:00:04. > :00:08.You're watching X-Ray. On tonight's programme: Is there a time bomb in
:00:08. > :00:13.your kitchen? Why thousands of Welsh homes could be at risk from a
:00:13. > :00:19.fire like this. We investigate the sky high charges for passengers who
:00:19. > :00:29.change details on their plane tickets. And justice at last for
:00:29. > :00:40.
:00:40. > :00:43.the families whose holidays were ruined by this serial scammer.
:00:43. > :00:46.Hello and welcome to a brand new series of X-Ray. We'll be out and
:00:46. > :00:50.about across Wales this summer, whatever the weather! This week
:00:50. > :00:55.we're in Port Talbot. And I'm just up the road in Briton Ferry -
:00:55. > :00:58.behind me here, Mid and West Wales Fire service are hard at work!
:00:58. > :01:01.Today is just a training exercise, but these crews have also been
:01:01. > :01:10.tackling some very worrying real- life fires - which X-Ray viewers
:01:10. > :01:14.really need to know about. Rachel's got the story.
:01:14. > :01:18.It's March 15th and in Llanfyllin it's Zoe Gittins 16th birthday.
:01:18. > :01:27.But just days later, this was all that remained after a fire which
:01:27. > :01:37.devastated the family home. Inside their house, the damage is
:01:37. > :01:39.
:01:39. > :01:42.so severe the family won't be able to move back in for weeks. But this
:01:42. > :01:46.wasn't just a freak accident - the fault that caused this fire could
:01:46. > :01:49.be a ticking time bomb in up to half a million homes. The day of
:01:49. > :01:53.the fire had begun like any other in the Gittins house. It was the
:01:53. > :01:58.usual chaos of right girls, bags, come on, let's go, we've got to go
:01:58. > :02:04.to school, I've got to get to work. We had our breakfast, mum put all
:02:04. > :02:09.our bowls in the dishwasher. Almost forgot to put it on. No, let's put
:02:09. > :02:15.it on while we are out. We can come back and we can empty it so that's
:02:15. > :02:20.what I did. After school, mum Ruth dropped the girls home before
:02:20. > :02:24.returning to work. But straight away Zoe knew something was wrong.
:02:24. > :02:28.I went to the door and it was dark and black and I wasn't really sure
:02:28. > :02:38.why. So I opened the door carefully and you just got hit with this
:02:38. > :02:47.horrible smell of smoke and stuff. Zoe had left about four messages on
:02:48. > :02:51.my phone cos I was driving back to work. I just sat down back at my
:02:51. > :02:54.desk and picked my phone up and actually thought what does she want,
:02:54. > :02:57.what's she forgotten? She probably wants me to get something for tea
:02:58. > :03:00.on the way home. And rang and she just blurted out, mum you've got to
:03:00. > :03:04.come home, the dishwasher's exploded and the dogs have died,
:03:04. > :03:14.and it was when she said the dogs had died my knees just went, I just
:03:14. > :03:17.
:03:17. > :03:20.it was all very I just went, oh my Phoebe was panicking that I
:03:20. > :03:23.shouldn't go in the house, please don't go in the house mum, please
:03:23. > :03:27.don't go in the house. And Zoe was in pieces, obviously devastated cos
:03:27. > :03:36.she'd been in and she'd seen Tilly, the Jack Russell, and she knew then
:03:36. > :03:41.that they'd both died. They felt like a brother and sister to me.
:03:41. > :03:44.It's quite upsetting to see. I didn't see Doogle the Lab because
:03:44. > :03:50.it was so dark in there because you couldn't see him but the little
:03:50. > :03:55.Jack Russell was just lying, she looked like she was asleep. This
:03:55. > :03:58.was the cause of the fire - the family's Bosch dishwasher. The
:03:58. > :04:00.problem was an electrical fault in the control panel which caught
:04:00. > :04:10.alight, burning surrounding cupboards and coating everything in
:04:10. > :04:11.
:04:11. > :04:15.a thick, black soot. So this is what's left of your kitchen. Gosh,
:04:15. > :04:19.how does it feel coming in here now? Horrible, horrible. I just
:04:19. > :04:21.loved being in my kitchen but this isn't my kitchen, it's a burnt out,
:04:21. > :04:31.horrible, smelly, dirty room in a house somewhere, it's not my
:04:31. > :04:32.
