0:00:02 > 0:00:04Each year, almost half the population of Britain
0:00:04 > 0:00:07is targeted by some kind of scam. The brains behind these scams
0:00:07 > 0:00:11are quick-thinking conmen, who know every trick in the book to get you
0:00:11 > 0:00:14to part with your cash.
0:00:30 > 0:00:35Coming up, the scam that targets ordinary people who invest in wine.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37They are probably going to run off to Belize.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39The wine was never bought in the first place.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41And the crooked construction company
0:00:41 > 0:00:45that caused havoc across 14 counties.
0:00:45 > 0:00:50We had no internal water, no lights, we had nothing, no floor.
0:00:50 > 0:00:53I'm here to tell you what the conman doesn't want you to know,
0:00:53 > 0:00:57how to stay one step ahead of the game and not get scammed.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06Now, if you have worked hard and put aside some savings,
0:01:06 > 0:01:10chances are you have thought about making some form of investment.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12An ISA, or some stocks and shares.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15But have you ever thought about mixing business with pleasure,
0:01:15 > 0:01:18by investing in something you really enjoy?
0:01:20 > 0:01:23If you are considering an alternative investment,
0:01:23 > 0:01:26how about En Primeur wine?
0:01:26 > 0:01:28What is that, I hear you ask?
0:01:28 > 0:01:32It works like this. You buy the wine in the barrel,
0:01:32 > 0:01:37and then you sell it in the bottle, making yourself a bit of extra cash.
0:01:37 > 0:01:39It sounds pretty good, doesn't it?
0:01:39 > 0:01:43but the conmen have cottoned on to En Primeur wine
0:01:43 > 0:01:46as a way to scam people out of their savings.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50I've come to meet retired IT manager Mick, who's had his fingers burned.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56- Hi, Mick.- Hi, Matt, how you doing? - Good, thanks.- Come on in.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02In 2007, Mick came into some money from the sale of a house,
0:02:02 > 0:02:07with retirement to pay for, he was keen to make a sensible investment.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10when I found myself with some capital to be able to invest,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12wine seemed to be the first choice.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16Over the last few years in particular, we've seen
0:02:16 > 0:02:20the value of certain wines rise substantially.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24The theory behind wine investment is simple, you buy the wine as soon
0:02:24 > 0:02:30as it's released, it gains in value over the course of its lifetime.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Mick was encouraged by what he saw online,
0:02:33 > 0:02:36but he didn't realise that by registering on websites
0:02:36 > 0:02:40and logging on to internet forums, he was making himself known to scammers.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Out of the blue, he received a brochure through
0:02:43 > 0:02:49from the Bordeaux Wine Trading Company Ltd, yes, out of the blue.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51Did that not make you suspicious in any way?
0:02:51 > 0:02:57No, because I assumed because of my interest online, you know,
0:02:57 > 0:03:03you get the tick box, "Can we contact you with further information?"
0:03:03 > 0:03:07I assumed it was one of those sort of set-ups.
0:03:07 > 0:03:12Mick read through the brochure and was impressed by what he saw.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15There will be probably some impressive-looking convincing
0:03:15 > 0:03:20literature, it might be a brochure with photos of all these fine wines
0:03:20 > 0:03:24in cellars, or the chateaux, very professional, slick-looking website.
0:03:24 > 0:03:29It also had newspaper cuttings about how well En Primeur wine
0:03:29 > 0:03:35had done in the past, how it was predicted to do in the future.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Mick went to specialist websites, internet forums
0:03:39 > 0:03:41and even checked official records.
0:03:41 > 0:03:47I actually went to Companies House, and had the details of how they were,
0:03:47 > 0:03:50how they were trading and if there were
0:03:50 > 0:03:52any problems with them.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56At that particular time they appeared to be a fully bona fide company.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59Mick felt he'd done all the checks he could do,
0:03:59 > 0:04:02and nothing had given him any serious cause for concern.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06When the company followed up the brochure with a phone call,
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Mick was keen to hear what they had to say.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12It was really, "Well, you have a think about it,
0:04:12 > 0:04:16"have a bit more time to look at the information we've provided.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19"Have a look around, see what's going on in the market place,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22"and you'll find what I'm telling you is true."
0:04:22 > 0:04:23That was the tone of the conversation.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27I was not feeling nervous, in fact I was actually feeling quite excited.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31Mick was now one step closer to becoming a fully-fledged wine investor.
