:00:08. > :00:12.Mr Windows Cardiff Ltd went bust four weeks ago owing a quarter of a
:00:12. > :00:16.million pounds, so why does it look like business as usual at the
:00:16. > :00:19.company's factory? I'm up in Tywyn discovering how
:00:20. > :00:23.hard it is to find a public toilet when you really need one
:00:24. > :00:33.And a three hour wait for the meal to arrive - not the sort of wedding
:00:34. > :00:47.
:00:47. > :00:49.reception Tracey and Brian dreamed Hello. Later in the programme we'll
:00:49. > :00:53.be hearing from campaigners who want to see more public toilets
:00:53. > :00:58.across Wales. I'll be finding out what facilities are like for
:00:58. > :01:02.spending a penny here on Anglesey. But first, a conservatory must rank
:01:02. > :01:05.as one of the most expensive things you'll ever buy. But for one couple
:01:05. > :01:09.from near Pontypridd, what was planned as the final touch to their
:01:09. > :01:18.home has turned into a bit of a nightmare. Rachel's been
:01:18. > :01:23.Home is where the heart is, and for Simon Matthews and Kay Jones it's
:01:23. > :01:29.this three-bedroom house in Beddau near Pontypridd. Simon moved in
:01:29. > :01:34.with Kay early last year, and they've got big plans for the place.
:01:34. > :01:37.Welcome to our home. This is the living room. A bit of a building
:01:37. > :01:41.site at the moment. There's still a lot to do. Not least the couple's
:01:41. > :01:44.dream of a large conservatory. here, as you can see. This was
:01:44. > :01:49.going to be the conservatory, the area for the conservatory that we
:01:49. > :01:52.wanted to build. A nice wide one, right the way across the back of
:01:53. > :01:55.the house, going out. A lovely light room. Somewhere we could sit
:01:55. > :01:57.and enjoy and chill out in the evenings.
:01:57. > :02:01.The couple were hoping for something like this, perhaps, but a
:02:01. > :02:06.lot bigger. So back in June last year, they contacted Mr Windows, a
:02:06. > :02:12.company in Cardiff, to ask them to build their new conservatory. Plans
:02:12. > :02:18.were drawn up and Simon put down a �3,000 deposit. It was a big
:02:18. > :02:23.conservatory. It was in fact giving us the space in the garden. The
:02:23. > :02:26.whole thing is literally a dream that we wanted. But there was one
:02:26. > :02:32.nagging worry for the couple - this manhole cover and the drain that
:02:32. > :02:38.lies beneath it. They say Mr Windows told them they could move
:02:38. > :02:42.it as part of the total �15,000 cost of the new conservatory.
:02:42. > :02:48.advised it was easy to move. They advised it was something they could
:02:48. > :02:53.undertake within the costing of the job they'd priced. So did the
:02:53. > :02:58.representative take good look at the drain? No, he didn't. All he
:02:58. > :03:03.did was he looked at the surface of the drain. He's taken a photograph
:03:03. > :03:06.of the drain. For a year, work progressed on the
:03:06. > :03:10.house. Mr Windows installed new doors and glazing, but it wasn't
:03:10. > :03:15.until this July that Simon and Kay rang the company to say they were
:03:15. > :03:19.ready for them to start on the conservatory. We made provisional
:03:19. > :03:25.sort of dates and plans on our calendar. Nothing was actually in
:03:25. > :03:28.concrete, but certainly the plan was there to start the work.
:03:28. > :03:31.soon became clear that Simon's worries about the drain were well-
:03:31. > :03:34.founded, and moving it to make way for the conservatory was going to
:03:34. > :03:41.be a much bigger job than Mr Windows seemed to have been
:03:41. > :03:46.expecting. We had a visit from two subcontracting builders. I don't
:03:46. > :03:49.think they were very happy in what they saw. They appeared to be quite
:03:49. > :03:55.puzzled, and particularly in the sense of how they were going to
:03:55. > :03:58.move this drain. Were you feeling you were losing confidence?