:04:32. > :04:35.kitchen at all. But this wasn't a one-off. Ruth's dishwasher was in
:04:35. > :04:45.fact one of 632,000 that Bosch had recalled two years earlier because
:04:45. > :04:46.
:04:46. > :04:49.of the risk they could catch fire. What did the fireman tell you about
:04:49. > :04:52.the recall there? He said had I not seen the news. And I had absolutely
:04:52. > :04:56.no idea and that was John's reaction was well, why haven't we
:04:56. > :04:59.heard? This is a potential time bomb that has been sat in the
:04:59. > :05:02.kitchen and we didn't know known anything about it. Bosch told us
:05:02. > :05:05.they wrote to Ruth in August 2011 but she insists she never received
:05:05. > :05:13.the letter. The blaze in Ruth's home was one of 269 incidents
:05:13. > :05:16.linked to the faulty Bosch dishwashers. These images are some
:05:16. > :05:24.of seven fires in Dorset where concerned firefighters say they
:05:24. > :05:27.fear someone will die. It's a real worry that the message just isn't
:05:27. > :05:31.getting through to many of the people who need to hear it. So why
:05:31. > :05:36.are we being put at risk by a recall system that clearly isn't
:05:36. > :05:39.working? One big problem is that most of us buying electricals don't
:05:39. > :05:45.register them, so manufacturers struggle to find us when there's a
:05:45. > :05:48.problem. The average success rate is less than 20% - shockingly low
:05:48. > :05:56.compared to cars where buyers must register their details and recalls
:05:56. > :06:01.are 90% successful. Campaigners argue the law needs to be tougher
:06:01. > :06:05.too. Currently there's no timeframe for manufacturers in terms of when
:06:05. > :06:08.they have to issue recall notices. It comes down to them deciding that
:06:08. > :06:11.a product's unsafe and at the moment the penalties just aren't
:06:11. > :06:13.harsh enough. It's only a �5,000 penalty for manufacturers if they
:06:13. > :06:19.delay issuing warnings or don't take appropriate action and that's
:06:19. > :06:21.what we need to see tightened. there can be worrying
:06:21. > :06:29.inconsistencies when it comes to recalling potentially dangerous
:06:29. > :06:32.products. We've discovered that one of the biggest names in electricals
:06:32. > :06:37.has decided not to recall one of its dishwashers even though it's
:06:37. > :06:40.got exactly the same fault as the Bosch machines.
:06:40. > :06:49.Some Hotpoint dishwashers made between 1999 and 2003 were actually
:06:49. > :06:52.manufactured by Bosch so have the same fault. But Hotpoint say that
:06:52. > :06:57.very few machines would still be in use now - so they're not recalling
:06:57. > :06:59.them. Of course we just don't know whether that's the case. So our
:06:59. > :07:02.advice would be, you know, in any situation that manufacturers if
:07:02. > :07:06.they know that there's a problem with one of their products whether
:07:06. > :07:09.it's an old product or a new product, they issue that notice so
:07:10. > :07:12.if you do have one of those items that you can stop using it.
:07:12. > :07:19.challenged the Government about why they're not doing more to improve
:07:19. > :07:23.the recall system for electrical goods. But they insist that current
:07:23. > :07:26.laws are working effectively. As for the Gittins family, they've
:07:26. > :07:29.received a letter of apology from Bosch but still face months of
:07:29. > :07:36.upheaval while thousands of pounds worth of damage to their home is
:07:36. > :07:39.repaired. If anybody had said to me that a dishwasher could possibly
:07:39. > :07:49.cause this much devastation I probably wouldn't have believed it
:07:49. > :07:49.
