Potentially being taken to court. What should I do?

[Old Account]

That’s not even close to the repair costs. I would have thought about £500 and more. How comes that the engineer who got called out knew exactly where to look for? That would have been one of the needle in te hay stack one.

I’m pretty sure the previous one has caused it and blames it on you

 

[armyash]

Yorkshire dave, I will text you my email address this morning and I will call at some point this afternoon when I am free. Thank you.

 

[Last Plumber]

Without having to read through all this post again, did you see the 'drilled hole', I mean could it have been a pitted copper pipe?
If you've already said then ignore me, I have lost track a bit now.

 

[Last Plumber]

See so many where silicone used instead of screws though LP.
Now starting to think the tiler would of seen the pipes(?).

I agree with that one. It happens a lot and may well have been done here to avoid drilling pipes.

 

[armyash]

That’s not even close to the repair costs. I would have thought about £500 and more. How comes that the engineer who got called out knew exactly where to look for? That would have been one of the needle in te hay stack one.

I’m pretty sure the previous one has caused it and blames it on you

I don't know what the final costs are, just that I've been asked for £300.

 

[armyash]

Without having to read through all this post again, did you see the 'drilled hole', I mean could it have been a pitted copper pipe?
If you've already said then ignore me, I have lost track a bit now.

Only picture I have of the damage is the picture I have posted on this thread.

 

[Best]

£300 is a modest sum and often a small amount like that is a ploy to get the tradesperson to just pay up to avoid any trouble.
Interesting she said she would accept instalments as she knows you don’t have much money (in her opinion).
That’s very telling, as she assumes she is getting cash payments from you, rather than paid from your insurance.

 

[Last Plumber]

Only picture I have of the damage is the picture I have posted on this thread.

If you've not even seen the 'alleged drilled hole', then don't lose any more sleep. What are the grounds for taking you to Court?

That they allege you drilled through a pipe which came to light some months after but rather than give you the opportunity to investigate and rectify any mistake you might or might not have made, they decided to get another Plumber to repair it, discard the evidence and send you a photo of a repaired section of pipe along with an invoice for £300? Have you seen the invoice?


Honestly Ash, I doubt this would even get passed a solicitor never mind into a Court.
I would politely, in person, with her and her partner, explain that they should have contacted you as soon as they suspected a leak.
Don't get into an argument, just explain as nice as you can and walk away. I cannot see her taking this much further to be honest.
I know Solicitors near me (North West England) charge £240 per hour. Not many people would start that ball rolling for the sake of £300. Especially not if the case against you is as weak as it sounds.

I am only a Plumber offering advice and giving my opinion here. It is not legal advice from a professional legal person. I can only tell you what I would do in your shoes, as a Plumbing person.

 

[Harvest Fields]

For all you know mate. The weight of the tile and the new toilet may have just shown a week joint in the pipe or better still the pipe could have just pin holed.

 

[Stigster]

No pressure drop?

About the pressure drop, it is unusual to find but I have come across a pipe that had been screwed into actually effectively sealing the leak. I don't think you could get it to seal if you actually tried but it can happen. I have been to a leak that was caused by a screw in a pipe that was damaged weeks ago but only started showing after some time. If you were to drill through tile and screed but not into the pipe and then banged a screw through the lot and into the pipe, I could see it sealing up or at the very least only showing a tiny pinhole type spray which might not show for a while.

Just a thought as to the unusual length of time between the work being carried out and the leak showing at the boiler.

Ash, after your call to trading standards to see where you stand I hope you at least feel a bit better about this horrible situation. I really think the law is on your side with this one.