Episode 30 Cowboy Trap

I'm travelling the length and breadth of Britain

uncovering shoddy and unfinished building work.

I couldn't proceed with the extension.

It was going to be obviously a nightmare. Everything was going to be lies and a con.

You know, innocent people are still continuing to fall for the cowboy builders' smooth talk.

I said, "You promised me that this job would be done without any money

"and now here you are demanding money all the time."

But don't worry, our team of good guys are in town to sort out the mess that's been left behind.

Oh, it's wonderful.

If you stick with me and follow all my hints and tips, together

we can help prevent you from falling into the Cowboy Trap.

Today we're in Preston meeting two neighbours who both fell victim to the same serial-offending builder.

An extension dream led to our first lady's worst nightmare.

This builder abandoned her conservatory,

leaving her with dangerous gas, a long list of problems inside, and a backyard building site.

I was absolutely furious, angry,

distressed, very tearful,

to know that someone had left me in this mess.

This heartless builder struck the same street again.

Two doors down, we're meeting a retired lady who wanted to adapt her home,

making it easier for her to manage.

He took her money and left her struggling to walk down her own driveway.

I did hear that he was dissolving the company and my heart sank

because that was a huge blow,

because I realised if he did that then there'd be no chance of me getting a penny back.

First up, we're meeting social worker Mary Thorpe.

She lives with her 25-year-old student son, Ian.

As she approached retirement, Mary decided to extend her home.

She wanted to create a conservatory overlooking her garden.

I wanted more space for the hobbies I wanted to take up going into retirement,

and I wanted more space for visitors when they came.

Mary thought she'd get some other home improvements at the same time to minimise disruption.

New kitchen cupboards, flooring to be put down, the garden to be finished,

the boiler to be put in, and the decking outside.

Mary's son, Ian, scoured the internet to find local conservatory companies.

I went onto a website,

like a price comparison website for conservatories.

Got a leaflet out the next day,

phoned them up. They seemed to know what they were talking about.

They said they could get someone out this week so we thought, "Yes, we'll give them a go."

A contractor from the conservatory company came round to do a quote.

Mary and Ian were quickly reassured by his building knowledge.

Knew what they were talking about, knew how to lay foundations, told us that no plans would be needed

because it would be permitted development.

So I looked up what permitted development was,

it tied in with what they said.

Checked out the company on Companies House,

looked at their website, and I thought yes.

Mary paid a small £40 deposit to confirm the job.

The contractor said she would then pay nothing until the work was completed.

Mary requested a receipt for the deposit in the post, along with her contract.

All she had to do was decide when she wanted work to start.

They would get me a contract, and then from the contract

we would then agree to do the job or when they would start.

But Mary was in for a big surprise when the contractor picked

his own start date and didn't even tell her they were coming.

They turned up one morning while I was at work,

dug out the foundations without any prior knowledge to anyone.

From there it was literally phone call after phone call after phone call,

trying to get them to come and see me and it was just...

And this building was going up all of the time and there was no contact with them, no contact with them.

Mary let the work go on. Despite being told she'd have nothing to pay

until the job was done, the demands for money came thick and fast.

Initially when the head contractor came around, he stipulated over and over again,

several times in the conversation, that I would not have to pay any money until the job was done

and if I didn't like the job and I wasn't happy with the job,

then I wouldn't have to pay but I'd be so happy with it I'd be willing to endorse them.

And then all these demands for money and always only ever in cash. He wanted it in cash.

Within a short time, she'd handed over thousands in cash but the contractor still wanted more.

By this time I was sick to my stomach, I was stressed out, and I said, "What is it you want from me?"

I said, "You promised me that this job would be done without any money

"and now here you are demanding money all the time in cash."

And we had a heated argument about the plans and the architect and my contract, which still hadn't arrived.

We discussed money - I said I would get the money for them the next day.

The two guys that were there signed for the £3,000

and I haven't seen them since.

By this point, Mary had paid her full quote of £14,000 for her retirement dream.

She wanted to add a conservatory overlooking a nice garden, and a new boiler.

She ended up with unsafe gas and a huge list of snags

with the extension, and a garden that was more like a bombsite.

After paying over all this potential amount of money,

I was then left with a roof that hadn't been sealed or flashed.

I was left with a garden that was heaped with rubbish and all piled up.

I was left with a floor that wasn't sealed.

