Leeds loft converters have hit back at allegations that they have ‘bullied’ and ‘abandoned’ customers left with “trashed, bomb site” homes.
A group of Leeds residents claims they have lost a combined £500,000 between them to Trelawny Roofing, previously named Trelawny Lofts.
They've accused the builders of leaving them with exposed roofs, scaffolding, water damage and rubble.
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In some instances, there are claims that at some homes, scaffolding was erected and workers never returned to continue the job after payment was made.
One Leeds mum claims she was “hoodwinked” by “wolves in sheep’s clothing” but Trelawney Roofing director Colin Brown and project manager Michael Turner say this is not the case.
They've claimed they aren't abandoning their customers and said they'll get the jobs finished eventually.
Colin and Michael told LeedsLive the lack of completed construction work was down to incompetence and poor decision making. They said fully intend to finish every job they claim are all about “45 per cent completed”.
When Leeds Live met with Colin and Michael to discuss the allegations posed to them, the pair denied any wrongdoing.
“I haven’t done anything wrong,” said Colin.
Michael said: “We spent all the money on labour and material through the hard times. The problem was, when we started to run out of money, we started to gasp at other jobs. We had to pick which jobs we could complete to finish. Naivety, yes. But criminal? No.”.
Asked if the incomplete work was down to incompetence, Michael said: “Yes, yes, yes."
“The illnesses, the Covid and all the other rubbish, that’s what slowed us down. Some of the lads we paid twice to do the same job and that was our problem,” continued Michael.
The 51-year-old said he “struggled” to get labour and claimed many were dishonest with him about being qualified joiners or roofers.
Michael said that “nearly all of them [the lost conversions] are 45 per cent completed”.
The pair denied scaffolding was put up in homes to “pressure” customers into hiring them, and when asked if they left scaffolding on homes never to return, Colin said: “No, never.”
They blamed a sacked member of staff for any incomplete work.
Colin vehemently denied that he was aggressive and forceful to customers down the phone to extract payment.
“I don’t get involved in that. I never hassle people,” he said, once again blaming an ex-staff member if anything untoward had happened in that regard.
He added that he records every conversation and can prove he’s never been aggressive to customers down the phone.
Colin and Michael denied they inflated prices after a contract was signed.
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In the instance where Leanne Harrison needed her “floor strengthening” for an extra £5,000, Michael claimed the floor was “bouncy” and “unsafe”.
He went on to say even though it would cost him £5,000 for the labour and materials, he halved the price but claimed Leanne went “berserk” so decided to waive the added fee in the end.
Colin denied he used Covid-19 as an excuse not to send workers to finish the work. He said that “every person in my organisation has had it”.
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