my son ended up £25k out of pocket and had a breakdown due to the stress of it all, ended up on anti-depressants for over a year. However, we gave him the money to have the initial job done (10k) so, although he wrote the cheques, I can show that we transferred the money to him prior to this. As, in essence, we paid for the work, can I take him to court instead of my son?

 His claim to make himself bankrupt if your son sues him will apply to anyone who sues him if he's that way inclined.

 I would support your son in making a claim because it's him who ordered and paid for the work despite getting the cash from you. 

Section62

Orca1995 said:

Nearly two years ago my son had some flooring done throughout his first flat. The standard of work was horrendous and he'd put a ton and a half of levelling compound on the bedroom floor (third storey of a victorian terrace) trying to level it. An independent assessor said it was the worst job he'd ever seen and that the whole lot had to come out. Flooring installer said he'd declare himself bankrupt if my son took him to court. Long story short, my son ended up £25k out of pocket and had a breakdown due to the stress of it all, ended up on anti-depressants for over a year. However, we gave him the money to have the initial job done (10k) so, although he wrote the cheques, I can show that we transferred the money to him prior to this. As, in essence, we paid for the work, can I take him to court instead of my son?

Is the floorer working as a sole trader, or as a limited company?  Do you know if he has any assets, and is he married or in a civil partnership?

Realistically the chances of you ever seeing the £10k back are fairly minimal.

I think you'd need to carefully consider your son's health (and your own) because a court claim, even a fairly straightforward money claim one, is a stressful thing to do and you won't be able to shield your son from the stress entirely.

I can understand maybe there is a desire for payback somehow, but the legal system is unpredictable, and a trader who threatens bankruptcy probably knows the legal system well enough that in going down this route you'll likely end up with it being 2-0 to him.  In your son's position I think I'd tell you not to risk any more of your money, time, and health.

TELLIT01

Whilst I understand the desire to make the guy pay, one way or another, I think you would be wasting your time and money.

MysteryMe

No, the contract with is between your son and the "tradesman" so you can't take action in your name.  

Did you son have legal protection on an insurance policy?  It sounds like you have a strong chance of winning a judgement but that does not mean you will get any money back. As long as you are prepared to swallow the costs, if this person is a sole trader then bankruptcy will affect him adversely.  His ability to get credit is affected. You may be able to put a charge on any property he owns or jointly owns. It may be viewed as throwing good money after bad but sometimes people want to do things just out of principle. It's your money, time and decision.

If it's a limited company then I would advise against taking him to court, as all he needs to do is close the company down and that's basically the end of the matter.

The online claim process (aka small claims court) is straightforward and not particularly stressful IMO.

I suspect most of the groundwork such as assessor's report / letters of complaint has already been done.  If the claim is over £25000 then you can't use the service and things become very expensive.  The fees The link below gives information on fees payable using Money Claim service.

https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money

There is nothing to stop you completing the online forms for you son to review and agree before submitting them.

If you have not already done so report to Trading Standards, there is a chance this is not an isolated incident in which case the "tradesman" moves from they did a crap job and it's a civil matter to the criminal fraudulent trader taking money through misrepresentation and lack of professional due diligence.

If he is advertising on any trader platforms obviously leave reviews but contact the platform and request he is removed providing the evidence of the assessor.