0:04:31 > 0:04:36Unbeknown to him, the men he was speaking to were con artists,
0:04:36 > 0:04:39and their softly, softly approach on the phone
0:04:39 > 0:04:43was all part of a plan to gain Mick's trust.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45At no time did they say,
0:04:45 > 0:04:48"Right, now do you want to sign on the dotted line?"
0:04:48 > 0:04:50It was always,
0:04:50 > 0:04:52"Have you any more questions? Can I give you more information?"
0:04:52 > 0:04:55"Is there anything else I can do?"
0:04:55 > 0:04:57The next stage, the second stage,
0:04:57 > 0:05:01is where things move forward to the sale.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06It must have been about a week later the same chap phoned back
0:05:06 > 0:05:11and again, with the same sort of warm approach,
0:05:11 > 0:05:15and then the discussion turned to
0:05:15 > 0:05:19"Well, what shall we do, which ones shall we do?"
0:05:19 > 0:05:22It was case of, "We currently have this available, this is something
0:05:22 > 0:05:25"that not everybody is getting the opportunity to have,
0:05:25 > 0:05:28"we can make it this price for you now."
0:05:28 > 0:05:30It's something you want to do anyway,
0:05:30 > 0:05:32you've done all the checks you want to do
0:05:32 > 0:05:34let's commit and do it. That's what I did.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39Mick agreed to buy case of one of the world's finest wines,
0:05:39 > 0:05:44Chateau Lafite Rothschild, for £5,382.
0:05:44 > 0:05:48Mick had entrusted thousands of pounds to the company,
0:05:48 > 0:05:52and this is where En Primeur wine scams get really clever.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57If you buy wine in the barrel, you have to wait two years
0:05:57 > 0:06:02for it to be sent to you, that gives the conmen the perfect opportunity.
0:06:02 > 0:06:07Because of the gap between paying for the wine and receiving it,
0:06:07 > 0:06:10it gives the company enough time to siphon off the money,
0:06:10 > 0:06:14not buy the wine, and off they go, they've done a runner.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16I got a certificate along with the batch number,
0:06:16 > 0:06:19and everything they said would arrive did arrive.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22I felt as though I had myself an En Primeur investment,
0:06:22 > 0:06:27- I felt I had joined the club. - You're a wine investor?
0:06:27 > 0:06:30Yes. I felt good about it. I felt good about myself.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33The conmen now had Mick exactly where they wanted him.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37They were ready to raise the stakes.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40Three weeks after Mick made his initial investment,
0:06:40 > 0:06:44the Bordeaux Wine Trading Company were back on the phone.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48They said, "One of the opportunities that is now open to you
0:06:48 > 0:06:51"is the ability to expand your portfolio,
0:06:51 > 0:06:57"and we've just taken an opportunity for another case, should you be interested."
0:06:57 > 0:07:00So I thought, well, "In for a penny, in for a pound."
0:07:00 > 0:07:06Mick spent a further £5,451 on a case of Chateau Haut Brion
0:07:06 > 0:07:11and was sent another certificate confirming his purchase.
0:07:11 > 0:07:16Barely a month went by before the company were back on the phone with another proposition.
0:07:16 > 0:07:22They said, "Michael, we've just had one of our customers,
0:07:22 > 0:07:25"unfortunately, has found himself in a difficult position,
0:07:25 > 0:07:28"he's going through a bit of a messy divorce, and has got
0:07:28 > 0:07:32"a case of wine which has become available, we're offering it to
0:07:32 > 0:07:34"you at a slightly reduced price."
0:07:34 > 0:07:38Mick went ahead and bought the third case,
0:07:38 > 0:07:43a Chateau Margaux, for £6,561.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45How much money were you in for?
0:07:45 > 0:07:49By the third case, just over £17,000.
0:07:51 > 0:07:57- Any sense of vertigo at this stage? - Not until after the Christmas.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59That's when the doubts started to set in.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02You see, when Mick bought his first two cases,
0:08:02 > 0:08:06he'd received a certificate of ownership
0:08:06 > 0:08:09within a couple of weeks, but a couple of months had gone by since
0:08:09 > 0:08:14Mick had bought his third case, and the certificate hadn't yet arrived.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16He got on the phone to chase it up.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19"Don't worry," he says, "it's because of the Christmas period."
0:08:19 > 0:08:23I said "OK, not to worry, I'm going on holiday for a week.
0:08:23 > 0:08:27"I'll expect it to be there when I get back."
