Rogue trader jailed for 'precarious, dangerous' house improvements
He left homes across Wiltshire unfinished or with serious structural issues
A rogue trader from Westbury who left homes across Wiltshire and the wider South West in a dangerous condition has been jailed for two years.
Company director Daniel Dyer, who is 31 and of Penleigh Road, admitted convincing customers into buying unnecessary building works.
Trading Standards officers in Wiltshire and Bath and North East Somerset said the issues left some households' properties in a precarious or dangerous structural condition.
Mr Dyer, director of the now dissolved Ashwood Home Improvements (SW) Ltd, also received around £300,000 in payments for works at five properties in Wiltshire which had been left incomplete.
He also told customers he would obtain sign off for the works from Wiltshire Council Building Control which he failed to do, meaning the works were not inspected or authorised to ensure compliance with building regulations.
At one property in Trowbridge, the owners agreed to pay £38,600 for a garage conversion and extension. The project was estimated to take thirteen weeks but two years later the project was still incomplete with the householders having paid more than double the original quote of £80,314.
The owners have since been quoted £26,000 plus VAT to finish the build and rectify the problems with the original work.
A chartered surveyor who examined the work found inadequate foundations and structural support, a fire risk in the stairway and a toilet installed in a position that could not be sat on.
At another property, also in Trowbridge, works stopped after five months, leaving the disabled owner without a kitchen sink and a leaking roof after making payments of over £50,000.
Other householders have been advised to completely demolish and rebuild works that were inadequately completed by Mr Dyer.
Appearing at Salisbury Crown Court, Mr Dyer was disqualified from acting as a company director for eight years.
He had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to 11 offences under The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, Fraud Act 2006 and Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
A timetable was also set by the judge to enable assets to be identified for the victims to be compensated under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Cllr Dominic Muns, Cabinet Member for Environment at Wiltshire Council said:
"Rogue traders aren't always easy to spot and can carry out work that is incomplete or to an unacceptable standard causing misery for our residents.
"It is a key priority for us to protect our residents from harm and as such our trading standards team do all they can to support people to be aware of the signs of unscrupulous traders.
"I hope that the sentence that has been imposed sends a clear message that we will take action to protect our residents.
"People looking to find a builder with trading standards approval could visit buywithconfidence.gov.uk which hopefully will provide some reassurance of the people they bring to do the work."