When you make a decision to have work done on your home, time is spent considering what sort of work is required, who should do it and how much you can afford to pay. These are all important decisions, which can be difficult.
We all look forward to the end result, hoping that we have made the right choices. Most of the time, we will be pleased with the job and appreciate its positive effects on our home.
There are times, however, when the work that we have paid to be carried out is below the standard that we would expect, sometimes seriously so. It takes time to save for this work to be done and a poor job can make us feel upset and anxious.
Hopefully, any problems can be quite swiftly rectified but, sadly, that is not always so. If you are not able to resolve the issues with your builder, recourse to a solicitor could be your best option.
You could be purchasing items to be fitted, such as windows or a conservatory. When doing so, your agreement is with the business that you purchase from. However, please don’t assume that the person you buy the goods from will be the same person who does the fitting. That work may be sub-contracted out. Unless you ask you may never be told. This is important. The business that you buy the items from may not be insured to fit them. If the job is below standard that business will not have insurers to pay you any compensation that you may be entitled to, which could run into thousands of pounds. Your recourse will then either be to sue the business itself or to pursue the sub-contractor. Whether or not that business has insurance to cover the actual fitting of the items is uncertain. Businesses stop trading. In those circumstances, recovering any money that you are entitled to can be difficult.
Our advice would be, when discussing this with the business you intend to purchase from, ask who will be doing the fitting. Does that person have insurance should anything go wrong with the job. Sometimes, insurance only covers damage arising out of poor fitting rather than the poor fitting itself. This information is important. It can help you to decide whether you have chosen the right business to do the job for you.
If you require our help then please use the Contact form on our website or call one of our offices using our Offices page.