Warning over rogue traders after flurry of complaints

Residents in Islington are warned to be on their guard after a spate of recent incidents where rogue traders have charged thousands of pounds for fake or poor-quality building work.

In two recent cases money was handed over after callers claiming to be builders or roofers turned up unannounced on residents’ doorsteps and offered to carry out work.

In one case, a resident was charged £20,000 for work on their roof that has not been completed.

Another resident paid £1,500 for work after a caller claimed falsely to be a builder who had completed other, legitimate, building work that had been recently completed in their street. The paid-for work has not been carried out.

In a third case, a resident called in a builder to do £1000 worth of work but ended up being told £30,000 worth of work needed doing.

Islington Trading Standards offers the following advice:

· Be extremely cautious about anyone turning up unannounced offering to do work on your home

· Choose a trader who has undergone, some form of independent validation, for example Which? Trusted traders

· Always get a written quotation and make sure the paperwork has the full details of the company/business, including a postal address

· Do not part with any money until you are satisfied that the business is legitimate, and even then only hand over a small proportion of the money to cover a deposit for materials etc.

Cllr Andy Hull, Islington Council’s executive member for community safety, said: “Rogue traders like this often prey on vulnerable people. We will investigate all such incidents and will take action, including prosecution, where appropriate.

“We urge residents to be cautious and to be especially careful of people who turn up unannounced and offer to carry out building or roofing work.”

For more information see the following links:

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/scams/scams/common-scams/building-scams/

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/before-you-get-building-work-done/