Court threat from builder one year after he walked off the job

[Redkat]

Hi its a long story but basically i have a builder threatening court action for payment, its all a bit of a pickle and before i go in to the details is this the best place to post about it?

brief detail

got quotes
employed him
additional work added
he went AWOL for a week with no contact
I then had concerns about quality and reasonableness of price
I sent time is of the essence email as work over running
he refused to return after me asking for a more detailed breakdown of quote
i told him not to come back after he refused to return (i had to get my house finished as i had one week to move in)
He ignored an offer of payment from me
he sent debt collectors for the full amount even though issues weren't resolved
now threatening court action over a year later.

Thanks for your time

[pt2537]

Hi its a long story but basically i have a builder threatening court action for payment, its all a bit of a pickle and before i go in to the details is this the best place to post about it?

brief detail

got quotes
employed him
additional work added
he went AWOL for a week with no contact
I then had concerns about quality and reasonableness of price
I sent time is of the essence email as work over running
he refused to return after me asking for a more detailed breakdown of quote
i told him not to come back after he refused to return (i had to get my house finished as i had one week to move in)
He ignored an offer of payment from me
he sent debt collectors for the full amount even though issues weren't resolved
now threatening court action over a year later.

Thanks for your time

Hi there

What are the issues you have with the works? I ask because the builder has a duty to carry out the works, among others, with reasonable care and skill. If hes made a hash up and you end up paying more then you may have a damages counterclaim against him, plus you may be able to claim damages for distress as they are available in building disputes.

Also, what type of works did he do, did the distance selling regs apply and did he comply with them? An important point especially if he didnt as its a criminal offence potentially.

If you can give us more info, and if poss the rough value of what he is claiming we may be able to assist

[Redkat]

Hi Thanks for you reply

His initial work was good but when he came back after Christmas he was only working evenings and weekends at my house and this is when i noticed his work was of a poorer standard.

The shower cubicle he installed leaks and is badly fitted so much so that i would need to buy all the items again and get it reinstalled.
The toilet was supposed to be fitted with a flexihose but when someone else had a look as it kept blocking up it was only fitted with two halfs of a corner pipe (not sure of the plumbing term) but this basically left a half moon size hole for the waste.
He refitted floor boards which were so different in size to the originals that there is now a 25mm gap between them, when i said i wasn't happy with that he said he would only refit at extra cost to me.
He included in his quote the cost and supply of an extractor fan in the bathroom but only removed the old one.
His quote also included 'supply services to tumble dryer' and then in extras adds in £35 to drill a hole for the air pipe.
He told me i need two new ring mains but i have never received an electrical certificate for this work.
Really bad grouting on tiles in the kitchen
The shower tray was left covered in tile adhesive and i think grout and i have never been able to remove this completely.

His invoice contains items which he never completed and items which weren't even started. It also has items which have been double charged. He is now claiming he left goods at my house for works which were incomplete but i have never seen these items. he has also taken items from my property and not returned them

The initial quote was £3000 of which i paid £1500 and now he is claiming i still owe £5000k for the addition of a bathroom.

When he initially waked off the job i had two weeks left before i had to move out of my other house, at this point the house was unlivable with no working bathroom.

My main issues are:

He left the job for just over a week with no contact and i didn't know if he was coming back
When he did finally return and i asked for a more details breakdown of this quote he refused and also refused to come back to the job
I told him over text message that day, after much back and forth over my complaints and he refuting them, not to return.
He did return to my property the next morning and claimed to do more work until he saw the message.
He then sent me invoices with 12 hours to pay (9pm received deadline to pay 9am)which had so many extras added in that it was difficult to go through it all.
I wrote to him offering a payment to settle the matter which he ignored
I then received debt collection letters, and about 5 calls a day for a number of weeks, from a company he employed. (he is now claiming this was his arbitration offer) which i ignored as i was waiting on a response to my letter, which included a request for arbitration.
Now he has employed an online solicitor to whom i responded disputing the claim with evidence as to why.
He has now emailed me directly again disputing all my complaints saying he sees no reason not to pursue the full amount, and unless we come to an agreement within 14 days he will start proceedings.

i think my only option is to see if he starts proceedings against me and get all my information and evidence in order, but where do i stand?

thanks for your time, there is a huge amount and it was over a year ago but i have kept all the emails and text messages.

[pt2537]

well i think the builder is in a spot of bother. i would expect that you may have a counterclaim for the works, you could also pursue damages for distress and inconvenience too although the sums are likely to be limited, nonetheless they all mount up when added together.

Do you have any building insurance with legal cover on it? if you do then you may be able to get legal assistance to deal with this for you, if not then you really do have a choice here, you can wait til he sues, or you could take him to court for damages

[2222]

I think you should go back with a further offer to settle. You clearly owe him for the work he has done, less the cost of rectification. I would make a slightly generous offer to settle, so as to avoid the stress of a court hearing, personally.

Your offer needs to be in the form of a part 36 offer - google will provide suitable example letters.

[pt2537]

I think you should go back with a further offer to settle. You clearly owe him for the work he has done, less the cost of rectification. I would make a slightly generous offer to settle, so as to avoid the stress of a court hearing, personally.

Your offer needs to be in the form of a part 36 offer - google will provide suitable example letters.

Er im not sure at this stage id agree with you. Yes the parties should always keep open the option of settlement, but equally you shouldnt bend over backwards to accommodate a tradesman who has failed to carry out the works with reasonable care and skill

[Redkat]

I am thinking of just replying and referring him back to my original letter, from the 9th Feb 2018, which included an offer of settlement (£1660) and a request for an arbitration process.

He is saying he see's no reason not the claim for the full amount and that unless we come to an agreement within 14days he will start proceedings. However i'm not sure what agreement he thinks we will come to when he isn't willing to recognise any fault and just wants the full amount, hence the refer back to my original offer.

I have never said i wouldn't pay but i don't just want to pay for work which is unacceptable.

I will look at my house insurance and check out the offer 36 letter mentioned. If I sue him would this just be the case of a letter stating that and highlighting why and for what works?

[Redkat]

and thank you for your time replying to this, i am about to go away for a week or so and i'll update when i get back.

[2222]

I am thinking of just replying and referring him back to my original letter, from the 9th Feb 2018, which included an offer of settlement (£1660) and a request for an arbitration process.

He is saying he see's no reason not the claim for the full amount and that unless we come to an agreement within 14days he will start proceedings. However i'm not sure what agreement he thinks we will come to when he isn't willing to recognise any fault and just wants the full amount, hence the refer back to my original offer.

I have never said i wouldn't pay but i don't just want to pay for work which is unacceptable.

I will look at my house insurance and check out the offer 36 letter mentioned. If I sue him would this just be the case of a letter stating that and highlighting why and for what works?

why would you sue him? Are you saying you paid him more than the value of the work he did? I thought you have not paid him anything at all, so that makes no sense to me.

If you have not done so already, you need to work out what is a fair price for the work actually done. That is the agreed price under the original contract plus any additional agreement for the bathroom less the cost of all remedial work. You need to get the remedial work done, as I cannot see why you should live with a leaking shower or toilet that's prone to blockage. If some of the work is liveable with but below standard you can probably deduct a bit for that.

Personally, I'd then write a letter setting out all that information and offering to pay what you regard as the fair price. You might like to deduct a bit for all the annoyance and upset.

Of of course you may have done that in your original offer letter, in which case as PT says you can just sit tight.