Hi Steampowered, there are a few twists to this. The fitter was in constant touch with me by email prior to starting work. He couldnt wait to get his foot in the door. As at 18th I hadnt even placed my order and said something like "I'm more or less ready to place my order" So he immediately booked himself in to start on the 25th with some story about a last minute cancellation. I didnt place the order till 21st and there were delays in the delivery arriving which ultimately meant he was in my flat for 2 weeks instead of 1 before the kitchen units arrived. In those 2 weeks all they did was lay the floor tiles, and skim the ceiling and the tops of the walls that would be visible and strip just one side of the kitchen. None of the preliminary electrical or plumbing work was done and he left the side where the appliances are till the last minute. He pretended he was doing this so that I would not be left without the use of the appliances but I didnt care, progress was more important than having the use of the appliances. Furthermore, he sent his son to my home most days in those two weeks to make a presence and collect a cheque at the end of the week, while apparently he was fitting out someone else's bathroom. I did switch suppliers because the second one was going to deliver sooner than the first one. He is pretending his contract was based on me ordering the kitchen from the first supplier and now is trying to blame all the shortcomings with the wrong panels etc on the fact that I switched suppliers. The truth is he didnt specify the correct panels. As at 20th I had emailed him asking him to clarify the panels but I didnt even get a response. So that also was a contributory factor in the delay of me ordering the kitchen. I ordered the same brand but from a different supplier. It's not like I changed from say Poggenpohl to Ikea. He's trying very hard to blame outside factors. at the end of the third week he stated categorically there is a door missing and he cannot proceed. He didnt even bother to come in on Monday but the door was here all along. At that point it really hit home that he is messing me around so I asked him to take a break until the missing doors arrive. The supplier did not send the missing doors so the fitter used that as an excuse not to come back even though he has left me in the lurch like this. He could have finished the kitchen minus a missing door - that is what we had agreed on but he did 3 no shows in a row and did not come back after that. Hope that makes sense! Thank you - I've tried, there is a clause about not covering work by workmen that has gone wrong. My statement of claim is about 6 pages long - is that too long? Trading standards have not helped at all. Builder is not registered with any body as far as I'm aware. He is not VAT registered and I paid a combination of cash and cheques which he receipted.

Thank you Steampowered. With the payments at least I can prove I maintained my end of the bargain. The drivel in his emails was aimed to sidetrack me into thinking he is in a position where he can counter claim. There is a lot of drivel about his "contract" being on the basis that I would order the units from a particular supplier but in his earlier emails he says something like "I've created a plan for you so that you can order the items on line or at any outlet" but there is absolutely no mention of supplier 'a' in the estimate. Also given that he did do some of the work with the cabinets, doesnt it imply that it was acceptable to him that I ordered the items from supplier 'b' instead of supplier 'a'? My understanding is that is that if the items were materially different he should not have commenced the work. Another area where I think I can trip him up is in his letter/estimate there is a paragraph saying "We have priced for a total works therefore any aspect of works not required will be deducted from the overall estimate". My point would be can this be applied retrospectively? He is placing a lot of emphasis on the things he hasnt done. He didnt even make a start on the second side because he was pretending a door from an oven housing is missing and he could not proceed without it, thereby deliberately wasting time. He only brought this to my attention on Thursday evening saying he needs it for Monday. I chased the supplier and the door was present all the time. He didnt even turn up on Monday. When I tried to pin him down to do the agreed work for the agreed amount he did not come back because of course he was in a favourable position of having taken about 90% of the money but having performed less than 50% of the work. in that respect the staged payments were not in line with the amount of work he had actually carried out.

I doubt that he is that sophisticated and no mention was made but how would I find out if he owns other property?

Thank you for your advice. There is a lawyer in my office who is a Corporate lawyer, he keeps telling me to see a Consumer lawyer to assess my case. Is it really vital to do so? Having spoken to CAB, they say my claim would fall under the terms of Goods and Services Act. Given what you have said above, it's easier for me to work through this on a contractual basis as it is more logical/ black and white. His estimate has been deliberately written in a way to trip up the customer, eg by asking for staged payments. Is there any point is stating in my claim that this is "onerous" or whatever the word is to describe that it deliberately seeks to exploit the customer or is it too late for that? The other issue he keeps going on about is that he has (deliberately) listed ceramic tiles whereas I have bought non-ceramic tiles so he feels I owe him for that. However he hasnt even tiled the walls so why bother to mention it?!! The guy is really a nasty piece of work and there is no depth he wouldnt stoop to! He hasnt even returned my keys. He says he has posted them but they havent arrived. I'm going to add the cost of new locks to my claim. I have received hundreds of items in the post without even one being lost but amazingly his parcel was lost in the post supposedly.

Hi again, I sent a letter before action 2 weeks ago to the builder and he sent 2 nasty emails to me with a list of lies and said he would sue me for non-payment. I've never started a court action and am worried about the case being thrown out on a technicality, especially given that it is such an expensive process and the outcome isnt guaranteed. I want to make a claim against this guy on three points relating to wasting time and non-performance whilst charging me weekly, for getting the order wrong and for miscalculating the seriousness of an obstruction if indeed he even noticed it. I've paid the guy around £2,300 and am receiving quotes for about £3900 to redo and complete the work. Furthermore I purchased about £700 of panels that are useless based on his order. Will also need new items and possibly a stud wall to overcome the obstruction he missed. What he has done already is bodged. Can you please advise me as to what procedure I should follow? Having looked at Claims on line, my statement and enclosures are way too long for that method. Also do I really have to try harder to "mediate" with him given that he has gone off with so much money and will not respond to my emails? I'm finding it all a bit daunting but I believe I have a strong claim. Advice appreciated.

