A family in Gainsborough were forced out of their home after local builder, James Quinn, left the roof liable to collapse.
In March 2021, Mrs S* began looking online for someone to complete a loft conversion on her family home in Gainsborough, where she lived with her husband and children.
James Quinn, also living in Gainsborough, responded to the couple online, telling them he had 20 years’ experience in loft conversions and quoted £3,000 to complete the work.
Mr and Mrs S were convinced by Mr Quinn and accepted his verbal contract to progress with the loft conversion.
Just a few weeks after work had started, the couple began to worry that there were major problems, as the loft did not look right. Building Control and a structural engineer confirmed the couple’s fears: the house was unsafe.
Mr Quinn had cut out all of the supporting beams in the loft, creating a real possibility that the roof would collapse inwards.
The couple and their young children were forced to move out of their home for safety reasons, whilst the roof and ceilings had to be temporarily supported with props for 13 weeks.
A different builder came and made the loft and roof safe and stable. Putting right the work that Mr Quinn had done on their property, and bringing the loft and roof back to its original state cost the family a further £8,000.
The family reported their issues, and Lincolnshire Trading Standards began investigating.
James ‘Jimmy’ Anthony Quinn, 43, of Ropery Road, Gainsborough, pleaded guilty at Lincoln Crown Court on 11 June 2024.
During sentencing on 29 July 2024, Mr Quinn was sentenced to 19 weeks custody, suspended for 18 months, with a 10-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement. He was also given a three month curfew between the hours of 9pm and 6am.
Due to his means, Mr Quinn was ordered to pay £400 compensation, at £40 per month.
Sally Gray, senior Lincolnshire Trading Standards officer, said:
“We often think about rogue traders targeting older or vulnerable people, but this heartbreaking case shows that some unscrupulous individuals will take advantage of anyone, no matter their circumstances, and convince them that they can do work that they can’t.
“Mr and Mrs S had got a number of quotes; they’d tried to do everything right but they were completely drawn-in by Quinn’s lies. Luckily, because they’d noticed that things didn’t look right early on, they had only paid him £900 of the £3,000 quoted.
“Although the family now have their dream loft conversion, it has cost them more than it should have and come with years of stress and worry, not to mention three months out of their home relying on the kindness of friends and family.
“If you are looking for someone to carry out work on your home, get a number of quotes; ask family and friends for recommendations or search trader approved schemes, and; ask for paperwork before work starts to give yourself a 14 day cooling-off period.”
Lincolnshire Trading Standards has recently joined the national Buy With Confidence scheme, to help prevent rogue traders taking advantage of residents like this. Businesses joined up to the scheme are vetted, giving customers reassurance they are contracting a Trading Standards approved trader.
If you would like your business to stand out from the crowd, and help stop rogue traders giving your trade a bad name, you can find out more about joining Buy With Confidence at www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk/business.
*The family initial is being used to protect their identity.