:03:58. > :04:02.never felt we were getting a conclusive answer from them. We
:04:02. > :04:05.asked them time and time again. "How are you going to move this
:04:05. > :04:08.drain?" "How are you going to construct it?" "How are you going
:04:08. > :04:11.to build it, and where are you going to move it to?"
:04:11. > :04:14.More than a year after handing over their deposit, things were
:04:14. > :04:17.definitely not going to plan. After several phone calls and letters,
:04:17. > :04:23.Simon and Mr Windows Cardiff Ltd were no closer to an agreement
:04:23. > :04:28.about moving the troublesome drain. By now, the couple wanted their
:04:28. > :04:33.�3,000 refunded - and the company refused. Last month, the couple
:04:33. > :04:40.brought in an independent surveyor, Tim Davies, to get a second opinion.
:04:40. > :04:44.So, Tim, how unusual is this drain? It is quite unusual to have such a
:04:44. > :04:47.deep drain like this in the back of a house. It's actually over seven
:04:47. > :04:52.feet deep. It's a very deep inspection chamber. How difficult
:04:52. > :04:58.is it to move something like this? Very difficult. A lot of work
:04:58. > :05:01.involved with it, costly as well. Not a simple undertaking. Can you
:05:01. > :05:04.believe that they didn't actually inspect it at the time of making
:05:04. > :05:07.the contract? I'm quite shocked that they didn't simply just lift
:05:07. > :05:13.the inspection chamber lid off, which is an easy thing to do, and
:05:13. > :05:16.look down the hole. They would have seen it was a deep drain.
:05:16. > :05:18.Simon and Kay commissioned Tim's report to help them decide what to
:05:18. > :05:24.do next, and stop their conservatory plans going down the
:05:24. > :05:28.drain. But before they'd even read the report, they had a letter from
:05:28. > :05:34.Mr Windows. I found, to my amazement, that the company had
:05:34. > :05:41.gone into liquidation. It was, put it this way, it was the world just
:05:41. > :05:47.came from around you. It was absolutely dreadful. I had an awful
:05:47. > :05:51.lump in my tummy. The main thing was I had to ring Kay. Kay was in
:05:51. > :05:56.work, and to speak to Kay in work and tell her news, that we'd lost
:05:56. > :06:02.money. I don't even want to go down that route again - the feelings of
:06:02. > :06:05.it was dreadful. To add insult to injury, while Mr Windows was wound
:06:05. > :06:14.up voluntarily on October 13th, exactly a month before, a new
:06:14. > :06:17.company had been set up. This one had the rather similar name of Mr
:06:17. > :06:24.Windows Doors and Conservatories Ltd, and the similarities don't end
:06:24. > :06:30.there. The new company is based in exactly the same place as the old
:06:30. > :06:33.one, with same phone number and the same person managing it. It just
:06:33. > :06:39.makes it even more upsetting, it makes it even more annoying that
:06:39. > :06:41.they are allowed to do this. That they're allowed to take people's
:06:41. > :06:49.money, hard-earned money, and basically go into liquidation and
:06:49. > :06:59.then set themselves up under a very, very similar name. It's
:06:59. > :07:03.
:07:03. > :07:06.heartbreaking, it really is. what about the company's financial
:07:06. > :07:09.position? Well, we've been doing some digging around and have learnt
:07:09. > :07:12.that Mr Windows Cardiff Ltd owed more than a quarter of a million
:07:12. > :07:15.pounds, and even if all the company's assets are sold, that
:07:15. > :07:20.still leaves a shortfall of �113,000 owed to more than a dozen
:07:20. > :07:24.suppliers and other creditors. So where does that leave Simon and
:07:24. > :07:28.Kay, and is all of this legal? We got some advice from an expert in
:07:28. > :07:30.company law. In setting up this second company, I believe that
:07:30. > :07:33.they've placed themselves as directors at risk of being made
:07:33. > :07:37.personally liable for the debt, because I think that a court would
:07:37. > :07:44.look at it as a sham or a pretence. Legal action then seems like Simon
:07:44. > :07:47.and Kay's best hope of getting their deposit back. But that
:07:47. > :07:52.depends on a court ruling in their favour against the director of the
:07:52. > :07:59.original Mr Windows Cardiff. They would be personally liable, so all
:07:59. > :08:03.of their assets could be utilised in order to pay that debt.