All of the decking outside, that was supposed to have been completed, and the boiler wasn't working either.

The long list of problems wasn't the end of her difficulties.

From the beginning, Mary's contractor

told her that she wouldn't need planning permission because it was permitted development.

But when Building Control paid a visit to the property, she had a nasty shock.

I came home from work one day and Ian said, "I've got bad news, Mum", and I said, "What?"

He said, "The building guy has been out and we need planning permission."

I said, "I don't believe this, I just don't believe this!" My instant reaction was

to start crying because I was just so fed up with them at that point.

It was just horrible, we couldn't do anything.

We couldn't touch the house because we had no plans.

There's no point in finishing the work of you don't have plans because it could all get taken down.

Permitted development means you can build a conservatory or extension

without planning permission if it's within certain dimensions and regulations.

But take a tip from me...

The great news for Mary is that you can apply retrospectively.

With the help of a local architect, her planning permission has now been granted,

so her conservatory extension is safe to stay.

But she's still waiting for final approval from Building Control

that the work is of an acceptable standard.

Mary's retirement dream was left shattered when a builder took all her money and abandoned the project,

leaving her with a long list of snags and no sign-off from Building Control.

It's time for me to meet her and find out where it all went wrong.

-Hello.

-Hello, you must be Mary.

-I am Mary.

-I hear you've had problems with cowboy builders.

A lot of problems. Would you like to come in?

Yes, I would. Come on, let's have a look. This is the bit I don't like.

It doesn't look like that door's fitting properly at all, Mary, does it?

-No, it's not.

-What have they done with regards out here?

Have they dumped all this decking down?

No, my son-in-law put this down as a temporary measure because there's

a three-foot drop underneath there for the water.

For the soil pipes and the drainage?

-Yes. And they were going to do all of this for me and this is how I'm left.

-Anywhere else inside?

Just the boiler and the kitchen, and the kitchen cupboards were in the price.

OK, let's go and have a look at that.

Not only is there danger with the three-foot drop in the garden,

a heating engineer has condemned the boiler, deeming it unsafe and unfit to use.

I know you can't fit the boiler into

a solid piece of wood but I was going to get Venetian lathes

as far as here and then down below, and that was all in with the price.

Please don't tell me that these guys also fitted your gas.

I am going to tell you that because that's what I've got for it.

I've just noticed, safety warning - at risk.

Mary's safety is of utmost importance.

Fixing the danger both in the garden and that condemned boiler is vital.

Now then, cutting to the chase, we have such a limited time, sadly,

but what could we do that would help you be able to move on? What could we do?

It would help me enormously not only to get the work done but to get the work done properly.

Could we focus on an area for you?

Possibly out there and the boiler, yes.

All right, let's see what we can do for you.

Mary's got a long list of snags and she doesn't know where to start.

If we can make the boiler safe and the garden usable, it should make

a huge difference to Mary's life.

You know, I'd really like to put Mary's retirement dream

back on track so I think it's time to bring on the good guys.

Coming up, our independent building inspector knows a cowboy job when she sees one.

It seems to be one of those stories where someone started off with one particular trade, and in this case

I'm guessing it's brickwork, and then decided that they could just do everything else.

Now we're heading two doors down to Mary's neighbour,

Maureen Lowes. She also got stung by the same bad builder.

Maureen lives with her dog, Max. She needed to make changes to her home after being diagnosed with cancer.

Her treatment means getting up and down stairs is tough,

so she wanted a toilet and shower on the ground floor.

I would need facilities at some point in time on this level

because when I'm feeling poorly, going up and down the stairs is really hard for me and a struggle.

Maureen decided on an extension to give her a room for extra shower and toilet downstairs.

Outside she needed to make both the front and back space around her home easier to maintain.

I wanted block paving round the house because I'd got to the point

where I couldn't keep the garden and I couldn't keep the place tidy.

Maureen spotted builders working at neighbour Mary's home a few doors down.

It seemed like a safe and easy option to hire the same guys.

Two doors along there was some work being done and...

I had a look at it

and builders were turning up, which is everyone's fear that they won't turn up.

So they were doing that and I assumed, and it was correct to a degree,

that my neighbour had had them checked.

Maureen's extension needed planning permission,

so the contractor assured her that he would handle it.

He said to me was going to sort out the building regs and the plans.

