Potentially being taken to court. What should I do?

[Scott_D]

The builder/tiler may have done it ripping up the old tiles. Bodged a repair and it's shown 2 months later

 

[armyash]

£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.

Her partner has said she has spoken to her home insurance company who have said if she made a claim through them, they would try to recoup the costs from me. I don't think she wants to go through them because it may push her premiums up as well as drag on.

With regards to accepting instalments, I think they feel as though they are doing me a favour as they think I have no money and by saying so they are showing themselves to be reasonable.

If they had called me as soon as the problem occurred I would have been there asap, sorted for free, and dealt with it as best I could, if I had needed someone to sort the tile out I could have done so for a fraction of what they have paid.

 

[armyash]

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.

In the last 6 months I have had 2 or 3 jobs where a screw or nail have been plugging a hole and the leak has appeared as the screw/nail has corroded and no longer able to act as a plug.

 

[armyash]

The builder/tiler may have done it ripping up the old tiles. Bodged a repair and it's shown 2 months later

Its hard to say because the picture is not crystal clear. I'm not disputing it happened on the install I did but its s stupid place to run heating pipes and my biggest issue is how they have asked for the money with me not knowing anything about it.

 

[Old Account]

Howpossible is it that someone will be so lucky to find that central heating leak? As mentioned earlier it’s a needle in the hay stack thing. Only a person who knew there were pipes below the pan could find it so easily. That would be for me almost the last resort to look for a leak on a ch leak.

 

[armyash]

Only thing I can think is the plumber has turned up and asked if any work has been done recently and once they said about the toilet he's gone straight for that.

 

[Old Account]

Only thing I can think is the plumber has turned up and asked if any work has been done recently and once they said about the toilet he's gone straight for that.

Which plumber ? The people who did all the rest of a complete new plumber? If she would like to court she must have ask per the installer who fixed it for a plumbers report. Could you not get the report of her?

 

[armyash]

Which plumber ? The people who did all the rest of a complete new plumber? If she would like to court she must have ask per the installer who fixed it for a plumbers report. Could you not get the report of her?

Sorry I meant the plumber who has done the repairs following me.

I have asked for photos, dates, invoices, and a report of the work carried out.

 

[Welder]

For some balance here, and as already said, I've had a job about 9 months ago where a nail had gone through a heating pipe some years earlier. It only started leaking when the nail finally rusted away. The system had never been perfect, always losing pressure over 6 months or so but they simply topped it up and got on with life.

So, as we all know life is stranger than fiction and these things can happen. All that said though Ash is def being targeted and its being dealt with. She's made some rubbish assumptions and picked on the wrong dude in the wrong industry. Supporting one another is just something we all do I'm sure. I dunno about Girl Power, this is the power of the pipe slice!!

 

[oz-plumber]

Ash,
Don't get yourself worked up about the situation.

Just get the customer to send you through the photo's and invoices / reports from the people who did the repair job.

Contact your insurance company and forward the information on.

Let the customer know that you have placed the claim with your insurance company and to deal with them in the future.

If they can't produce the receipts for the repair works, then you have nothing to answer.

I had a situation a couple of years ago where I told the owner I would just pay for the repairs because the repairs were less than my insurance excess.
I asked him to send me through the invoice from the repairer. He said he paid the repairer cash and has no receipt or invoice.
I just told him I would pay the amount when I received a copy of the invoice, description of the works done and a receipt of payment from the person who did the works.

Never heard from him again.