Guttering guru Clayton comes to the 'rescue' of rogue trader victim

NOT all super heroes where capes – as long-standing Safe Local Trades member Clayton Fisher of Install Fascias proved when he came to the rescue of a victim of rogue traders.

The lady from Stamford become worried about handing over a staggering £800 quoted by doorstep ‘cowboy builders’ who had called at her doors and carried out work replacement guttering at her property.

Feeling extremely anxious about handing over the cash when they had arranged to collected the money later that day, she contacted Clayton after seeing a Safe Local Trades advert in a local magazine.

Once he saw the work and knew they were coming back, STL member Clayton Fisher of Install Fascias and Cladding advised her to contact the police, and took photos of the work whilst the rogue traders were off site.

Clayton said: “She had engaged with a company that called at her door and agreed to get some new guttering on her conservatory. She wasn't happy with the work but they were coming back later that day to collect the £800 they had quoted.

“She was beside herself as she and didn't want to hand over the money as she could see that the job was horrendous. Having spoken to SLT, we were advised to contact the police right away. I spoke to Cambridgeshire Police and they suggested she report it immediately.”

Bravely, the lady then walked to her local police station to report this; officers from Lincolnshire Police arranged to come to her property at the designated time when they were due back to collect their money waiting at her property to arrest the rogue traders when they returned to collect the cash.

Unsurprisingly, the telephone number displayed on rogue company van was not recognised, the name unknown and there was no Internet trace of them.

Clayton then arranged to reinstall the guttering the following week. stepped in to repair the damage caused. He said: “The conservatory guttering was removed with the ring beam cover and the gutter brackets had been snapped off.

“The box gutter at the rear of the conservatory had been blocked up with expanding foam at both ends which meant the water was not draining away, consequently the box gutter was filling up and leaking inside the conservatory. The lead flashing has been destroyed at both ends of the box gutter and the ends of the box gutter had been cut off which leads into the integral guttering.”

The customer was delighted that the job had now been carried out to the highest standard with the repairs carried out by Clayton.

Eileen Le Voi, director of Safe Local Trades said: “Members like Clayton are the very essence of Safe Local Trades, and thank goodness for this lady that she was able to make contact with him and follow his advice of contacting the police, which she bravely did and more importantly, kept hold of her cash.

“Clayton showed true professionalism as well as compassion for one of the growing number of elderly people in this area who suffer misery and pressure from doorstep and rogue traders.

For more detals about cracking down on the scammers visit "https://www.safelocaltrades.com/consumers/advice/friends-against-scams"