I would have nothing to do, all I had to do was sit back and recuperate.

Maureen thought it was a good deal and agreed to the job.

Planning permission usually takes eight weeks.

While they were waiting for approval on the extension, work began on the driveway.

The work started on the front.

They started taking the earth away and then they started to do a trench and he found a pipe.

He said he would have to stop work because they would have to find out

what they were going to do. This pipe is going to be directly under the foundations.

Maureen knew in her heart her contractor was no good.

When she questioned him, she got no answers, just excuses.

Sadly it was the same story at Mary's, just two doors away.

Maureen realised something was going badly wrong when she enquired about

her planning permission at the local council.

They hadn't even heard of her.

When I found out that still the was no planning and building regs,

I couldn't proceed with the extension.

It was going to be obviously a nightmare, everything was going to be lies and a con.

Maureen was sick of the excuses and put a stop to the job, leaving her in sheer chaos.

Take a tip from me...

..so don't leave something so important to your builder.

Maureen's contractor hadn't even begun the planning permission process.

Thank goodness they'd not started on the extension.

Unfortunately, the damage was already done on her driveway.

My ankle went over one day because it was soft, of course,

it's not all hard and compact, which gave me a lot of problems with my ankle and my knee and my hip.

And that was quite painful.

Maureen handed over £3,650 and the contractor wrecked her driveway.

Thankfully, she hadn't paid the £18,000 quote.

She wanted an extension and an easy-to-maintain block-paved garden and driveway,

but she ended up with a bumpy obstacle course

leading up to her front door and open trench blocks the back.

Where we are now was the garden

and mostly grass with some beautiful flowers,

and down at the bottom end there was an island of miniature conifers

and trees, a very pretty area to come home to.

Coming round here to what was the driveway,

as you can see it's an absolute mess with troughs and dips.

It's just completely rubbished.

I brought an architect out

to assess this for me

and he said there was three major things, actually.

None of this should have been done until the extension was up.

The land should be left as it was, in situ, until the extension was finished,

then they should have worked on that.

Secondly was the fact that there's no membrane underneath,

and this is of huge importance because this stops the land seeping through

and coming to the top of the block paving, and it stops weeds.

And of course initially that's why all this work was going to be done

because no longer am I up to doing maintenance of that kind.

Thirdly, he said, "Why did they dig the trench? There is no reason for that trench to be dug

"because all they have to do is lift that manhole

"and they knew exactly what was going to be where they dug the trench."

But nobody thought of lifting the manhole.

So as things stand now, as you can see, it's an absolute mess.

There's no extension,

just an area full of mess and I feel desperate about it all.

I feel absolutely desperate, it's a nightmare.

I'm very angry that someone can do this.

Looking at that disastrous driveway, I'm thankful that these cowboys didn't start on the extension.

The exasperating experience has really rocked Maureen,

so I went to find out how we can help get her on the road to recovery.

In the short space of time, Maureen, that we are here, what could we do

for you that would help you to relax, put a smile on your face?

If I could have help with the block paving,

which means...around me is in order.

So if everything is in order, I might not achieve or get what I wanted initially but if I can have

order around me then that lets me concentrate on myself.

I'm going to charge myself with getting that job done for you,

getting all the block paving front, side, back, so shall we shake on that and say that's the deal?

-Oh, yes.

-All right, missus, we're going to do just that.

Our good guys have got a gigantic job on their hands

removing all the stones and laying down a fantastic new finish.

Maureen really needs to get this driveway sorted

and it'll be the first step to making her life easier.

It's time to bring on the good guys.

Coming up, our independent building inspector is visiting

the second house on the street, checking more cowboy catastrophes.

It isn't work, it's just someone put some stone down for no real apparent reason.

Back down the road, Mary Thorpe's dream was a conservatory overlooking a beautiful garden.

After she handed out over £14,000, Mary's contractors scarpered.

She was left with dangerous gas, a long snagging list, and a building site for a garden.

Before we set our good guys loose, building inspector Chrissi McCarthy

is paying her first call to Mary's building fiasco.

You've had a chance to look around, what do you not like?

A few things. It seems to be one of those stories

where someone's started off with one particular trade,

and in this case I'm guessing it's brickwork,

and then decided they could just do everything else.

The brickwork isn't actually too bad but then when you look at the setting out,

down the side they actually started to build the wall so that it would

-come up through the window.

