Possible PL Claim, Advice needed please!

[Nostrum]

And tested to 100,000 bar or whatever it is they specify? Then you have no way of proving it. The warranties on the plastic pipe systems aren't worth the paper they are written on IMO.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Anyone who has used plastic would have some point had an issue with it .plastic and risk go hand in hand imho

 

[Phil]

Sounds like you might have to bite down on that sh&t sandwhich and move on.....find some guys and pay them. Think of it as saving money as the PI route is a joke by all accounts.

I ripped a brand new kitchen floor 12 months ago....I had to chomp down on a £330 sh$t sandwich. That day I would have been better off staying in bed all day loosing a days pay and flushing £100 cash straight down the toilet when I got up at tea time.

 

[Rickster123]

Hi Phil I thought about it but I have as much chance as a snowball's chance in hell of successfully getting money out of JG. I hate the bloody fittings to be honest and only fit them where I have no choice. I hate plastic pipe full stop to be honest. I fitted the fitting and all 3 pipes where definitely into the stops fully and the ends tightened.

remember that insert you found in your pocket?!...

i think ink your offer is more than fair. He's trying to mug you off now.

 

[cr0ft]

Well on balance I have read all the bits on here and emailed him offering to pay to patch up the ceiling/walls and skim them before painting in as close a match paint as we can find. To be honest if he pushes to have me repaint all 3 rooms including the full hall up and down he can take me to court for it. I would be very surprised if a court rules that my offer is unreasonable tbh.

I've tried to consider the situation from the other side and I would be quite happy with that arrangement if someone had water damaged my house. I believe he is trying to take advantage now and I think he has been offered a good offer, it's not like I am running away from the situation after all.

The existing decor is, erm, rather old and tired anyway tbh hence my stance. There is already existing water damage on the hall ceiling that we will be fixing for free for him now too.

 

[cr0ft]

remember that insert you found in your pocket?!...

i think ink your offer is more than fair. He's trying to mug you off now.

LOL no they were all definitely in there. I have the fitting here and will be inspecting it more closely tomorrow.

 

[Ray Stafford]

Be careful of winning arguments with customers. In retrospect, those wins can look a lot like losses.

If you charge a premium price, and then have two leaks, it doesn't matter what the cause is. You can kiss one of two things goodbye. The cost of doing MORE than necessary, or your reputation as a premium contractor.

 

[lame plumber]

compromise and get on with what they ask, ask them to pay for the paint if they want the whole lot decorated at least it will help. When your being screwed just get out the Vaseline and get any enjoyment you can, if you fight it will only hurt more

 

[cr0ft]

Be careful of winning arguments with customers. In retrospect, those wins can look a lot like losses.

If you charge a premium price, and then have two leaks, it doesn't matter what the cause is. You can kiss one of two things goodbye. The cost of doing MORE than necessary, or your reputation as a premium contractor.

I do agree with what you are saying Ray. All I can say is that this was the last job we did before we started charging premium prices (thank god). It was booked in 6 months back before our prices went up.

2 leaks does look bad though. I think that the customer is actually going to be happy now with the walls being repainted. B&Q do a paint matching service for free I believe so I hope it's a case of everyone is happy. Will see what he says re my suggestion on Wed I guess and keep you all updated.

To be honest I want to find a situation where we are all happy, I don't want to feel I have won really nor do I want to feel that they are taking the mick out of me. I think we can get there tbh with this customer.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Why does two leaks look bad ? Just unfortunate imho your a plumber and work with water leaks happen it's just the size of the leak that counts. How many cabs have you got in and the have taken wrong turn ? How many times has a painter had paint run ? Just our mistakes cause damage that's why it looks bad .

 

[IDCHAPPY]

Any plumber that says they have never had a leak is a lying barsteward.

 

[Phil]

Are they wanting you to pay for the emergency plumbers aswell?

 

[erpkid]

Worth bearing in mind that insurance companies won't support betterment. They will put back to the original state but any improvement would still be down to you so even less point in claiming.

 

[albatross]

Suggest he claims off his house insurance and you pay the excess. It's a lovely solution.

 

[WaterTight]

Not EVERYBODY tells people about bad experiences with tradesmen. News of a less than satisfactory experience probably doesn't spread as much as people like to say. Even cowboy builders worthy of a TV appearance seem to manage to find no end of customers. And even if it did spread a bit, you know what conversations are like, nobody listens to each other half the time and are they going to remember the name of the company the person was yakking on about?

The reason it takes 5 years on average for a tradesman doing good work to become full time on rep alone is word spreads but it spreads very slowly. And even if a bad rep spreads faster, the odd job with a unhappy customer isn't going to do much damage unless they're taking it to The Mail Online. I'm not saying this with any reference whatsoever to do with the job in question. Just a side point that I think the old adage that a happy customer will tell a couple of people and an unhappy one will tell 20 is probably massively overstated. And in the case of someone who leaves behind them the very occasional slightly less than totally pleased customer, the effect will be as good as nonexistant.

 

[Chalked]

Not EVERYBODY tells people about bad experiences with tradesmen. News of a less than satisfactory experience probably doesn't spread as much as people like to say. Even cowboy builders worthy of a TV appearance seem to manage to find no end of customers. And even if it did spread a bit, you know what conversations are like, nobody listens to each other half the time and are they going to remember the name of the company the person was yakking on about?

The reason it takes 5 years on average for a tradesman doing good work to become full time on rep alone is word spreads but it spreads very slowly. And even if a bad rep spreads faster, the odd job with a unhappy customer isn't going to do much damage unless they're taking it to The Mail Online. I'm not saying this with any reference whatsoever to do with the job in question. Just a side point that I think the old adage that a happy customer will tell a couple of people and an unhappy one will tell 20 is probably massively overstated. And in the case of someone who leaves behind them the very occasional slightly less than totally pleased customer, the effect will be as good as nonexistant.

I think you statement it true when living in an urban area. But like myself, living in a rural location. Reputation is everything.

 

[WaterTight]

I think you statement it true when living in an urban area. But like myself, living in a rural location. Reputation is everything.

Good point.