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difficult customer

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iain

i recently completed a first fix on a bathroom suite and soil and vent on a new extention. the customer seemed pleased and we were just waiting on the money when we received a phone call. the customer had tryed to do a water test on the stack by sealing it off and filling 6 meters of 110 and a 7 meter run of 40mm shower waste with water by repeatedly flushing the toilet on advice from his builder after the system had already been tested by myself at 38mm for 3 mins. the boss adaptor for the shower waste blew due to the high pressur and soaked the plaster and plasterboard below amounting to nearly £700 worth of damage. the customer is claiming it is because the components weren't fitted by myself properly and is refusing to pay what he owes me for parts and labour (nearly £1000). does he have a case and this should never of happened or is it as i think, that he has put far to much pressure into a system which is not designed to with stand it? basicly, do i suck it up or persue the issue?
 
I'm not a plumber but my first reaction would be 'more fool him' 7m of water is a lot of pressure on what is normally an open system. You are a plumber. what do you think? My response would be' pay up or I'll see you in court'.
 
trouble is it was a cash job, with no liability insurence in a small town where reputation and word of mouth is everything. i have no legal standing at all. tempted to cut my losses, but it's kind of a matter of principle. it wasn't my fault. i'm sure of it.
 
you fitted and tested the pipework in accordance with standard industry procedures! he tested it in an unsuitable manner, therefore the culpability lies with him.

stick to your guns..because if you just cut your losses he would probably still ruin your reputation anyway.
 
was it a on the side job,if not you really should have pli,if you give him a hard time he,s going to tip off tax man
i would turn his water off in street and pour some rapid set down it,after about a month has passed
 
it was evenings and weekends for cash. are you saying leave it or it could get worse?
 
Hi There,s not such a thing as a cash job. The client carried out the test, coached by some one who can lay a brick upon another, who has tested a few manholes and drains. The client can claim the damage via household insurance. The testing method for soil and vent above ground drainage can be verified by a building control officer who will visit the site on request. These suggestions may create a rethink of the client and his builder and the due payment for yourself.
 
God knows what he was thinking by testing it like that. what a fool.

You need to get paid. 10.2metres= 1Bar of pressure. So at 7M, he's pushing the waste system beyond it's limits. Explain that it is just designed to deal with water falling at gravity, vented and under no pressure.

Doesn't matter if you got paid cash, cheque, jewellery, bonds, whatever. You did work, and supplied materials. He has broken your work, and now he doesn't want to pay for his own mistake.
 
hes trying to pull a fast one - id pursue the matter, and no your not to blame
 
you shouldnt have to pay as your work shouldnt have created any build up of water to create that scenario, if you took on the cement for the boss it tells you how much pressure it should withstand, it the meter head of what he filled is more than the allowance on the fitting your golden, if not ............nightmare
 
I certainly would not let it drop. I remember 20 years ago I had just got a new motorbike and my foot had nearly healed ;) following a car driver attempt to write me off as well as the previous machine. A chap owed a friend £300 and had moved house and 'done a runner'. He had lived in a village near Llandudno. I rode up there and talked to neighbours. knocked on a few doors etc. I found out that someone had seen his car in Colwyn bay a few times and that he owed the local garage and the butcher/grocery store (both of whom would like to know his whereabouts). So armed with the colour, make and model of his car I knocked on a dozen doors in Colwyn Bay and finally found someone who suggested a street to try. I saw a car that matched, spoke to people in a nearby house and found the guy. Foot in door, copy of the bill, and after he had gathered his composure he paid up. I passed his address on to the two other creditors and a week later got a £5 note from the guy at the garage who had collected his money.

Nil carborundum illegitimi ;)
 
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thanks guys. i'm leaning towards leaving it so as not to cause more problems. but at least i can sleep when i'm angry, i only struggle when i feel guilty... i might have a polite word with him though.
 
You have put the job thr your accounts, you must have done as you are talking about it on here, so....issue an invoice, You have tested your work and it passed, tell him he bust it so its not your fault and make him pay. The builder is the one who told him to do it wrong so make the builder pay.
 
Yep- however it is paid - or agreed to be paid, is irrelivant, just put it in the books - as it should be, issue an invoice and maybe a copy of the building regs on testing making it clear that is exactly what you followed. Don't let his mistake be yours - if you dont follow it up - your have 10 people not paying, knowing your not follow it up!
 
iain said:
trouble is it was a cash job
Click to expand...

This is your biggest problem. He could tell you to sing for it and you have absolutely no recourse apart from maybe the baseball bat or suchlike but you ain't getting paid. You will live and learn.

A water test is a legitimate test for below ground drainage.
 
You have learnt a good lesson:

- always have insurance (otherwise you can come unstuck)
- always have a contract - especially on cash jobs, as they are the ones where the customer likes to withold payment, which is actually illiegal . . .

You might not be able to maintain your good reputation, because some people are arsholes!

Get in writing the regs on testing waste stacks - i bet it doest tell you to fill it up like that!
The customer and the builder are responsible for the mess, and they were stupid to do this themselves, without you at hand.

I think its called a small claims court for £1000 he doesnt have a leg to stand on really, as what he did was flood his own house, by testing the plumbing far far beyond its reasonable useage . . .

If you let this one go, then you send out a message to others that you are a soft touch in this respect - expect to be stung more frequently.
 
even if you had pli I doubt wether they would pay out on this as the customer was clearly at fault you should issue an invoice put it through your books and if he doesnt pay go through small claims.
 
just a thought,
why dont you get in print the testing procedure for soil pipe from say building regs.
show it to the customer, then tell him to sue the builder under professional liability ie. crap advice.
 
Good point Redaw. The builder chap obviously 'has the customer's ear. The customer may have though that the way he tested the system was realistic. He may not be a total AH
 
the small claims court should suffice for £1000!

I fitted a tiolet siphon for a customer, and advised them that the over flow was broken and would discharge onto the floor of the bathroom. I came back to fit a new handle (which they supplied - alarm bells should ring at this point) and adjust the ball valve to accomadate the new siphon. Lo - the tiolet overflowed on the floor and into the kitchen ceiling!

The cusstomer wanted my insurance details, at which ppoint I told him to get lost as I was not at fault as I told him the overlfow needed fixing, and he didn't listen . . .

Now I spot these kind of people comeing a mile off - should have refused to work on the tiolet unless overflow was being fixed as well.
 
You have to be cagey like a boxer to do plumbing:


- stick and move (get in, do the job, and get paid before the customer has a chance to get nasty)

- study your opponent (assess whether they are a liability to work for - are they going to pay you at the end of the job?)
 
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