-How handy.

I don't know if they designed it as a feature but it wasn't what that the homeowners wanted.

Then there's the gas as well, not put in by...

I was going to say CORGI then but of course now it's changed to Gas Safe.

-Yes, correct.

-So that's something that can't be used at the moment

until someone comes in and looks at that, that is certificated.

That's been condemned, of course.

With all that in mind, what score, in your professional opinion,

would you give these guys for the work they've carried out?

I think a five.

Five out of ten? This contractor should be ashamed of his standard of work.

Our good guys have plotted a two-pronged attack to make Mary's home safe both inside and out.

John is heading up the interior contingent, sorting the gas.

I've invited him to shelter from the rain and give us his plan.

My first plan of action is to isolate the boiler electrically and gas-wise,

and then I've got to do a test on the gas before I can start.

-So you're going to need to do a drop test on it?

-Yes.

I have to do that let-by test and then I have to do a sounders test.

-OK.

-The let-by test

just gives me confidence that the incoming main stop valve is working,

then I have to run a new gas main all the way back to the boiler.

-What about the gas flue? That contravenes the regulations.

-It does.

We'll change the flue so that the combustion air

will be drawn in from underneath the canopy and the flue products will be blown out above the canopy.

OK, brilliant.

While John gets the gas under way, Mark is fronting the troops outside.

They've already taken up the rubble and rubbish.

They're now levelling the ground, making a nice base for the stones and planters,

and covering up that nasty drop.

While they crack on, I want to find out how Mary's cowboy managed to get away with so much money.

'After taking over £11,000, he came back one night demanding even more cash.'

How much did you end up spending?

I really take a big stick to myself

and beat myself up about this.

Well, don't, don't.

Don't. Please don't.

No big sticks.

He came...

and he said, "I'm going to take the men off the job."

I said, "You've already taken them off."

And he said,

"If you give me £3,000, I'll get them back on the job in the morning."

I said, "Where am I going to get £3,000 at this time of night?"

This was 8pm.

And he said, "Well, there's an ATM just up the road."

He said, "You can get me something for good faith."

Did he take you to the hole in the wall?

He took me to the hole in the wall.

He drove me in his big car, big flashy car,

with this other guy with him that was supposed to be a trainee.

He drove me to the ATM,

I got the £300 out and I gave it to him in the car.

He's taken a lady not far off retirement...

That's right.

And I was very frail and vulnerable at that time, Clive, as well

because I felt over a barrel, I was over a barrel.

This scheming contractor should be ashamed about hounding Mary for cash late at night.

Take a tip from me.

It's not just bad practice. It's dangerous.

Pay by cheque or banker's draft so the money can be traced.

Mary had handed over thousands before she realised that she'd fallen for his tricks.

Sadly, her neighbour, Maureen, had done the same.

I can't believe this cold-hearted cowboy managed to swindle both these ladies on the same street.

Not only has he wrecked their dreams and homes,

without planning permission they could have both been in big trouble.

It's time he gave us some answers.

I going to hopefully get him on the phone. What would you like to say?

I'd like to say, "You've stolen my money, just please give it to me back.

"It's my money, not yours."

-OK, so you'd like your money back of the builders?

-Yes.

OK. In your case, Mary, what would you like to say?

"Why did you not send the builders back as promised?

"Why did you lie to me when you knew the builders weren't going to be coming back?"

Here is the crux of it.

Who is the one that is going to make the phone call?

I'll do it, I'm happy to do it.

I think Mary has a lot to get out on her system yet.

-OK.

-I've worked a lot of mine out.

-Yes, OK.

Now I'm going to dial the number and I'll put it onto speakerphone for you.

-Yes.

-Are you ready?

-I'm ready.

'Your call has been forwarded. At the tone, please record your message.'

This is Mary Thorpe here, a long time since I tried to get hold of you.

I'm just wondering why you haven't got back to me and why my job has not been finished.

I really have a lot of questions for you, and so has Maureen Lowes.

So I would appreciate some sort of an answer from you from this phone call.

Thank you.

-Right.

-That sound OK?

That sounds great. Now the thing is these guys know we're on their case

and they're just letting their phones ring out but I want to tell you something.

Our office has been researching, done a bit of research.

-Oh, right!

-We found this.