:07:49. > :07:52.myself. But it does and it has and I think that's the important
:07:52. > :07:57.message we really want to get across with all of this is please,
:07:57. > :08:00.everybody check your dishwasher. really worrying story there. Now
:08:00. > :08:02.Bosch are taking this very seriously - they've sent 800,000
:08:02. > :08:08.letters to customers, they've taken out adverts in newspapers and set
:08:08. > :08:11.up an website telling people how to arrange a free repair. But so far
:08:11. > :08:15.they've only come across just over a quarter of the affected
:08:15. > :08:20.dishwashers. The Fire Service here in Mid and West Wales are also
:08:20. > :08:23.urging people to check their dishwashers. Ryland Williams, this
:08:23. > :08:26.isn't the first case you've had in this area, is it? No, it's not
:08:26. > :08:30.Rhodri, we've had three incidents in this area, two in Llandeilo and
:08:30. > :08:33.one in Llanfylliin. I investigated one in Llandeilo area where the
:08:33. > :08:35.couple were in bed reading on a Sunday evening and they only became
:08:36. > :08:38.aware of the incident when the lights tripped. And on
:08:38. > :08:42.investigating they found flames emitting from the door of the
:08:43. > :08:46.appliance. It could have been potentially serious. So how can
:08:46. > :08:49.anybody who's watching find out if their machine is one of the
:08:49. > :08:51.affected ones? Well if they own a Bosch, Neff or Siemens dishwashers
:08:51. > :08:57.manufactured between 1999 and 2005 they need to check the serial
:08:57. > :09:00.number. Now they can find the serial number on the inner edge of
:09:00. > :09:04.dishwasher door, in the top left- hand corner, it would normally
:09:05. > :09:07.start with an S. And then check that against those that are
:09:07. > :09:13.affected, they can check that on the Repair action website which
:09:13. > :09:16.is.RepairAction.co.uk Excellent advice there, Ryland. Thank you
:09:16. > :09:19.very much. All the vital information you need is on our
:09:19. > :09:27.website. Plus there's more information about the Hotpoint
:09:27. > :09:31.dishwashers we mentioned. And if there's anything you'd like X-Ray
:09:31. > :09:41.to investigate, do get in touch. You can call us on 03703 334 334 or
:09:41. > :09:42.
:09:42. > :09:48.email xray@bbc.co.uk. Or why not Still to come: How criminals used
:09:48. > :09:51.electronic cash to con Lesley and Cheryl out of hundreds of pounds.
:09:51. > :09:57.And the building firm who'd only fix Thelma's window if she paid for
:09:57. > :10:01.a new driveway! Next, Lucy's been checking out
:10:01. > :10:10.which airline has the cheekiest charges if you need to change your
:10:10. > :10:16.ticket! When it comes to sorting consumer problems they say I'm the
:10:16. > :10:20.best of the best - a top gun trouble shooter. Of course when it
:10:20. > :10:30.comes to travelling abroad most of us don't have one of these to get
:10:30. > :10:34.
:10:34. > :10:37.about. We rely on commercial airlines to get us off the ground.
:10:37. > :10:40.These days there's a huge choice of airlines at airports in and around
:10:40. > :10:47.Wales, all keen to target canny consumers looking for a cheap deal
:10:47. > :10:55.on their flights. But if you ever need to change your booking details
:10:55. > :10:58.before you travel you could see the cost of your flights rocket.
:10:58. > :11:04.Ceri Goodwin from Taff's Well had a nasty surprise when she booked
:11:04. > :11:07.flights from Cardiff to Malaga with Vueling. So tell me about this trip
:11:07. > :11:10.you're planning because it is a special trip, isn't it? My daughter
:11:10. > :11:14.and her boyfriend are getting married in Nerja in the Costa Del
:11:14. > :11:17.Sol in July. Obviously we've needed to book flights for the wedding.
:11:17. > :11:20.When one guest pulled out Ceri decided to use the ticket for
:11:20. > :11:26.another guest. But when she contacted Vueling to change the
:11:26. > :11:36.names their reply took her breath away. The gentleman I got through
:11:36. > :11:41.to on the phone. I said to him how much is this going to cost and he
:11:41. > :11:44.said 360 euros. I said sorry, I thought I was just changing the
:11:44. > :11:47.name on the flight I'm not actually buying another flight he said no,
:11:47. > :11:50.no that's the cost of changing the flight. Vueling makes some hefty
:11:50. > :11:53.charges if customers change their booking details -100 euros - around
:11:53. > :11:59.�85 - for a return journey, plus the difference between the original
:12:00. > :12:03.ticket cost and the price when the change is made. And as Ceri found
:12:03. > :12:09.out that can mean the cost of your flight soars to more than double
:12:09. > :12:13.the original price. It's not fair it's not just, it's just absolute
:12:13. > :12:18.crazy to charge that amount of money. And it seems Vueling isn't
:12:18. > :12:24.the only airline cashing in when it comes to changing your ticket.
