Plumber ? ..... Cowboy ? ...... Con-man

[REDSAW]

Isn't that against forum rules? Plus if you do - I'll sue!

which rule is that???

 

[Sid Viscous]

Where abouts are you Billy? I'm sure one of us could 'have a word' if he can be tracked.......:59:

 

[Keefy]

which rule is that???

I don't know, just asking if there are any forum rules against naming and shaming. Not that this rip-off merchant deserves any anonymity mind.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Did you ask how much it would cost before he would do any work ??

Where did you find him ?

 

[sam51]

i have to say,while this is disgusting,and i would be the first to burn his rse with my blow torch.
with parents at that age,do you not look out for them.and not let them get in this situation.

 

[lame plumber]

i have to say,while this is disgusting,and i would be the first to burn his rse with my blow torch.
with parents at that age,do you not look out for them.and not let them get in this situation.

thats what he is doing now, just you wait till yr old dears are in their 80s and some one critisizes your dealings with them

 

[peteheat]

thats what he is doing now, just you wait till yr old dears are in their 80s and some one critisizes your dealings with them

Agree with lame plumber there are a few things to take into consideration, the man may be in his 80's but he is still a man in charge of his household, most elderly
people I know don't want to be calling in the family for small jobs about the house, I very often ask to meet with the Son or Daughter (in a respectful way) if I see
a job with large outlay.

The O.P. has come in when all is done and obviously annoyed at the amount charged for what appears to be a minor job, may I suggest that you don't make a big
deal of this with your Dad, there is pride involved also the chance that he won't tell you next time someone tries to rip him off.

Karma will take care of this scumbag.

 

[Keefy]

Don't suppose the OP has a receipt he could show us?

 

[Dannypipe]

A receipt would be good. I'd like to see how he arrived at £280.

 

[peteheat]

Scum who take advantage of the elderly will never provide a written break down.

Probably nearest he can get is leccy bill, gas bill, overdue and a drink up scheduled for the weekend.

 

[Dannypipe]

Well it would be nice to know the outcome.

 

[hammers4spanner]

This scenario doesnt just apply to the elderly i know younger families that have been stung ,my gran passed away in her 90's and she was astute as you get with money (scottish she was, so tight) .

 

[hammers4spanner]

BTW to the op british gas do this everyday

 

[DustyM]

The sad thing is, there's more of those rip off merchants out there. I've gained a hell of a lot of experience over the last couple of years and a customer base that grows based on my reliability and honesty. The amount of now customers who've been ripped off and suffered bad repairs was/is shocking. Strangely, a lot of the time they don't chase these individuals down and confront them, and are also reluctant to divulge their identities....

 

[peteheat]

The sad thing is, there's more of those rip off merchants out there. I've gained a hell of a lot of experience over the last couple of years and a customer base that grows based on my reliability and honesty. The amount of now customers who've been ripped off and suffered bad repairs was/is shocking. Strangely, a lot of the time they don't chase these individuals down and confront them, and are also reluctant to divulge their identities....

I think when people see past the "charisma" that they fell for in the first place many see the evil that was around them and are just thankful the damage wasn't worse, money can be replaced.

 

[Billy Bunter]

i have to say,while this is disgusting,and i would be the first to burn his rse with my blow torch.
with parents at that age,do you not look out for them.and not let them get in this situation.

Yes when circumstances permit

Dad died a few weeks ago .... I only found out about this guy and the £286 when I was going thru His papers

Mum, said that Dad tried to deal with things Himself, because I'd recently had cancer and a hip replacement ..... and he didn't want them to be the cause of more "problems and anxiety" to me ( His words )

 

[PlumbBobBob]

sorry to hear about your dad.

 

[Howsie]

Yes, last thing you need.

 

[lame plumber]

not the best of things to find, I hope you can find some better memories to put this behind you.

 

[Billy Bunter]

Having discovered this "rip-off" I decided to investigate the extent of work this cowboy had done for £286

I closed the 5 valves A,B,C,D,E

Slowly opened and disconnected the 2 old chrome compression nuts on the new 15mm brass gatevalve...... about a cup full of water drained out





then I removed the new 15mm brass gate valve




At this point the water is simply closed-down by the 5 valves

The above close-up photo clearly shows ..... OLD Tarnished Olives, OLD Tarnished pipe and OLD Bruised Chrome Compression nuts left from the original "leaking" chrome issolator valve


Clearly there is NO new pipework , NO new couplers, No new fittings


Conclusion ........ The guy charged £286 for fitting part of a new 15mm Brass gatevalve

Whats that cost £ 3.50

 

[peteheat]

My condolences on the loss of your Dad.

You have every right to annoyed, looking at the above we are also annoyed that a person claiming to be a member of our trade has abused the trust placed in him, prices and hourly rates vary but even a surgeon holding a persons life in their hands would not charge that much for a few minutes work.

There are very few options open to you that may bring satisfaction, I know locally if such a thing is reported to the Police they can't do anything about what we consider criminal however they do tend to make the offending parties life very difficult in other ways.

All I can suggest is that any action you intend taking please keep it within the law, citisens advice or your Solicitor would be much better than me to advise you on any further action you might take.

 

[Gray0689]

My condolences on the loss of your Dad.

You have every right to annoyed, looking at the above we are also annoyed that a person claiming to be a member of our trade has abused the trust placed in him, prices and hourly rates vary but even a surgeon holding a persons life in their hands would not charge that much for a few minutes work.

There are very few options open to you that may bring satisfaction, I know locally if such a thing is reported to the Police they can't do anything about what we consider criminal however they do tend to make the offending parties life very difficult in other ways.

All I can suggest is that any action you intend taking please keep it within the law, citisens advice or your Solicitor would be much better than me to advise you on any further action you might take.

Totally agree with Pete
And am also very sorry for your loss

 

[hammers4spanner]

you need to dig out the invoice and see if any contact details of said plumber

 

[Billy Bunter]

Well it would be nice to know the outcome.

“Jessie James” has sent me a written response from Dodge City …… to the explain his rip-off £286 bill

He states he had to do the following work

He had to drain down the central heating system ??????

He had to Cut out the faulty valve and pipework ??????

He had to travel to a merchants to get materials he required for my Mum and Dad’s job…… He states and lists “inline gate valve “ , “couplers “ ? , “pipework” ? and “fittings” ?

He returned … and replaced the “ pipework “ ? and gate valve

He the refilled the central heating system and vented all radiators …. He removed all the air locks and made sure all radiators were hot.

He the had to rebalance the hot water system

He states that ……… All this was explained to your Father


Is he taking the P-ss ??????????

 

[PlumbBobBob]

yes he is taking the proverbial. invite him back to show you where he put the new pipe and fittings, that aren't the gate valve, in the system.