There were tears of joy as a couple won the day in court after claiming furniture giant Ikea had not properly installed a kitchen in their home.
The Swedish flatpack furniture company will now have to pay Stewart and Bridget Wilsdon £5,452 after the pair say they spent almost two-and-a-half years fighting their corner.
Stewart and Bridget say Ikea initially agreed to pay for the problem with the kitchen to be fixed but later changed its mind and claimed that it was caused by the installers and refused to take responsibility themselves.
The couple filed a claim with the county court in Gloucester after what they say was an exhausting amount of arguing.
And there were a few tears of joy as the couple hugged each other after the court hearing ended, GloucestershireLive reports.
Mr Wilsdon said: "It's such a relief after all this time. We knew we were right."
His wife added: "I can't tell you what a relief it is. I'm over the moon."
At a hearing on Tuesday the delighted couple were awarded damages and costs, meaning Ikea will have to pay them £5,452 - slightly less than the £6,611 they had asked for.
The thrilled couple from Cheltenham, bought the new kitchen after selecting it at Ikea's Bristol store.
It was installed in 2018 but in late 2019 the problems began, with the units starting to collapse as a result of not being supported properly.
The court heard that Ikea initially agreed to pay for the problem to be fixed but later changed its mind and claimed that the problem was due to the installation of a heavy worktop by Cheltenham-based Hatherley Worktops.
Ikea's representative, Korina Holmes, gave evidence to the court via speaker phone as she was not able to appear in person.
She said: "Legally, we're not liable for further issues that arise between Hatherley Worktops and Mr and Mrs Wilsdon."
She added that the company that installed the kitchen for Ikea, the now-defunct Bristol-based BJC Contractors Ltd, should have informed the couple that the base units were not sufficient to support the worktop.
Ms Holmes said: "The fault is with the installers and not Ikea."
But Mr Wilson, who represented himself, told the court that Hatherley Worktops had come back to the house to check on the situation and had confirmed that the problem was with the base units and not the worktop.
This view was backed up, he said, by an experienced independent fitter, Cheltenham-based Jamie Godwin, who he asked to examine the kitchen.
Deputy district judge Chappell ruled in favour of Mr and Mrs Wilsdon, saying that Ikea's kitchen base units did not have enough legs to support the worktop.
She pointed out that the fitting of the kitchen came with a five-year workmanship guarantee and she said: "I'm satisfied that this applies to the fitting of the units."
She ordered Ikea to pay a total of £5,452, including £4,355 in damages.