:12:24. > :12:27.Plenty of other companies have sky high charges too. Easy Jet and
:12:27. > :12:30.Flybe have similar fees for changing a return journey - and
:12:30. > :12:38.make customers pay any difference in ticket prices since they bought
:12:38. > :12:44.their original flights. Hot on their tails are the firms that
:12:45. > :12:47.charge a flat fee for a name change and that can be pretty pricey too!
:12:48. > :12:55.Holiday firm Thomson charges �50 for a name change on a return
:12:55. > :12:58.flight. Whilst Thomas Cook customers would have to pay �60 to
:12:58. > :13:03.change the name on a return ticket online and �100 to do it over the
:13:03. > :13:06.phone. Changing your details with Aer Lingus would cost �80. And
:13:06. > :13:14.fasten your seat belts for this one, Ryan Air charges �110 to change a
:13:14. > :13:19.return flight online and �160 if you do it at the airport. So much
:13:19. > :13:22.for a low cost flight! But some airlines won't allow
:13:22. > :13:28.passengers to change their booking details at all, insisting they
:13:28. > :13:33.cancel their original ticket and buy a new one. These policies may
:13:33. > :13:35.have some passengers looking for the emergency exits. But marketing
:13:36. > :13:42.expert Henry Enos says airlines claim these charges are necessary
:13:42. > :13:45.to stop people abusing the system. Airlines charge these fees to
:13:45. > :13:51.prevent people from bulk buying tickets, this is what they say but
:13:51. > :13:54.they're charging wildly different rates between airlines. What's
:13:54. > :13:57.interesting is that not only will they charge this penalty fee, they
:13:57. > :14:01.will also charge you on many occasions the difference on the day
:14:01. > :14:05.you bought it to the day you make the change which could be hundreds
:14:05. > :14:08.of pounds. Now that doesn't seem quite right. And what if you need
:14:08. > :14:13.to change the booking details because of an honest mistake - like
:14:13. > :14:20.a spelling error? Well, some airlines do treat that differently
:14:20. > :14:23.and will make changes for free. But with others there's a need for
:14:23. > :14:27.speed with just a short window to put things right before they hit
:14:27. > :14:30.you with another charge. But that's not much help when most people
:14:30. > :14:34.don't spot a mistake until they receive their tickets - days or
:14:34. > :14:37.even weeks later! But there could be some good news on the horizon.
:14:37. > :14:39.The European Commission wants to bring in new laws allowing
:14:39. > :14:49.passengers to correct spelling mistakes free of charge up to 48
:14:49. > :14:50.
:14:51. > :14:54.hours before departure. It's hoped this could be in place by 2015.
:14:54. > :15:00.Until then, you'll have to brace yourself for extra costs for any
:15:00. > :15:04.changes you need to make. So be very careful when booking those
:15:04. > :15:07.flights. Good advice! Now as we heard there,
:15:07. > :15:15.Ceri Goodwin wasn't happy about forking out �360 to transfer her
:15:15. > :15:18.Vueling plane ticket to another passenger. But because she'd so
:15:18. > :15:21.many seats for her daughter's wedding guests, Vueling has agreed
:15:21. > :15:26.not to charge her this time. Fantastic news.