Now this is from the registered trust,

which is a registered company that has CCJs on it

-for various builders, for various companies.

-Yes, what is a CCJ?

-It's a County Court Judgment...

-All right.

-..that's already against the company.

Interestingly enough as you look at some of these figures,

£30,000-odd, £20,000-odd...

Now some have been satisfied. Some have actually been satisfied

but the majority haven't.

Here's me... Bournemouth?

They operate everywhere.

There's no CCJ though against them in Stoke, which is the area that they come from.

-They don't do the dirty on their own nest.

-Correct.

So they're making sure.

-Not in my backyard.

-Exactly, not in their backyard.

Thanks for talking to us and I can't wait to show both of you guys what the good guys are capable of.

We checked for County Court Judgments with the Registry Trust

and so can you.

Coming up, I can't wait to show Mary how her botched boiler and backyard building site had been transformed

by a little good guys magic.

Oh, my word, oh, how beautiful!

Next door but one, we're back with Maureen Lowes.

She needed to make changes to her home to make life easier for herself.

She opted for an extension with better ground floor facilities.

Outside she wanted simple-to-maintain block paving.

All she got was a dangerously rocky yard that she could barely walk on.

Our good guys are raring to get on.

Before they do, I want building inspector Chrissi McCarthy

to come back and cast her expert eye over Maureen's bodged job.

-Give us your take on it.

-Doesn't look like they've done any prep work, there's no levels to fall.

It's not even even before we even start thinking about levels,

so I don't know where the water will go.

I don't know where the block work is going to go.

It looks to me almost like someone laid this with no intention of doing anything else to it,

but literally just getting off, because I can't see...

They just made work themselves, basically.

It looks like they were pretty clueless

and I think the whole thing needs re-grading anyway.

-Definitely.

-Looking at the hole they've dug here,

nobody knows why they've dug it, it could be part of the drainage system, but who knows?

It's hard to kind of guess the mind of a madman, isn't it?

Now this is an important stage,

what mark out of ten would you give these guys for the work they've carried out so far?

While I don't know what it is... I think I'd go with zero.

I just don't really know what they were trying to do. It isn't work.

It's just someone put some stone down from no real apparent reason.

So I'm going with zero.

Do you know what, I think zero is more than enough.

Zero out of ten? With a score like that they're on the driveway to disaster.

Our tiptop team are keen to get going on Maureen's drive.

They're going to be taking up the rocky layers and putting down firm foundations and a fantastic finish.

'Graham is leading our boys today so what's the plan of action?'

First thing, we want to check the hardcore, make sure the depth is right.

-Yes.

-If it's not, obviously, we'll have to adjust that.

-Yes.

-When we do that, I don't think there's any membrane been put down so we'll blind the hard-core.

Just reminder us about blinding it again.

OK, basically a covering of sand to stop the stone puncturing the membrane.

Lay the membrane and then after that we'll lay a two-inch scree,

-consolidate that.

-Yes.

And then basically lay the blocks on top of that.

And roughly in terms of days, how long do think it's going to take?

I would say maybe five days, six days, I would think.

Five days and the job's a good'un.

While Graham and his team battle the elements getting started,

I want to find out more about Maureen's search for her builder.

'Her cancer treatment had made her vulnerable.

'Choosing a builder that neighbour Mary was using seemed like a safe option.'

You approached the builders

that your neighbour was employing at the time to have work done but they were halfway through?

From my point of view at the time

I didn't know how much time I had.

-I don't mean in a serious manner, I mean of energy.

-Yes.

I was taking a short cut.

-Yes.

-And I wouldn't advise anybody to do that, but that's how I felt.

I felt because of lack of energy and what was happening to me,

I could only do a certain amount and to get what I wanted

I was going to have to just do that little amount.

Maureen made a mistake of putting her trust in these builders without doing any research.

Don't rely on others to do it for you.

Maureen's lack of research meant this cruel cowboy could take advantage of her trusting nature.

'Not only is Maureen lost money, he's destroyed her faith in people.'

And you were trusting, as well, obviously, to so-called professionals.

Absolutely, because the dialogue was good,

the tone was good, the assurances were good.

-Where I fall down personally, not everybody would be like this, I trust people.

-Yes.

I still can't accept that someone would sit next to me and lie to me.

-But they're out there, Maureen.

-I know, that was my downfall.

Coming up, Maureen's months of misery and distress are about to be over.