:08:03. > :08:09.For now, Simon and Kay are getting on with the work in the rest of
:08:09. > :08:13.their house. Their plans for a conservatory on hold. We feel that
:08:13. > :08:16.we've been robbed, we feel we've been let down in every way possible.
:08:16. > :08:18.We find it very difficult how a company like that and their
:08:18. > :08:26.representatives, with all due respect, how they can sleep at
:08:26. > :08:30.Oh dear. So, Rachel, what is the company saying? They're denying
:08:30. > :08:33.that the experienced builders they sent to move the drain at Simon and
:08:33. > :08:36.Kay's property were unable to do the work. They say it was the
:08:36. > :08:39.couple's request to re-site the drain to a particular place in the
:08:39. > :08:42.garden, which would have required intensive work, which caused the
:08:42. > :08:47.problem. They say there was no need to check the manhole cover until
:08:47. > :08:50.the work was about to start. what did they do to try and sort
:08:51. > :08:53.things out? They say there were various attempts at compromise, but
:08:54. > :08:58.they all proved unsuccessful, and they point out that Simon and Kay's
:08:59. > :09:01.request for their deposit back was made after the cooling-off period.
:09:02. > :09:05.Now, what about the fact that Mr Windows Cardiff Ltd went into
:09:05. > :09:07.liquidation? Well, they say that this wasn't an easy decision, but
:09:07. > :09:10.they decided to liquidate that company owing to financial
:09:10. > :09:13.difficulties and start up a new company, Mr Windows, Doors and
:09:13. > :09:19.Conservatories Ltd, so that they could honour all the contracts and
:09:19. > :09:23.keep some of their staff in work. Are they allowed to do that? I've
:09:23. > :09:25.checked that with Tim Pryce-Brown, who you saw in the piece, and he
:09:25. > :09:30.believes that if they have specifically set up a new company
:09:30. > :09:34.to avoid the debts of the previous one, that is unlawful. Thanks,
:09:34. > :09:37.Rachel. We'll be keeping an eye on that, then.
:09:37. > :09:40.Now, you might wonder what we're doing outside the Senedd. Regular
:09:40. > :09:44.viewers will know we've been looking at the carrier bag charge
:09:44. > :09:47.introduced by the Welsh Goverment. And plenty more of you have been in
:09:47. > :09:50.touch with some more of your thoughts. Fred Matthews from
:09:50. > :09:53.Llanelli wants to know why we should pay to advertise the store
:09:53. > :09:56.we bought the bags from. And Owen Francis, who's also from Llanelli,
:09:57. > :10:02.also objects to paying for bags that advertise a shop's logo. He
:10:02. > :10:05.says, "If they want to advertise on our bags, we should charge them."
:10:05. > :10:09.And here's an interesting one from Leslie Lord from Rhosgoch on
:10:09. > :10:12.Anglesey. He says he's convinced that a lot more of us will now be
:10:12. > :10:15.buying plastic bin liners instead of using carrier bags, so just as
:10:15. > :10:21.much plastic will find it's way to landfill, as people now have to buy
:10:21. > :10:24.pedal bin liners instead. And this is a story we couldn't resist.