:15:26. > :15:30.Now have you ever heard of electronic money, or e-cash? Well,
:15:30. > :15:39.it's the new way to pay - but as Rhod's been finding out, you should
:15:39. > :15:43.be very careful who you send it to. Now buying something, used to be
:15:43. > :15:46.straightforward. - thanks very much. You hand over your money. You see
:15:46. > :15:49.who you were paying and you'd get proof of purchase. And you knew who
:15:49. > :15:53.to complain to if things went wrong. But times change, from the local
:15:53. > :15:56.shop to buying from the other side of the planet - and as technology
:15:56. > :15:59.progressed, cards became King. But not everyone has access to debit or
:15:59. > :16:08.credit cards - and do you really want to send your bank details out
:16:08. > :16:13.into the world? Now there's an alternative to these. The new way
:16:13. > :16:17.to spend is electronic cash, also known as e-money. Businesses, banks
:16:17. > :16:26.and even search engines have set up new ways for you to transfer money
:16:26. > :16:28.without even leaving your seat. One of the leading companies offering
:16:28. > :16:32.this service is Ukash. It's completely legitimate and their
:16:32. > :16:41.unique selling point is the ease of use, with no need to reveal any
:16:41. > :16:44.personal information or bank details. Ukash is a safe way to pay
:16:44. > :16:47.online, perfect if you don't want to pay with your credit or debit
:16:47. > :16:50.card, or if you don't have one. Sounds simple enough. But this is
:16:50. > :16:54.completely new to me. How does it work? Let's find out. Well, you
:16:54. > :16:57.just need to find your nearest shop with a PayPoint or Payzone sign.
:16:57. > :17:00.You hand over your money, up to �200. And you get a voucher with
:17:00. > :17:05.19-digit code. Right this unique code here is now e-money and if you
:17:05. > :17:10.pass it on to someone else. They can turn it into cash. Wow, that
:17:10. > :17:17.was quick. Ukash says it is designed for customers to pay
:17:17. > :17:20.businesses online. But where there's new technology, there are
:17:20. > :17:22.always people looking to exploit it. People really don't understand the
:17:22. > :17:25.internet in general, they don't understand about electronic
:17:25. > :17:27.signatures how electronic transactions work, so they are to
:17:27. > :17:32.some extent trusting other and sometimes that trust maybe, well a
:17:32. > :17:35.little enthusiastic. It's inevitable that criminals will turn
:17:35. > :17:42.to any new technique that people don't fully understand to try and
:17:42. > :17:45.get the best out of it from their standpoint. If you pay by card you
:17:45. > :17:48.have some protection. But using e- money is a bit like handing your
:17:48. > :17:50.cash to a stranger in the street Once they've got your handed over
:17:50. > :17:53.the code, it's virtually untraceable. Cardiff couple Sheryl
:17:53. > :18:03.and Leslie Cossins learnt this to their cost after they received a
:18:03. > :18:04.
:18:04. > :18:07.call about their PPI Claim from a man calling himself Robert Smith.
:18:07. > :18:11.He actually said he was from the actual claim people who we were
:18:11. > :18:18.going to be dealing with over the next eight weeks, and so I took it
:18:18. > :18:22.on good par that he was a genuine guy from that company. He said a
:18:22. > :18:26.payout of �2,500 was waiting for them - they just had to pay an
:18:26. > :18:30.admin fee of �250 that day, using a Ukash voucher. Sheryl and Leslie
:18:30. > :18:35.didn't know what to do - but Robert Smith knew where they lived and
:18:36. > :18:39.helpfully directed them to their nearest Ukash outlet. On the actual
:18:39. > :18:44.voucher was a number, we had to come back to the house then,
:18:44. > :18:47.rephone him back up give him that number, then the money was taken.
:18:47. > :18:57.After following these instructions, they expected their payout to
:18:57. > :18:57.
:18:57. > :19:01.arrive that day. But instead they had another call from Robert Smith.
:19:01. > :19:05.Mr Cossins you haven't paid enough money could you please go back up
:19:05. > :19:10.and get me more money for your �2,500. So how much did he get
:19:10. > :19:13.altogether off you? All together, all told was �470. That's a lot of
:19:13. > :19:17.money and did you have that money sitting around to hand over and to
:19:17. > :19:26.gamble, to lose? No, no I didn't this money that I paid out was for
:19:26. > :19:29.my 60th birthday party. But Robert Smith hadn't finished with them yet.
