Aggressive electrician demanding payment...what do we do?

[arbymeadows]

Hello!

We hired an electrician in August to complete some work for us in a little art studio. It included metal conduit, plugs changing to metal ones (plus more added), pendant lights fitted, strip lights updating (2), plus bits like electrical radiators (3) and a hand dryer installed.

The work was due to be completed for the 9th of September, in time for the space to be used the following week. We were asked to pay for materials up front as he didn't like the idea of buying them, so we transferred £1400 up front.

He then failed to show for two weeks, and gave us a few different excuses, then turned up in dribs and drabs (two hours here, then a full day on a random Sunday). We're now over a month behind schedule, paying rent on two places, and the work is still not completed. He never turns up. He never calls. We are constantly chasing him. Half of our unit is without lighting or power completely, including the toilet, which means the space as a whole is completely unusable. He has had to redo a few different bits where he has not followed our plan (pendants in the wrong places, power too close to the sink etc).

Anyway, he is now asking for payment before he completes. He's charging us for his mistakes and calling them our changes. He's threatening us with a bill for over £4000 +VAT when I've asked for his break down of work completed, plus a receipt for the materials we purchased. He's incredibly defensive, aggressive and unprofessional, but I have no idea where we go from here. The work is uncompleted, he is demanding payment, but we have no faith he will even return if we pay him for the work done. We have never undertaken work to this scale, and basically do not know where to go from here. Where do we stand? Do we have to pay him immediately, or is it ok to request that work is completed first? He is claiming over 80 hours work on site, but this is just absolutely not true.

Furthering this, in reality, we do not want him on site any more. He has been so aggressive in his correspondence that we would really rather just pay him for work already completed and move on from this mess. Is that viable? We have no idea what to do.

Any help would be massively appreciated!

 

[Midwest]

I'm not asking for legal advice - I've had no experience with this kind of work before, and had no idea if this was typical. I wanted to get some guidance on his behaviour from others in his field before I took it further and sought legal advice. This forum has been so helpful, and I really thank everyone so much for that.

As someone has already said, there are always two sides to an argument.

I think if you can, you need to arrange a site meeting with this chap, inform him of your disappointment & disquiet over his work, and come up with some proposals & a timeline for completion.

Otherwise, seek legal advice & prepare for a small claims court procedure, possibly.

 

[Strima]

As he is a scheme member you also need to ask him for a copy of his complaints procedure. Whether he provides this or not is irrelevant but his scheme would not want to be involved unless all avenues of resolution with him have been explored.

 

[simpson93]

He probably doesn’t want to show you the materials cost as he has added a load on for himself.

 

[simpson93]

If there are contracts of sorts and time scales in place, if you can pay someone else to do the work and then take him to small claims.

 

[buzzlightyear]

If there are contracts of sorts and time scales in place, if you can pay someone else to do the work and then take him to small claims.

how many times that sparks been on this forum trying to claim moneys from clients not paying. lots .so I have no sympathy for them people saying a spark has turned me over tuff. hard world is it .

 

[simpson93]

how many times that sparks been on this forum trying to claim moneys from clients not paying. lots .so I have no sympathy for them people saying a spark has turned me over tuff. hard world is it .

Bit of a bleak outlook on things, don’t have to sympathise with either side. but if either party has been wronged it should be sorted especially if they have evidence to defend there case.

I think in most cases the threat of going threw courts would scare most people into getting there act togeather.

I had done a customers lighting recently, landscaper redoing decking pathways etc to the sum of 26k and the workmanship was terrible bendy decking path falling to pieces refused to correct his work. All going threw courts at the moment. To say tuff would be abit too much of a kick In the teeth.

 

[Nigel]

If any of the work includes the following:

1. Electrical work within a bathroom or shower room.
2. New consumer unit (fuse box)
3. Adding a new circuit (This means taking a new cable from the fuse box)

then it means the work is notifiable to the building authorities which he should be dealing with. If so then he should be with a 'scheme', in which case he HAS to have a complaints procedure. Ask him for his complaints procedure in writing, take photos of all the work, record calls made to/from him.

I know this doesn't sound much but if it does go to court then it shows you have gone about things in the right way.

I don't know the legal implications of not paying someone, but if he is threatening you and clearly over charging then I really can't see that you are expected to pay. If he becomes too aggressive then you call the police..... or ask MDJ (above) to step in as he would scare me off!

Sorry but this is a completely pointless bit of advice.

 

[buzzlightyear]

Thier Are two sides of the coin on this story .and only from one side
if the story is true then i will stick my arms up high .

 

[telectrix]

Thier Are two sides of the coin on this story .and only from one side
if the story is true then i will stick my arms up high .

what. in that bloody spacesuit? surprised you can manage to lift a beer.

 

[Pete999]

what. in that bloody spacesuit? surprised you can manage to lift a beer.

Have difficulty spelling Beer as well I would imagine Tel, joke Buzz just messing with you.

 

[Pete999]

Bit of a bleak outlook on things, don’t have to sympathise with either side. but if either party has been wronged it should be sorted especially if they have evidence to defend there case.

I think in most cases the threat of going threw courts would scare most people into getting there act togeather.

I had done a customers lighting recently, landscaper redoing decking pathways etc to the sum of 26k and the workmanship was terrible bendy decking path falling to pieces refused to correct his work. All going threw courts at the moment. To say tuff would be abit too much of a kick In the teeth.

You been taking spelling lessons from Buzz? tuff, threw,togeather, there. Pedant is my forte.

 

[Octopus]

He probably doesn’t want to show you the materials cost as he has added a load on for himself.

or "acquired" them from another job FOC .....

 

[Risteard]

or "acquired" them from another job FOC .....

Is it just me who thinks the customer has no right to see my invoices, nor indeed any business seeing them?

 

[Nigel]

Is it just me who thinks the customer has no right to see my invoices, nor indeed any business seeing them?

It depends. We have contracts that can get audited. In these cases we must produce material invoices.

It would depend on the agreement settled on between the customer and contractor.

 

[Octopus]

Is it just me who thinks the customer has no right to see my invoices, nor indeed any business seeing them?

some people offer "open book" agreements ..............

In this case I think that the sparky isn't being straight with the client

wonder what timescales and payment schedules were discussed before he started?