:10:24. > :10:27.Steve Griffiths from Anglesey told us that when he went to a
:10:27. > :10:31.conference for small businesses at Venue Cymru in Llandudno last week,
:10:31. > :10:36.who was giving away these free plastic bags? Yes - the Welsh
:10:36. > :10:41.Assembly Government. Steve says that it seems to him there's one
:10:41. > :10:45.rule for them and one rule for everyone else. They admit there's
:10:45. > :10:48.been "a regrettable oversight", and old promotional materials were used.
:10:48. > :10:53.But they've taken immediate steps to ensure this will never happen
:10:53. > :11:03.again. Good thing too! Next - time to sort out one of your
:11:03. > :11:10.
:11:10. > :11:14.Rachel Morris from Holyhead thought her son's Xbox had tight security.
:11:14. > :11:21.That was until her credit card details were used by someone else.
:11:21. > :11:25.The system was hacked into and money was taken out of my account.
:11:25. > :11:30.I'm still waiting for a refund from Xbox. Last Christmas, Rachel
:11:30. > :11:36.surprised her son Adam with an Xbox. He wanted a new one. His friends
:11:36. > :11:40.have all got Xboxes. And you went for Xbox Live. Tell me about that.
:11:40. > :11:44.You have to have the internet, so you get connected to the internet,
:11:44. > :11:46.and then if I put my bank details in, he can buy players, so he can
:11:47. > :11:50.play with his friends online, and they can play football matches
:11:51. > :11:56.against each other. But in April this year, a major
:11:56. > :12:00.problem developed with the Xbox. wouldn't let him on. It said his
:12:00. > :12:03.user number had been declined because somebody had hacked into it.
:12:03. > :12:07.And what did you think when you saw that - did alarm bells start to
:12:07. > :12:10.ring? Not until he actually said that your card details are in the
:12:10. > :12:15.machine, he said it had been hacked. I never even thought that anybody
:12:15. > :12:18.could get my bank details off it. So what did you do next? Phoned the
:12:18. > :12:24.bank, they cancelled my card for me, and phoned up Xbox, and they said
:12:24. > :12:29.that they'd look into it. Three days later, Rachel's fears of
:12:29. > :12:33.a security breach were confirmed. phoned the bank straight away, and
:12:33. > :12:39.they said that two transactions had come out. One was for �51 and one
:12:39. > :12:43.for �42.50. And what did Xbox say after they'd investigated? They
:12:43. > :12:48.said that it was a fraudulent claim, and that they'd send the money back
:12:48. > :12:52.- it would be in my account within 30 days. But still nothing.
:12:52. > :12:59.So, Rachel, what would you like me to do? To get my money back, please.
:12:59. > :13:03.Well, it seems that Rachel did everything right. She immediately
:13:03. > :13:07.got in touch with her bank when she suspected her credit card details
:13:07. > :13:12.had been used. Rachel made sure no further money would be taken by
:13:12. > :13:16.cancelling her credit card and setting up a new account. She told
:13:16. > :13:26.Xbox about the problems, and made sure they investigated. So let's
:13:26. > :13:26.
:13:26. > :13:29.Well, Microsoft, the company that makes the Xbox, has got back to me
:13:29. > :13:32.they say they take the security of the Xbox Live service very
:13:32. > :13:35.seriously. Microsoft has investigated Rachel's complaint
:13:35. > :13:38.thoroughly, and say their records indicated that the refund was
:13:38. > :13:47.received and cleared by her bank in September, at which point they
:13:47. > :13:50.considered the matter closed. But they have now carried out a further
:13:50. > :13:55.investigation, they thank Rachel for her patience, and have reissued
:13:55. > :13:59.a refund. Xbox have now been in touch, and
:13:59. > :14:06.I've had a cheque for a full refund of �93.50.
:14:06. > :14:16.And remember, if you're struggling to get a consumer problem sorted,
:14:16. > :14:19.
:14:19. > :14:22.get in touch. Our contact details Next, have you ever struggled to
:14:22. > :14:26.find one of these? It seems public toilets are getting harder and
:14:26. > :14:31.harder to find. Do you think there are enough toilets around here?