:19:29. > :19:33.When he rang back for a third time the couple became suspicious and
:19:33. > :19:36.called their PPI company. They said well I am very sorry to tell you
:19:36. > :19:40.but you have been scammed. And how did you feel afterwards when you
:19:40. > :19:43.realised he wasn't genuine. Gutted that we fell for it really. And
:19:43. > :19:48.lucky you didn't give them any more? We didn't have any more to
:19:48. > :19:55.give. And with plenty more warnings online about e-money scams, cyber
:19:55. > :19:58.crime experts say we must all be aware of the risks. Never use any
:19:58. > :20:01.form of electronic transmission to pay money to someone you don't
:20:01. > :20:04.completely trust. Because if anything goes wrong you may not be
:20:04. > :20:07.able to do anything about it. electronic money becomes more and
:20:07. > :20:12.more popular, consumers need to keep one step ahead of the
:20:12. > :20:14.criminals. If you don't you might as well throw your money down the
:20:14. > :20:17.drain Now we tried to contact "Robert Smith", but not
:20:17. > :20:20.surprisingly, he didn't get back to Ukash say they're working with
:20:20. > :20:30.police to tackle fraud, but by the time the Lesley and Cheryl
:20:30. > :20:49.
:20:49. > :20:52.contacted them, their money had been spent. Last October X-Ray
:20:52. > :20:55.viewers were outraged when they heard what had happened to Serena
:20:55. > :20:58.Killen and her family from Swansea. Earlier that summer they'd set off
:20:58. > :21:00.for their first ever holiday together as a family. With finding
:21:00. > :21:07.out our son has learning difficulties at the beginning of
:21:07. > :21:11.the year, we thought it would be a good idea to book a holiday for the
:21:11. > :21:16.summer. But with Serena's husband Andy at university and five
:21:16. > :21:19.children to support money was incredibly tight. We needed
:21:19. > :21:27.somewhere obviously quite close to home cos we don't have any
:21:27. > :21:30.transport we were relying on a friend to take us down. So Serena
:21:30. > :21:34.thought she'd struck gold when she found a caravan near Pendine Sands
:21:34. > :21:41.that was being advertised on Gumtree for just �210 for a week.
:21:41. > :21:44.was really excited and I was really happy cos we hadn't been on holiday.
:21:44. > :21:47.But when they arrived, another family was staying in the caravan.
:21:47. > :21:52.The holiday was a fack and this woman, Jessica Scutt had ripped
:21:52. > :22:01.them off. How did the children take it? They were devastated, telling
:22:01. > :22:04.them we had to go home, it broke my heart to see their little faces.
:22:04. > :22:07.When we broadcast Serena's story the response from X-Ray viewers was
:22:07. > :22:14.incredible. We were flooded with offers of free holidays for the
:22:14. > :22:21.Killen family. And now X-Ray's investigation has helped bring the
:22:21. > :22:24.woman behind the scam to justice. We passed complaints from other
:22:24. > :22:28.victims, who'd been conned in the same way by Jessica Scutt to the
:22:29. > :22:31.police and they arrested her. Last week in Caerphilly Magistrates
:22:31. > :22:41.court the judge described her actions as some of the most
:22:41. > :22:43.
:22:43. > :22:46.despicable acts of fraud he'd come across. She was sentenced to eight
:22:46. > :22:56.months in prison for fraud and ordered her to pay more than �2,500
:22:56. > :22:58.in compensation to her victims, including Serena's family. Serena
:22:58. > :23:02.is relieved that the woman who ruined her children's first ever
:23:02. > :23:05.holiday is now behind bars. I felt a lot happier knowing and hearing
:23:05. > :23:11.about the fact that there's been some justice but it still doesn't
:23:11. > :23:15.forgive the actions that she caused on that actual day. Cos they are
:23:15. > :23:20.still with us, they'll never go. I hope she spends the next few months
:23:20. > :23:23.thinking about the consequences of her actions really. Let's hope
:23:23. > :23:25.that's the last we hear of Jessica Scutt!
:23:25. > :23:35.Next Lucy's in Caerleon, where a home improvement firm has been
:23:35. > :23:44.cashing in, thanks to some very Nobody's perfect and sometimes
:23:44. > :23:48.things do go wrong. Oh no! It's Rhod favourite mug. Do you know,
:23:48. > :23:56.it's very tempting just to sweep this under the carpet but do you
:23:56. > :23:59.know what I probably should just hold my hands up and tell him. When
:23:59. > :24:03.it comes to businesses, there are laws in place to make sure they
:24:03. > :24:05.pick up the pieces for their customers if things do go wrong.
:24:05. > :24:12.But one house-proud pensioner from Caerleon found herself hundreds of
:24:12. > :24:15.pounds out of pocket after trusting a company to do just that.