We're hoping to restore her faith and show her what these good guys can do.

Oh, it's wonderful.

Now we're heading back to neighbour Mary.

The same scamming contractor stole her retirement dream too.

She wanted a conservatory with gorgeous garden views, and an updated heating system.

She was left in danger with dodgy gas, a huge list of snags, and a backyard bombsite.

Our troops have been tackling the task, so I want to find out how they've been getting on.

Mark, I tell you what.

-What a mess this garden was.

-It was.

-And what's not helping you is a good old British summer...

-That's right.

-..with this water pooling all over the place, but I have to say it's starting to shape up nicely.

-It is.

Tell us exactly what you've done so far and what you still got to do.

So far we've took three tonne of soil off it,

we've redone all the decking boards.

-I noticed that, these look loads better now.

-Put the Belfast sinks in.

Yes, I noticed that. They're a nice little touch.

Yes, a nice touch. We're putting decking all the way around here

and all down this side, angling it in so it just looks a little bit fancy.

That gives it a nice border. What's your plan in here?

Vegetable garden on this side, fresh herbs, rhubarb, mint, everything.

-That's what Mary wanted.

-That's what she wanted.

Fantastic. In terms of time, how long do you think you've got left?

-Three or four hours.

-Three or four hours, top man.

The last few months have been a tremendous a strain on Mary and her son.

I can't wait to show her the team's terrific transformation, but first I need to know that

her heart and home will no longer take in any more cowboy builders.

What have you learned, from having a cowboy builder in your property, that you could take forward?

Do not start anything until you give it to me in writing, that's a biggie, it's a real biggie.

And from there then, I would like space to think about it.

Well, look, I realise it's affected you big style, I'm desperate now to put a smile back on your face

but before we take a look at it,

just remind me of a couple of areas in the property that were problematic,

let's say, with, for instance, your heating and your garden.

The heating was condemned, the boiler was condemned,

I had no heating, I had no hot water, I'd no nothing and it was just awful.

-In terms of the garden?

-If I go out to the garden, it was actually like a building site.

You couldn't go out for tripping over things and knee deep in everything,

and it was just absolutely abysmal, absolutely abysmal.

So are you ready to go inside and let's go and check out, first of all...

-The boiler.

-The boiler, all right? Shall we go?

-Let's go.

-Come on.

Come on then, Mary, come in and have a look at this.

Wow.

That is a huge difference.

That's brill, that is absolutely fantastic. Now, does it work?

Yes, now the thing is it does work.

The guys have boxed it in nicely as well, it's been fully tested, new pipe-work, you've got the new flue

that goes outside rather than being enclosed under the canopy.

What sort of a difference is that now going to make to your life?

Peace of mind. Huge peace of mind.

For start off, I can turn on the heating tonight because it's freezing.

Last night I was under a duvet,

and now I can have a bath tonight and sit in comfort.

That's it!

Little things like that...

-Make a massive difference.

-..make a massive difference to your life.

Now then, remember that quagmire of a garden?

Yes, absolutely, a building site.

All right, well I'm going to show you something now that I think

you're going to love but I'm going to need you to close your eyes.

-So you're going to have to trust me. We'll link arms.

-Will I take your arm?

-We're going to link arms, missus.

-Yes, let's go then.

And then we're going to go and check out that garden.

-Brill.

-Are you ready?

-Yes, I'm really excited about it.

Good! I'm excited and I've seen it!

Serious. I'm really excited about it.

All right, so let's go.

'And the excitement is not over Mary as the good guys' magic touch continues outside.'

Keep those eyes tight closed. But now funnily enough, I want you to open your eyes.

Oh, my word, oh, how beautiful.

Oh, look at this!

Oh, how beautiful, absolutely beautiful.

From a building site to this?

Oh, my word, I can't believe it.

Look at all my herbs.

Oh, my word, that's beautiful, absolutely stunning.

Thank you, Clive, and thank you to the team. They've been fantastic.

This double hit of good guys has really worked wonders.

Mary's retirement dream was devastated when the cunning contractor

left her conservatory looking slapdash and unfinished.

The gas was dangerous and the back garden looked like a builder's yard.

Now the heating system is working and the gas is safe, with the pipes beautifully boxed in.

Outside, the rubbish has been removed, the ground has been levelled off,

filling up that dangerous drop under the decking.