:14:31. > :14:35.I don't think so. They are cheap to run and I think it is a totally
:14:36. > :14:45.unnecessary move. I agree there should be more about.
:14:45. > :14:49.Disgusting. They shouldn't even think about getting rid of them.
:14:49. > :14:52.I think for cafes are a good option in town but out of time it is
:14:52. > :15:00.harder. Rhod's been finding out what the
:15:00. > :15:05.situation's like in other parts of When you're out and about, you
:15:05. > :15:15.often hear the call of nature. And when you've gotta go, you've gotta
:15:15. > :15:23.
:15:23. > :15:29.Getting caught short is never nice but it could soon be something
:15:29. > :15:34.we're all going to have to get used For some people public toilets are
:15:34. > :15:38.more than just a convenience. Here in Tywyn in mid Wales the residents
:15:38. > :15:48.feel they deserve better facilities. I've come to meet some local people
:15:48. > :15:48.
:15:48. > :15:51.As for the elderly and the disabled groups they are a necessity. People
:15:51. > :15:57.plan their journeys around the toilet stops and if the toilets are
:15:57. > :16:00.not there or locked they're unable to go out.
:16:00. > :16:04.It's a great shame that they have to be housebound because of a
:16:04. > :16:07.shortage of toilets. I've got a two-year-old son who I'm
:16:07. > :16:12.potty training so I don't really want to stop on the high street or
:16:12. > :16:16.the beach and get the potty out. It's very important that we've got
:16:16. > :16:21.somewhere we can quickly access. Yes, it's very embarrassing if a
:16:21. > :16:25.lady does need to go to the loo and there's nowhere to go.
:16:25. > :16:27.It's not much to ask for, is it? I guess all you're asking for is
:16:27. > :16:31.somewhere safe and somewhere clean to go.
:16:31. > :16:35.Yeah, as a mum and as a pregnant woman it's really, really important.
:16:35. > :16:38.Finding a public loo could be even trickier in the future. Over the
:16:38. > :16:42.last 10 years, around four out of 10 public loos have been closed and
:16:42. > :16:45.there are no laws forcing councils to provide them. But campaigners
:16:45. > :16:53.are desperate to protect Wales' 600 remaining public toilets which they
:16:53. > :17:01.fear could become the victim of spending cuts. Where you live can
:17:01. > :17:04.have a big impact on where you can Pembrokeshire has the most public
:17:04. > :17:11.toilets in Wales with the council there running more than 90, while
:17:12. > :17:14.in Wrexham there are just 10 and in Louise Hughes has been fighting to
:17:15. > :17:17.halt toilet closures for years and on Wednesday, she'll be joining a
:17:17. > :17:25.demonstration at Cardiff Bay to try and protect public loos from
:17:25. > :17:28.council spending cuts. Louise, this is one of the public toilets in
:17:28. > :17:33.Tywyn and looking at the door it's very obvious that it's completely
:17:33. > :17:36.and utterly bolted closed. It is and it's been locked for a
:17:36. > :17:40.couple of years now and it's actually one of the most important
:17:40. > :17:44.toilets in Tywyn because it's right on the beach. In the summer the
:17:44. > :17:46.place is packed with families all on the beach and they can't go to
:17:46. > :17:50.the toilet because the door is locked.
:17:50. > :17:54.With regards to your passion for public toilets, so to speak, why?
:17:54. > :17:57.Well it all started about three years ago and I saw an old lady on
:17:57. > :18:01.the street in Tywyn and she was in floods of tears she was distraught
:18:01. > :18:05.and it turns out she'd peed her pants, she'd wet her knickers and
:18:05. > :18:11.she was utterly, utterly upset so I took her home and made her a cup of
:18:11. > :18:14.tea and I thought this isn't right. This could be somebody's nan,
:18:14. > :18:18.somebody's mother, and she'd lost all her dignity.