Thank you

Hi, i have another question. Is it true that I should leave the faulty work as it is until the case goes to court?

Thank you steampowered, I have his address and am willing to go through with the above. Bailiffs and bankruptcy petition will do it!

I'm seriously considering suing a cowboy kitchen fitter for what he has done. I dont want to put too much detail here as there is a chance he will read it, who knows. He is a cowboy and he knows it. However, I keep hearing there is no point in suing someone if he doesnt have money. If this type of fitter is charging people say £200 per day then there is money coming in. As far as I'm aware he is self employed and the name he trades under is not a limited company. I'm in no doubt whatsoever that I would win the judgement, I have reams of proof and photographic evidence. My only concern is, given how devious he is, he must have a way to hide his income. Surely we do not live in a world where a halfwitted builder can outsmart the legal system?!! How would I overcome this? Advice appreciated.

Brigadier, thank you for swiftly commenting on my comment. There are plenty of people airing their predicament and asking for advice but we never hear what happens afterwards. I'm in a very similar situation now and I want to go to court as soon as I can list all my costs in putting my problems right. I was very curious to find out the outcome of LIX's issues, whether they went to court, whether they were able to bring about any enforcements and get any money back.

Hi LIX1, you have my sympathy and I'm in a similiar situation. Please can you give us an update (or please pm me). Thanks.

No, there is no post code. Just 2 photos with "HarrowRd/Neeld Crs" written across the top of the photos. I will try google maps. I know I sound like I'm whinging but £65 is a lot to pay as I'm unemployed!

Hi Thank you for your response. I have been sent the video recording and it doesnt look good, although it could be borderline. I've stopped across the front of the road leading to the back of the building but there is double yellow where I've stopped. Could I be cheeky and ask you to have a look at the film to see if there is any hope? If so please can you send me your email address via pm? Thanks

Thanks.

Dx I'm not sure that it is a pavement. I entered a bay. In the photo it shows at such an angle that it looks like I'm on the pavement but I dont think I am. Not sure what to do! Is there a rule about what is considered to be parking as opposed to just pausing - I was there for less than 2 minutes.

Thanks postmn, no it came through from Brent Council. The charge is for £130 less the 50% discount for payment within 21 days. I've just noticed there is a sentence with a gap in it. Can this invalidate the PCN? It says: "The alleged contravention was noted by an enforcement officer from [gap] who was observing real time pictures from an approved device at the stated time." or am I clutching at straws?

Hi, I just received in the post a PCN for stopping in a bay off the road for less than 2 minutes. The video clip of the incident has been sent to me and it would be wonderful if someone could look at this and tell me if there are any grounds for contesting the penalty. I've stopped on a commercial driveway leading to the back of the buildings and a car comes out of that driveway whilst I was there yet I'm being accused of parking on a pavement. I would really appreciate a second opinion on this although I dont know how I could show you the video! Thanks in advance.

I just received a PCN recorded on a camera and was given the option to view it here: http://www.viewmypcn.co.uk

Hooray!! A&L have refunded my charges! After persisently writing and calling I finally got to speak to a really lovely lady who was sympathetic and she said she would reverse the charges and take off the default credit rating, which I didnt even know I had. The total of the refund is £275 worth of bank charges following a £5 fee which they took from my a/c which put me in the red! Their letter of confirmation came through yesterday.

Thanks for your response. No I have not had a default notice yet. Does it kick in at a certain figure? I did not even have an overdraft facility and the charges have come to £130 as at 28 July. What happens with the actual default notice? Will they freeze the charges? You are lucky you dealt with it before the Stays. According to someone I spoke to at the FOS today A&L would gladly let these charges run till January 2010 even if there is an outcome to the wretched test case tomorrow, just because they have been given leave to do so (correct terminology?) I'm letting my imagination run away with me worrying if this passed to a debt collector!

I jave unearthed my welcome pack from 2004 with t & c at the back. Let me know if you need this and I'll scan and send it in.

I wrote a while ago and asked for advice and for the last 8 weeks have been writing to A&L in the hope of convincing them to waive the charges they have set against my account, which had about 39p in it and virtually dormant. I'm about to either complain to FOS or start legal proceedings. Not decided 100% yet. Do you think I should pay the charges which are probably several hundred pounds worth by now or let them run? I feel I might be better off limiting the damage if the test case goes in favour of the banks to whatever extent. Advice would be appreciated.

I wish they would close mine. It was dormant with 21p in it until they started charging me £5 a day which I have refused to pay. How far did you go till you reached this outcome?

Thanks for this advice - my active account is with Abbey, maybe when the renaming goes through they would take the money from this a/c. If I dont react to A&L's claims how far will they go to recoup these charges?

I had a dormant and empty a/c with A&L. I realise I should have closed it down when I stopped using it but sadly didn't. Anyway, out of the blue they have charged me a £5 fee for not having input a minimum of £500 per month and this put the account into overdrawn status, even though I did not even have an overdrawing facility with them and had never been overdrawn. Thereafter of course they have charged another £5 per day and by the time I realised what was going on it had become £65. I immediately went to an A&L branch and paid in £5 to clear the initial debt but not sure what to do after this. I've changed the a/c to a straightforward current a/c instead of the high interest one that it was - they won't allow me to close the a/c. I have written to complain and as a gesture they reduced the amount by £25. If the a/c is empty and I do not co-operate how far will they go to recoup the £40 or £65? I am currently unemployed and receiving benefit - this goes into another a/c.