Cowboy builder?

Doozergirl wrote: »

It's not a new build, it's a loft conversion. New build warranties are for new build houses. If you want a long term insurance backed guarantee for building work, you need to ask the builder for one and pay for it. They're not cheap and will not be included as a standard product.

I would think that results of your mediation through the FMB would be taken seriously by a court if you were to file a claim with them. You've done the right thing so far.

Perhaps you need the same sort of report for your loft conversion?

no, its an extension, please don't pay too much notice to the nice folks opinions on here, I had a similar episode last year and came here seeking advice and most of it was a load of old bull! if I had listened to the people on here I would have wasted a fortune in time and effort as well as a good few quid. As it happens I decided to ignore them and take my builder to court and he stumped up 11k for the repairs a few months back after I got a ccj against him. If he hasn't followed the plans supplied then the work isn't as described and by the sounds of it of a reasonable quality. you have done the correct thing using mediation but if he isn't playing ball send him a letter before action stating that your next action will be court proceedings, I am assuming you have some paperwork to back up what you have paid him and when? and a written quotation? If there is a survey needed the court will ask for a surveyor to be appointed. You need to decide if he has assets worth chasing before beginning legal action and a land registry search will cost a couple of quid and tell you if he owns the property. As for hiding behind a door and ignoring the bailiffs the next option is a charging order against his house or you can force bankruptcy against him. There is loads of information on the internet from government sites which we followed. If he did not provide you with a quotation stating his terms and conditions he has already broken the law and it is automatically assumed that in law that you have a 6 year guarantee unless stated otherwise on his Terms and conditions , and yes it is very important to use engineering bricks below the Damp proof to stop damp from penetrating!. Please feel free to PM me as I have just been through this and I'm happy to offer any help based on what we found out and did (facts not opinions) , however I am not prepared to spend a day or two on here publically arguing with the "opinions" of people who think they know what they are on about but really have no clue! ( as I found out when I successfully took my builder to court) :-)

kaya wrote: »

no, its an extension, please don't pay too much notice to the nice folks opinions on here, I had a similar episode last year and came here seeking advice and most of it was a load of old bull! if I had listened to the people on here I would have wasted a fortune in time and effort as well as a good few quid. As it happens I decided to ignore them and take my builder to court and he stumped up 11k for the repairs a few months back after I got a ccj against him. If he hasn't followed the plans supplied then the work isn't as described and by the sounds of it of a reasonable quality. you have done the correct thing using mediation but if he isn't playing ball send him a letter before action stating that your next action will be court proceedings, I am assuming you have some paperwork to back up what you have paid him and when? and a written quotation? If there is a survey needed the court will ask for a surveyor to be appointed. You need to decide if he has assets worth chasing before beginning legal action and a land registry search will cost a couple of quid and tell you if he owns the property. As for hiding behind a door and ignoring the bailiffs the next option is a charging order against his house or you can force bankruptcy against him. There is loads of information on the internet from government sites which we followed. If he did not provide you with a quotation stating his terms and conditions he has already broken the law and it is automatically assumed that in law that you have a 6 year guarantee unless stated otherwise on his Terms and conditions , and yes it is very important to use engineering bricks below the Damp proof to stop damp from penetrating!. Please feel free to PM me as I have just been through this and I'm happy to offer any help based on what we found out and did (facts not opinions) , however I am not prepared to spend a day or two on here publically arguing with the "opinions" of people who think they know what they are on about but really have no clue! ( as I found out when I successfully took my builder to court) :-)

Might be worth posting what process you went thru anyway as I'm sure it'll be useful, theres a lot of cowboy builders about.