:18:18. > :18:21.We're facing tough financial times. Do you think this could be the end
:18:21. > :18:30.of public toilets? The way things are going there are
:18:30. > :18:33.going to be none left, especially in rural areas, it hits us hardest.
:18:33. > :18:35.In urban areas you have shops, businesses, cafes, pubs, we don't
:18:35. > :18:38.have that here. We don't have that alternative.
:18:38. > :18:41.So Louise, what's the solution? The point of my campaign is that I
:18:41. > :18:43.would like to see it that local authorities have a statutory right
:18:44. > :18:50.to provide public toilets. It's as simple as that.
:18:50. > :18:53.That's the bottom line. And at a nearby beauty spot, Cregennan Lakes,
:18:53. > :18:57.Louise showed me what can happen when people are left with nowhere
:18:57. > :19:00.to go. The National Trust say they can no longer afford to maintain
:19:00. > :19:03.the toilets and the nearest ones are now two miles down the road.
:19:04. > :19:07.And in the middle of the National Parks, which is in the middle of
:19:07. > :19:10.nowhere, some toilets. How handy! Not so handy, they're all locked.
:19:10. > :19:14.Indeed, and people come here because it's so beautiful. They
:19:14. > :19:16.come for a walk, they come all day, they come for a picnic and the
:19:16. > :19:19.toilet block's closed, it's just so crazy.
:19:19. > :19:23.And obviously the call of nature goes to nature itself. People just
:19:23. > :19:26.go anywhere. Well yeah. People improvise and
:19:26. > :19:32.they go behind the block and it's not pleasant, especially in the
:19:32. > :19:35.summer when it's hot. There's been more people up here so there's more
:19:35. > :19:37.mess. It's absolutely dreadful. Now watch where you stand.
:19:37. > :19:41.Oh dear, dear, dear. That's not good is it?
:19:41. > :19:45.It's not pleasant but then the toilet block is shut so what are
:19:45. > :19:48.people supposed to do? Not a good situation. On Wednesday
:19:48. > :19:51.the Welsh Senate for Older People will be holding a rally here
:19:51. > :19:55.calling for a new law which would force councils to provide public
:19:55. > :19:58.loos. They also want to see an improvement in the number and
:19:58. > :20:05.quality of public toilets in Wales. Vanessa, you're from the WLGA which
:20:05. > :20:08.represents Welsh councils. Why is the situation so bad?
:20:08. > :20:13.It is a very difficult time for local authorities in Wales. They
:20:13. > :20:19.have had cash cuts to their budget in this financial year and that
:20:19. > :20:22.follows years of having had not so good settlements. Next year will be
:20:22. > :20:26.the same so they are having to make difficult choices about what to
:20:26. > :20:31.fund. From the scenes I witness myself,
:20:31. > :20:34.the only words to describe it is disgusting. Purely and hygienic. To
:20:34. > :20:39.these cuts mean the public has to suffer tremendously?
:20:39. > :20:44.There are alternative solutions where a local authority makes a
:20:44. > :20:47.decision about closing public toilets and it has discussions with
:20:47. > :20:52.the local council about whether or not they want to take on the
:20:52. > :20:55.service. There is also a grant scheme which has been run by the
:20:55. > :20:59.Welsh Assembly Government and that provides local authorities with
:20:59. > :21:02.money to give businesses so they can open their facilities to the
:21:02. > :21:05.public to enable more provision within areas where public toilets
:21:05. > :21:10.are closing. What is the answer?
:21:10. > :21:14.It is difficult and I think the answer is a combination of the
:21:14. > :21:17.local authority provision, town and community council provision and
:21:17. > :21:20.also local businesses. Local authorities are having to make cuts
:21:20. > :21:23.because of their financial settlement and we have to accept
:21:23. > :21:26.the fact that some services won't be there in future.
:21:26. > :21:29.Thanks, Vanessa. Next, a delicious meal is a pretty
:21:29. > :21:32.important part of any wedding. But for one Newport couple and their
:21:32. > :21:35.guests, there was disappointment in store.
