Hello - new joiner with classic cowboy builder problem

[Commondog]

Hello All,

I’ve just joined the community. I'm very interested in what any of you think about this problem, and really grateful for any advice. Here's the background, and some questions I have:

I employed a builder last year to renovate parts of my house, but he walked off the job with it still incomplete. He had largely been paid by this time, and it’s increasingly clear the work he has completed has been very poorly done.

He was strongly recommended by a good friend whose judgement I trusted, and because of that I’ve given the builder many opportunities to complete. A Letter Before Action had some effect, before he resumed his contradictory half-baked stories shaggy dog stories about cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy/homelessness/a dead mother etc etc. He’s now completely shameless and increasingly unpleasant.

The whole process, spun out over more than a year, has caused huge disruption and discomfort to me and distress to my family. Due to place of work changing in the Armed Forces, I’m not at my house daily and don’t want the unreliable builder back if I can't supervise him. I now need to recover costs (probably just under £10,000) an employ a new builder.

All payments were to his personal bank account (not company account) by bank transfer. The original contract with him was via personal correspondence and email/text – I do not have a specific written contract with additions for additional jobs, I do have emails/texts agreeing to the work. I do have emails explicitly confirming he is responsible for the work as well as for finishing the project.

I am compiling all payment records, correspondence, etc. I also have 3 quotations from other builders to complete the work. I also have landline/mob phone/email for builder, his address from Companies House, (his mother’s house), where he is now running another LLC listed. He has said he has bought a house elsewhere – I only know the town and not the exact address.

I now intend to confirm the original builder’s address/assets through an asset-tracking firm, file a MCOL claim and, if CCJ in favour, transfer/escalate if necessary. I will sue him personally not through his company – the limited company he operated was dissolved part-way through the project (needless to say he did not tell me at the time), but he was paid in any case to a personal account.

I have some questions at this stage, if there’s any advice on these I’d be really interested to hear:

- How can I take action against the builder so that, if he refuses to reimburse (almost certain) I have the best chance to prove his liability and win the case?

- I really regret not having full contract signed, and paperwork. Since I only have emails/texts, is this a problem or can I use these as convincing proof of the builder’s liability?

- How can I enhance as much as possible my case for suing him personally rather than through his company, and stopping him using a technicality to avoid paying?

- Are there other documents that I need to bolster my case? Eg paying for an independent surveyor’s assessment of all the defective/unfinished work.

- I believe the builder has personal assets (eg house) – can he transfer/hide his assets? And can he take other steps to avoid liability which I can pre-empt?

This whole experience has turned into a massive stress, and and increasingly serious financial burden. Many thanks for any assistance offered on this, it's greatly appreciated.

[Commondog]

Update - I have had to make a further payment to a new builder put right a botched bathroom tiling and installation (water pooling and flowing through into kitchen below).

On removing the bath it became clear that the original builder had not followed the most basic processes in the original installation - grouting/tiling/connecting up.

Doing the work to a good standard would have meant little extra effort, but the cost of not completing it is another bill of £600 for me. No satisfaction/reply from the original builder.

Is there any guidance on the best way ahead with my questions above? It would really help - many thanks for this.

[ostell]

Get your new builder to report on what needs fixing and cost and use this as the basis for a claim. Letter before claim and see what happens. Payment to his personal account therefore claim against him. Did he give you an address to use?

[Commondog]

Thanks Ostell

I've got a bill for work, and for the further work that still needs to be done. I've already sent a letter before action previously, which he has now ignored

I'm probably going to engage a credit-checking firm to trace his current home address.

I have an address where he definitely used to live (mother's house) which is also registered on Companies House for his current company.

He's said that he's moved to a new house that he owns. I want to check that he owns it and I can potentially claim against it I'm successful.

Is it a problem if I can't confirm his home current address - could the court say that because I am using his Companies House address address I need to sue him via his company?

Thanks again for any thoughts

[Guest]

I know this will not help you under the circumstances. So read this. My Grandaughter is a Manager for a Mortgage Company, when she and her husband purchased her current home she employed a builder, so from listening to horror stories from her customers. This is how she proceeded, she requested a list of jobs he had completed, checking they were not family of friends proceeded like this, she once satisfied he was competent she then drew up a contract, she divided the jobs to be done, then had him sign for each job and a cost on completion, she never paid any advance money, it follows that if a builder has not enough to finance the job he is not employable, she paid on completion of each job as finished and she was completely satisfied, it came down to the final job, he then stated he had not priced that job correctly and was going to lose money, she replied you signed a contract sorry but stick to it, needless to say, she never paid any extra money. There endeth the lesson for today

[Commondog]

Good advice Archie.2! Thanks. I managed the job quite carefully throughout (or thought that I did).

The problem came with getting work finishing at the end, and the snagging work - as also with your daughter too that looks like when problems emerge or builders start objecting.

Additionally the main problems are ones just emerging afterwards (eg failure of damp-proof course) as well as the last jobs he didn't finish.

I think another good solution is filter out bad builders before you give them the job, but that's a different problem/solution (my one came strongly recommended by a good family friend - which has been awkward).

So unfortunately I'm having to take action now - I'm looking to follow the process as effectively as possible to give myself the best chance of succeeding.