Victorian Plumbing or Labourer issue - how can we resolve this

[kerrypops]

We recently had a bathroom supplied by Victorian Plumbing.  When finished we noticed the bath leaked and flagged it with the labourer (who we employed) and he said he's noticed the bath was slightly out but didn't think it would cause issues - he never once raised that there was a possible fault.  It did - badly.  Water continuously ran off the bath and onto the floor, getting under the bath and damaging the flooring.  

 

We contacted Victorian Plumbing who said it was a manufacturer fault.  We discussed with our labourer who told us that "the tradesperson always ends up out of pocket as we lose 2 days of paid work to fix these problems".  Victorian Plumbing agreed to refund the cost of the bath but not the associated refit labour costs.  We told the plumber this and he didn't say anything about it - just that we need to let him know when we get the new bath we should let him know. 

 

We bought a bath elsewhere and it was fitted yesterday.  At the end of the day we were presented with a bill for fitting for £400.  At no point in any of our correspondence with the fitter did he say there was a cost, or indeed confirm what that cost would be.  We would have pushed Victorian Plumbing to cover this cost if he hadn't implied that he was doing unpaid work.  

 

I don't think I have a leg to stand on to now go back to Victorian Plumbing.  Who is at fault and how on earth can I resolve this without being out of pocket?

 

Thank you

[kerrypops]

We do have an email admitting it’s a manufacturer fault from VP. In the same email they said they will refund the item but not the labour (which our labourer seemed to accept). We are now a couple of months down the line and the bath was bought elsewhere. 
 

the fault is a slope of the product so water pools on the top. We sent picture and video evidence when they claimed it was a manufacturing fault. 
 

our issue is reopening this claim now the fitter has changed his mind. How do I go about this. 
 

thanks for your help so far 

[kerrypops]

It would be £400 for the additional days labour. We have already paid for the entire bathroom works to be completed, even though there was an issue. 

[kerrypops]

Yes I think so. We have paid £5000 for the bathroom fitting. The bath has been refunded and we have purchased another with that money. The outstanding invoice is £400 which, if refunded would set us to be £0 out of pocket. At the moment we haven’t paid the £400 as we are disputing it. 
 

does that help. 

[kerrypops]

From the plumber. What else should be outstanding? I’m really not sure. 

[kerrypops]

He implied that the labour was free. We’ve had numerous discussions about how he would be losing out on two days worth of pay (ended up being just one day). He only landed the bill on us after fitting it. He fit the bath originally knowing there was a fault but he said he didn’t realise the extent of the fault. 

[kerrypops]

Of the replacement. Yes that’s correct. 
 

he told us that he would be losing out on paid work to fix the problem and he didn’t discuss a price with us on the numerous contact we had with him. We told him we tried to get compensation to cover the cost of his labour from the outset and that the company refused. At no point did he tell us that we’d need to pay. Again, he knew there was a fault but didn’t raise it until we pointed it out. 

[kerrypops]

Thank you so much for the comprehensive response, very much appreciated. 

[kerrypops]

We seem to be in a bit of stale mate with VP. Because our plumber indicated he’d lose out having to refit the bath, we didn’t push it with VP. Now we’ve raised again to have the costs covered, they are now saying case closed as we accepted them saying they wouldn’t cover it. Can we still fight this? I’m frustrated our plumber wasn’t clear from the start and now we have to lose out. I’m trying to post screenshots but it won’t allow me to. 

[kerrypops]

I completely understand. What I’m asking is are we able to pursue it further if we’ve already accepted to just take the money back from VP for the bath? Can we still claim for consequential losses even though Victoria plumb think that we’ve close the case with them?

[kerrypops]

They gave us a refund for the bath and panel. They said they wouldn’t cover labour costs. After speaking with our plumber and him telling us he was losing out on pay to fix this issue, we accepted the claim as he said he wanted to keep us happy by resolving the problem and replacing the bath. We would have pursued it if he’d been clearer. We told VP that we accepted this as a final settlement, at that point not being aware of potential further consequential losses. This is where we are stuck. 

[kerrypops]

Exactly the amount of the bath. The plumber took the bath away as VP said they didn’t want it back. 

[kerrypops]

Thank you so much. 
 

not yet, we need to find the money for this as it’s a cost we weren’t expecting. 

[kerrypops]

Thank you. Will do. 

[kerrypops]

Hi. We’ve made payment to the bathroom fitters and have an email from them confirming we have paid (along with our bank statement). Please could you advise what the next step is. Thanks 

 

 

[kerrypops]

Great. I’ll get one drafted thank you. I’ll reply when I’ve managed to draft it. 

[kerrypops]

Sorry, I'm being dim here.  Should there be a template I can access to draft the letter?  

 

Thanks 

 

[kerrypops]

Apologies that this has taken so long.  I've attached my letter for you to check over.  I'll be sending the invoice and evidence of payment too as mentioned in my letter. 

I appreciate all your help with this.

Thanks 

 

NAME AND ADDRESS HERE

 

Victorian Plumbing

(address)

 

Date

 

Dear Victorian Plumbing,

 

Letter before Claim: reimbursement of out of pocket costs due to faulty item

 

Order: xxxxx

 

Further to correspondence via email, this letter serves as a formal demand for payment of £200 for additional labour costs in replacing the faulty bath sent to us by your company on 09.01.2023.

 

We purchased the bath from Victorian Plumbing on 02.01.2023.  On initial inspection the bath appeared to have no obvious faults.  Once fitted, it was evident that the bath sloped towards the edge and resulted in pooling of water.  After sending video’s and pictures to Victorian Plumbing, you advised that this was indeed a manufacturing fault and the price of the bath was refunded.  We sourced a replacement bath, however, we are out of pocket for the cost of fitting the replacement bath (1 day labour cost at £200). I have attached a copy of the invoice received and confirmation that this payment has been made (via a screenshot from our bank statement). We are seeking a full refund of this payment.

 

I refer you to the Practice Direction on pre-action conduct under the Civil Procedure Rules, and in particular to paragraphs 13-16 which set out the sanctions the court may impose if you fail to comply with the Practice Direction

 

As per my legal rights, I expect to receive a response to this complaint within 14 days, confirming that a full refund of my out of pocket expenses will be made.  Should I not receive a response to my letter within this timeframe then I anticipate that court action will be commenced with no further reference to you. 

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

XX

 

 

 

[kerrypops]

Thank you and apologies for the delay (I’ve had a lot going on and haven’t been able to focus on this). I appreciate your help. I’ll send the revised letter confirming I will take to court. 
 

many thanks 

Edited September 6, 2023 by kerrypops