:21:35. > :21:44.The dress, the venue, the cakes, the menu, the rings, the flowers,
:21:44. > :21:47.the first dance Organising a The secret to a successful day is
:21:47. > :21:53.all in the planning and most brides start that the moment the question
:21:53. > :21:57.has been popped. And Tracey Fowler was no different. When fireman
:21:57. > :22:00.Brian Amos proposed it was second time lucky for the couple. And
:22:00. > :22:08.after recovering from a mild stroke last year she was keen to have a
:22:08. > :22:12.big celebration. Fairytale. That's what I was hoping
:22:12. > :22:19.for, my family to all be together, and a lovely day, all my friends, a
:22:19. > :22:22.lovely husband, our three children and a fairytale.
:22:22. > :22:27.Brian and Tracey wanted to get married here, the Burleigh Academy
:22:27. > :22:29.in Newport, the venue where they first got together. According to
:22:30. > :22:34.its website, the Burleigh Academy is probably the most beautiful
:22:34. > :22:37.wedding and civil partnership venue in Wales.
:22:37. > :22:43.It's where we met, It's a special place, it's a beautiful venue, as
:22:43. > :22:46.such and it was just a no-brainer really.
:22:46. > :22:50.And the venue's owner, Sarah Lucas, the woman in the centre of this
:22:50. > :22:54.photo, promised the couple a dream wedding.
:22:54. > :22:58.She made me feel it would be the best wedding ever, "I'll make your
:22:58. > :23:01.day special." She knew I'd been ill and she was quite excited, really
:23:01. > :23:05.excited for us. As the wedding drew nearer the
:23:05. > :23:08.couple paid Sarah in cash, as she had asked. They paid just over
:23:08. > :23:13.�3,000 for the venue and staff and the rest, nearly �4,000 to cover
:23:13. > :23:17.food and other costs. And, as is traditional for most
:23:17. > :23:21.brides, on the day Tracey turned up a little bit late. And that's where
:23:21. > :23:23.the problems started. What time were you supposed to get
:23:23. > :23:27.there? 12 o' clock.
:23:27. > :23:32.And what time did you get there? It's a street away so I got there
:23:32. > :23:35.at 12:14pm. I couldn't wait. I got out of the car, and I was just so
:23:35. > :23:38.excited and she said, "You're late, no photographs."
:23:38. > :23:41.Basically by the time you'd got into the church I was facing the
:23:41. > :23:46.other way obviously and I had a quick sneaky look back, just as the
:23:46. > :23:51.music was playing, and you know you looked perfect.
:23:51. > :23:54.After the ceremony, Brian and Tracey had their photographs taken.
:23:54. > :23:57.Then they returned to the reception for the West Indian feast they'd
:23:57. > :24:00.ordered in honour of Brian's Caribbean roots. But whilst
:24:00. > :24:08.everyone was seated by 2:30pm, the guests were left waiting and
:24:08. > :24:10.waiting to be fed. I was looking around the room and I
:24:10. > :24:14.could see people weren't being fed at all.
:24:14. > :24:18.I mean, this was over a period of time, it wasn't just over starter
:24:18. > :24:22.and then there was a slight delay. This was somewhere between two and
:24:22. > :24:26.three hours after we'd sat down to have our main course.
:24:26. > :24:30.Did they seem stressed, the people in charge? Did you speak to Sarah?
:24:30. > :24:33.Well my sister went to see her and asked what was going on, and she
:24:33. > :24:38.said, explained then that the hot plate had broken and she was doing
:24:38. > :24:41.the best she could. So then that rumour got round everybody then.
:24:41. > :24:44.Well it was 5:45pm when my sister said that five tables, which were
:24:44. > :24:46.ten people on a table, hadn't been fed.