Sleepers border the edges, forming planters filled with perfect plants and Mary's dream herb garden.

The trellises give an architectural structure to the back, creating two separate spaces.

It looks like both Mary and Ian are impressed.

It's really, really beautiful, isn't it?

-Really nice.

-And we can have the barbecues out here now.

Yes.

Back down the road, Maureen Lowes experienced the same bad builder treatment.

An extension and simple-to-maintain outside space would help give her the easier life she needed.

But after handing over £3,500, she struggled to walk out of her own front door.

Graham's team had a hard job on their hands, so I need to find out how they're getting on.

Look at that. I've got to be honest with you, young Graham,

I don't think you'll find a cowboy builder taking that much attention to detail.

Come and talk to us, mate. I'm loving it, the work you've done, you've really cracked on with it.

It looks fantastic.

Tell us what you've done, what you've still got left to do, and if you've hit any snags.

Yes, I mean we've knocked it into shape, the levels were all over the place up and down, you know.

But it's gone OK, as I say, all we got the do now basically a few edges to put in,

the rest of the block to put down, sand blind it, and then whack them down and that's it.

In terms of time, how long do you think you've got left?

I would say about three hours left.

All right, I can't wait to show Maureen what you have done, guys.

-Excellent job, I'll let you carry on.

-Brilliant.

-Cheers, buddy.

-Cheers.

After months of misery, I can't wait to show Maureen Graham's great job,

but first I need to know

'that she's now equipped with all the right tools to protect herself from any other potential cowboys.'

Now before we go and take a look at what the good guys have done,

just describe to me what it was like before we arrived.

It was a nightmare. It was like living on a bombsite.

Now hopefully what we've done out there, you're going to love.

But before we look at it, tell me what have you learned from having a cowboy builder in your property

that you will be able to take forward the next time?

I've learnt, primarily,

that yes, people can stand in front of you and lie.

It's not a concept that I've understood before.

So don't take their word...

-No.

-..face value.

-No.

So it is that time, are you ready to take a look at what we've done?

-I'm more than ready.

-Great, let's go. After you, missus.

'I can't wait to see Maureen's face when she opens her eyes to her new dream driveway.'

-Shut the door, keep your eyes closed.

-Yes.

Eyes closed, eyes closed.

-Are you ready?

-Yes.

-Open them.

Oh, it's wonderful, it's absolutely...

It's a stunner, isn't it?

-Look at the space for a start.

-I know.

Oh, it's beautifully done, absolutely beautiful.

We'll go round the corner but look at the detail.

Oh, look at that curve.

Them curves are gorgeous, aren't they? Look at this.

Now look at the space. You remember what it looked like?

It was awful, wasn't it, before?

-But now it looks amazing.

-Oh, it's beautiful.

The job these boys have done is absolutely incredible.

You've got all of your box soakaway there as well.

It's important to make sure that all the water's going away from the surface.

They've used a laser line generator to make sure that they've got

the levels right and that the water can soak away correctly.

But look at the space it's given you.

-The expanse of it...

-It's fantastic.

Let's go out to the front because this is what you're going to see

when you approach your home. Do you remember what it was like before when you are approaching your home?

Oh, yes.

-Depressing.

-Depressing. But now...

Oh, look around here, absolutely great.

It's a cracker of a job, isn't it? Hey? What do you think?

These guys are skilled and I tell you what, I think I said to you

-a couple of days ago I lost my faith in tradesmen and I was frightened to ask anybody to do anything.

-Yes.

But these guys have restored it.

They've done a fantastic, phenomenal job.

Yes, and they've proved there are craftsmen still around.

We've taken up the dangerous stones from all around her house and filled in that nasty trench.

The whole area has been levelled out with hardcore, sand, and screed then topped off

with a layer of membrane to prevent the weeds growing through.

The rocky road has been replaced with beautiful block paving, giving a fantastic finish.

Just tell me what your feelings are right now.

-Joy, absolute joy.

-Yes?

Yes, absolutely, and I'm going to have a party.

-A driveway party?

-Yes!

'Hopefully she'll invite the whole street.'

You know I'm so chuffed, we've managed to put the smiles

back on those two lovely ladies' faces, Mary and Maureen.

Please remember not all builders are cowboys and if you do your research,

you won't go falling headlong into the Cowboy Trap.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

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