A roofer who ripped off more than a dozen people with work that made their issues worse has been jailed. Jamie Smith admitted defrauding 15 householders in the South West to the tune of £117, 740, Bristol Crown Court heard.
The court was told he sometimes caused damage to rooves himself. And on one occasion, when told he wouldn't be paid, he threatened to smash tiles he had fixed.
Smith, 36, of Kerrow Lane, Stenalees in St Austell, Cornwall, pleaded guilty to fraudulent trading between January 2018 and August 2020. Judge James Patrick jailed him for three years and three months.
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The judge told Smith: "Many victims were in their 60s, 70s and 80s. Many were younger.
"A number were very distressed. Money was wasted and plans for retirement altered."
Lee Reynolds, prosecuting, said Smith used a variety of business names including KJR Roofing. He told the court customers would find him via a website and Smith would visit them, sometimes using a false name.
Mr Reynolds said: "He provided quotes, usually relatively modest, for modest work needed. When the customer was at their most vulnerable, such as when their roof was exposed, the job would be deliberately and fraudulently escalated to something far larger by Mr Smith because he would find problems that were completely fabricated."
The court was told customers were pressurised to agree extra work for which there were no written quotations and very rarely any cancellation rights. Lifetime or 25-year guarantees for work were worthless, Mr Reynolds said.
He told the court: "Work was carried out, but not always. The quality of work was very poor."
The prosecution assessed customers' losses at £117,740, with £82,459.20 spent on rectifying the work. A hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act will look at clawing back Smith's ill-gotten gains.
Customers were left feeling vulnerable, stressed, foolish and even guilty after falling victim. One said he had lost all confidence in tradesmen.
Simon Kitchen, defending, said his client had not set out to set up a fraudulent business and had worked competently in other types of building work. But Mr Kitchen said Smith, a married father-of-three, had gone into roofing work to support his family and had become overwhelmed.
Mr Kitchen said: "He has had enough of that, he doesn't want to run his own business again. He knows he can't cope with it.
"He went off the rails. He went in the wrong direction."
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