:24:46. > :24:50.It descended into chaos, actually, because people were saying three
:24:50. > :24:55.people on the table had been served their main, some people had been
:24:55. > :24:59.served coffee without having had a meal. Some people had vegetables
:24:59. > :25:04.but the gravy had gone because it was cold, it had come back boiling
:25:04. > :25:08.hot but then the vegetables were cold. There seemed to be no
:25:08. > :25:11.coordination in the way the food was delivered at the table.
:25:11. > :25:15.Some guests were kept waiting so long for their meals that they
:25:15. > :25:19.decided to pop to the local chippy, not quite the wedding meal that
:25:19. > :25:24.Tracey and Brian had planned. And because the meal was so late, there
:25:24. > :25:28.wasn't time for all the speeches. The father of the bride, Derek
:25:28. > :25:32.Pratt, never got a chance to toast his daughter.
:25:32. > :25:37.I wanted to wish them all the best and everything and I was
:25:37. > :25:43.disappointed I couldn't say that. As their plans fell apart, Tracey
:25:43. > :25:49.and Brian were left deeply disappointed.
:25:49. > :25:52.Well I didn't want anyone to see that I was upset. Just fighting
:25:52. > :25:55.back the tears really, and just thinking in my mind, "This is not
:25:55. > :25:58.going to spoil our day." Tracey and Brian returned here the
:25:58. > :26:01.next day to complain and Sarah offered them �475. It was a figure
:26:01. > :26:04.they were unwilling to accept. I was disappointed in that she said
:26:04. > :26:07.she hadn't slept and that she realised she hadn't provided the
:26:07. > :26:13.service which she said she would, remembering of course she said this
:26:13. > :26:18.is going to be the best wedding ever.
:26:18. > :26:21.Sarah Lucas then said she'd reconsider. But when the couple met
:26:21. > :26:24.her again, she told them she wasn't prepared to offer anything.
:26:24. > :26:28.Basically we met and she denied everything, she's saying that she's
:26:28. > :26:31.offering us absolutely nothing. When we first contacted Sarah Lucas
:26:31. > :26:34.about the problems with the meal, she said these issues needed to be
:26:34. > :26:41.addressed to the caterers, a Pentecostal Church in Pill, who she
:26:41. > :26:46.said the couple had booked themselves. But the ladies here at
:26:46. > :26:50.the New Testament Church of God tell a different story. They say
:26:50. > :26:53.they've never even met the couple. Sarah's letter to us also says the
:26:53. > :26:58.caterers blame the food problems on the wedding couple's late arrival
:26:58. > :27:01.at the reception. Consumer law expert Margaret Griffiths says
:27:01. > :27:06.Sarah was wrong to says she doesn't hold responsibility and to blame
:27:06. > :27:10.the church. She is responsible for this. When
:27:10. > :27:13.you book a contract for the provision of the service it is the
:27:13. > :27:16.person with whom you actually book it that is responsible and the fact
:27:16. > :27:18.that as in this instance of a wedding breakfast, she can
:27:18. > :27:22.subcontract the catering to someone else, she might have subcontracted
:27:22. > :27:25.provision of flowers or some music or whatever but at the end of the
:27:25. > :27:29.day, the customer's contract is with her and she is responsible on
:27:29. > :27:36.The only fairytale bit was that I eventually married Brian and three
:27:36. > :27:40.children are happy for us, but she did spoil the day.
:27:41. > :27:44.Aw! Well we've heard more Sarah Lucas. She says the bride was 35
:27:44. > :27:48.minutes late but there was only a slight delay before the food was
:27:48. > :27:51.served to guests and only a few meals were cold. She points out
:27:51. > :27:58.that an evening buffet for 230 was also served and she says the guests
:27:58. > :28:02.enjoyed this immensely. But she is still willing to offer a refund of
:28:02. > :28:06.�475 for the late service of some meals.
:28:06. > :28:16.Well that's all we've got time for tonight. Wherever you are in Wales,
:28:16. > :28:20.