Nick Oldham: Rights and Wrongs

One Rights and Wrongs reader went to a Bradford firm to order a carpet.

Based on the room dimension he provided, he was told it would be £135 with free fitting - so he ordered the carpet.

But when a rep from the firm went to his home to measure up he was told the price would be more than £300, including carpet glue and grippers.

"I couldn't believe the price had more than doubled," he said.

"I cancelled immediately but I wonder how many people would have told them to go ahead and fit it."

West Yorkshire Trading Standards spokesman Bruce McKay stressed consumers should always get detailed estimates or quotes in writing.

"The first thing to remember is that an estimate is just that - a best guess - and it is not as legally binding as a quote, which is a firm price for carrying out a piece of work.

"The second thing is that a verbal quote or estimate is not enough.

"The price of the work or service is an essential part of the contract between the customer and the trader.

"It is the amount agreed by both sides and if it is written down it's a contract which is provable so there can never be as much dispute as when it is verbal.

"If the price goes no higher than about ten per cent on the estimate you wouldn't really have grounds to complain.

"The hitch is that there are often unforeseen problems which couldn't be detected before the work was started and which put up the price.

"You could argue that the firm should have used reasonable care and skill in evaluating the cost of the job in the first place, but this isn't always fair."

An important element of a contract is the "certainty of terms", he said.

"We had an example of this with a man who took an old car for some bodywork repairs.

"The quote was for the repair of a panel.

"The customer expected it to be repaired with metal but instead filler was used and he complained that it was not a proper repair.

"But the garage said if metal had been used the whole panel would have had to be replaced - and it would have cost more than the car was worth.

"It comes down to knowing what you are actually being quoted for.

"In this case the customer did not specify that the repair should be done using metal and he was quoted accordingly."

And he had a final piece of advice to remember when looking through the written quote.

"It may be obvious but it is not always stated on the quote and it can catch people out - make sure in advance that all prices include VAT."

Charity's Rough deal claim over tape

Bradford comedian Mark Rough is facing legal action from a city charity after allegedly breaching a contract over tapes of his routine.

Bradford Talking Magazines claims it has not been paid for producing 100 copies of a master tape of his show.

And it is now considering legal action to recover the debt after it claims he ignored repeated requests for payment, according to charity managing editor Sue Crowe.

But Mr Rough claims the tapes were of such a poor standard that he "dumped" them and got another organisation to do the work.

Ms Crowe said: "His master tape wasn't very good quality but we turned the order round in less than a week as a special favour for him because he said he needed them urgently," she said.

"We haven't heard from him since he picked up the tapes - I must have rung him eight or nine times on his mobile and we have written to him asking for payment.

"In the last letter we said it was the final request for payment and we gave him until February 19.

"As it was we have waited an extra two weeks and we still haven't had any reply from him.

"We have fulfilled our part of the contract and it is only right he does the same because he is making money out of those tapes by selling them.

"We are only a charity and £144 is a lot of money which we can use for our blind customers."

But Mr Rough said: "The quality of the tapes was dreadful. I am refusing to pay for them."

He said he did not return the tapes to the charity and did not sell any of them.

"They said the first batch of tapes was OK and they refused to accept they were awful.

"I asked them to provide me with a tape of a certain quality and they failed to do that so they have breached the contract."

Faulty tyres alert

Second-hand tyres bought in West Yorkshire during an undercover operation all failed legal tests, according to a national car magazine.

Auto Express claims in its March edition that a reporter found the county was one of the worst in the country when it came to the state of second-hand tyres.

The magazine gave the tyres to an independent expert for examination and were all found to be illegal.

The problem was highlighted in Rights and Wrongs in October last year when we reported how trading standards officers were urging people to steer clear of second-hand tyres after none bought by officers passed safety checks.

Auto Express editor David Johns said: "We are shocked every one of the tyres was illegal.

"Tough new laws introduced in 1995 were supposed to clamp down on cowboy dealers, but they are being ignored and lives are at risk."

A Bradford pensioner is trying to get a refund after buying a bed from an advertisement.

The 75-year-old rang Burnley firm SMS after seeing the ad offering single beds reduced from £219 to £85, doubles dropped from £329 to £145, and king-size beds cut from £399 to £189.

The ad also stated that a limited number of orthopaedic beds was also available.

"I have had lots of problems with back pain and I needed a new orthopaedic bed," she said.

But when her new bed was delivered to her home in East Bowling she found the mattress was wrong.

"It isn't an orthopaedic mattress," she said.

"I discovered after sleeping in it a few days that it dips in the middle which is no good to me.

"I have been phoning the number in the advert and the one on the order form but there is never any reply and I don't know what to do."

Rights and Wrongs tried unsuccessfully to contact the firm several times on two telephone numbers and left several answer machine messages.

Beware conman

Trading standards officers and police have repeated warnings to elderly people after a conman builder persuaded a 79-year-old woman to part with £250.

He knocked at the door of her home in the Horton area of Bradford and offered to repair her garden wall.

"I knew it was loose so I said for him to go ahead," she said.

"He was Scottish and he said his name was Peter and he lived in the Lower Grange area.

"He brought his son with him on the Saturday and he did a little and then asked me for £250, saying he would come back and finish it off.

"He came back again a few days later and said his van had broken down the day before.

"He told me he would be back to finish it off. That was three weeks ago and I haven't seen him since.

"I was foolish really and I shouldn't have given him the money but he came and had a cup of tea and he seemed to be a nice bloke."

He left the woman a telephone number which is now temporarily out of service.

Anyone who recognises the man from the description is asked to contact Rights and Wrongs.

A West Yorkshire Trading Standards spokesman stressed householders should not agree for work to be carried out by doorstep callers.

"If you want something done, go out and find the tradesmen yourself," he said. "Know exactly who you are dealing with - go to their premises, get their name and address and a landline telephone number and go and see examples of their work for other customers.

"Having someone's first name and a mobile phone number is not enough if something goes wrong.

"And never pay up front for work you want carrying out."

Inspector Paul Jeffrey of Odsal police stressed householders - particularly the elderly - should be on their guard against doorstep callers.

"As a general rule we would advise people not to sign up for any work from doorstep callers," he said.

"And - unless it is a very big job - most businesses will not ask for part or full payment before the work has been completed."

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