:24:15. > :24:19.Thelma Burnett's home is full of special memories of her late
:24:19. > :24:23.husband Roy. It's the very first house we bought, the one and only
:24:23. > :24:29.we bought together and I love it here and I wouldn't leave here for
:24:29. > :24:38.anything. So when, in September 2011, she was cold called by a firm
:24:38. > :24:41.selling double glazing, Thelma decided to give them a go. She paid
:24:41. > :24:48.MS Home Improvements almost �1,400 for a new front and back door and a
:24:48. > :24:57.new kitchen and bedroom window. But it wasn't long before Thelma's view
:24:57. > :25:01.of MS Home Improvements became cloudier. The bedroom window and
:25:01. > :25:03.it's quite a big window had started to mist up and you could see the
:25:04. > :25:07.dirt coming in. The seal on the window had broken. The double
:25:07. > :25:12.glazing had a ten-year warranty, so Thelma tried to call the company.
:25:12. > :25:20.phoned and phoned. Nobody answered. A whole year went by and Thelma
:25:20. > :25:24.gave up hope of ever getting her window sorted. Then in autumn last
:25:24. > :25:29.year she was surprised to get a call from a company called 2020
:25:29. > :25:32.Energy Solutions. The firm told her they'd taken over from MS Home
:25:32. > :25:36.Improvements. But they weren't calling to apologise for the faulty
:25:36. > :25:44.window or non-existent customer service. Oh no, they wanted to talk
:25:44. > :25:49.about driveways. They phoned up to say they would do my window if I
:25:49. > :25:53.have my drive covered and I was astonished, I couldn't believe that.
:25:53. > :25:58.Did you feel under pressure to get the driveway done? I did, I really
:25:58. > :26:03.wanted the window done because it was a disgrace. Unlike Thelma's
:26:03. > :26:09.window, the law is crystal clear. Companies must act fairly and can't
:26:09. > :26:11.pressure their customers into making a purchase. 2020 Energy
:26:11. > :26:15.Solutions continued on their mission to sell Thelma a new
:26:15. > :26:22.driveway. After casting their eye over the job, the company claimed
:26:22. > :26:27.the drive measured 30 square metres and quoted more than �1,000. But
:26:27. > :26:34.Thelma wasn't convinced. I looked out of the window and I came back
:26:34. > :26:38.in my head with 24 square metres. So another 2020 employee came back,
:26:38. > :26:45.this time with a vital piece of equipment that had been missing the
:26:45. > :26:48.first time around - a tape measure. They agreed that it was much
:26:48. > :26:56.smaller than the first measurement and the driveway would instead cost
:26:56. > :27:01.just over �800. Reluctantly, Thelma paid the �276 deposit - then had
:27:02. > :27:07.second thoughts and tried to cancel. But the company said she was too
:27:07. > :27:14.late. Thelma was now worse off than ever. She had a faulty window and
:27:14. > :27:17.had paid hundreds of pounds towards a driveway she never really wanted.
:27:17. > :27:23.I can't believe they'd treat me like this, Having this done, you
:27:23. > :27:26.know and I just can't believe it. For months, 2020 Energy Solutions
:27:26. > :27:32.kept Thelma's deposit but still didn't fix her window - until a few
:27:33. > :27:37.weeks ago, when they replaced it at last! But that wasn't the end of
:27:37. > :27:46.the story. Since then they've called again - this time trying to
:27:46. > :27:49.sell her wall and roof coating for her house. They're still at me.
:27:49. > :27:52.Yeah it seems like they've got a lot of front to keep coming back
:27:52. > :27:55.after all the problems that you've had. Yeah, but they'll get no more,
:27:55. > :27:59.no more. I've really had enough. asked 2020 Energy Solutions why
:27:59. > :28:03.they would only fix Thelma's window if she agreed to have more work
:28:03. > :28:08.done! They didn't answer that but they have now given back the �276
:28:09. > :28:11.deposit she paid for the driveway she never even wanted. And the
:28:11. > :28:15.company say they have hundreds of satisfied customers And that's it
:28:15. > :28:25.for this week. Remember, if there's anything you'd
:28:25. > :28:29.
:28:29. > :28:31.like us to look into, we'd love to Next week - Beatles fan Jean Davies