0:08:27 > 0:08:30But when Mick got back from his holiday
0:08:30 > 0:08:32there was still no sign of the certificate.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Something even more alarming happened.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37The company's website had disappeared.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39Things go quiet, and increasingly
0:08:39 > 0:08:43you find it very difficult to get any communication with the company.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46Because they've probably done a runner with your money
0:08:46 > 0:08:49and the wine was never bought in the first place.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53Mick went online, desperately trying to find out what was going on.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55He was put in touch with someone else
0:08:55 > 0:08:58who'd invested with the same company.
0:08:58 > 0:09:01With some trepidation, I e-mailed this particular chap.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05Once we'd established we were both in the same boat,
0:09:05 > 0:09:07we actually opened up quite a big dialogue.
0:09:07 > 0:09:12The other investor had also paid thousands of pounds to the company
0:09:12 > 0:09:14and couldn't get hold of them.
0:09:14 > 0:09:19And as Mick listened to his story, the penny was starting to drop.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23Once I realised there was more than just me who had concerns,
0:09:23 > 0:09:28then that really sort of heightened my doubts.
0:09:28 > 0:09:30But Mick and the other investor weren't alone.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34Scores had been duped by the same firm
0:09:34 > 0:09:37and it was now being investigated by the police.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39But for Mick, it was too late.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42Practicality and logic steps in and says,
0:09:42 > 0:09:45you'll never see it again, so there's no point worrying about it.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Mick's determined to try and stay positive
0:09:48 > 0:09:53but it's hard to escape the effects of losing such a huge sum of money.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56It was something the family would have benefited from,
0:09:56 > 0:09:58had it been genuine,
0:09:58 > 0:10:01and five years down the line we would have been able to, you know,
0:10:01 > 0:10:04enjoy the fruits,
0:10:04 > 0:10:07but obviously, there weren't any at the end of the day.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09I don't think it was about profit for you.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13I don't think it was about greed from how you're talking about it.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15From what you're saying,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19it sounds like it's more about belonging to something,
0:10:19 > 0:10:23and it's being clever, because your first reaction to the cold call
0:10:23 > 0:10:26was like, "They can't be scamming me, there's no hard sell here."
0:10:26 > 0:10:30That was the psychology of that first call
0:10:30 > 0:10:32and it worked.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36- It worked an absolute treat. - It did, yeah.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40There is some consolation for Mick.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44In July 2011, the men behind the Bordeaux Wine Trading Company Ltd
0:10:44 > 0:10:47who scammed him out of £17,000, were banged up for fraud
0:10:47 > 0:10:50and the wine industry is now doing what it can
0:10:50 > 0:10:53to make En Primeur investments safe from scams.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56So, if you want to invest in wine,
0:10:56 > 0:11:01here's what you need to know to avoid being drawn into a scam.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04I think the key thing is, make sure you're with an established merchant,
0:11:04 > 0:11:06someone with a track record,
0:11:06 > 0:11:08not someone who's just sprung up overnight.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11Look at their history, how long they've been going.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14Have a look, for example, how big are they?
0:11:14 > 0:11:15Do they sell a lot of wines?
0:11:15 > 0:11:19If they're a merchant who's selling tens, hundreds, dozens of wines,
0:11:19 > 0:11:22and not all at these high prices,
0:11:22 > 0:11:26that suggests they're a proper bona fide wine merchant.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29Look at the Companies House website where any company is registered.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33It's not that difficult. For £1 you can see that company's accounts.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Sadly, none of this changes the fact
0:11:36 > 0:11:40that Mick has lost a huge chunk of his retirement savings.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Like many scam targets, he's been left wondering
0:11:42 > 0:11:45how this could happen to him when he thought he'd done everything right.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49People that fall for scams are not greedy or stupid or gullible.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53They are...everybody, and it's the right moment.
0:11:53 > 0:11:54I guess
0:11:54 > 0:11:58if this hadn't happened to me, I probably would be one of them.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00I would have said, "Are they stupid?"
0:12:00 > 0:12:02or, "Didn't they see it coming?"
0:12:02 > 0:12:05Having been through it, no, you don't see it coming.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13So, you've bought a house and you want to build an extension.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15After wrestling with the council for weeks,
0:12:15 > 0:12:18you also now have planning permission.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20All you need to do is find yourself a decent builder
0:12:20 > 0:12:24except you don't have to, because you know what?
0:12:24 > 0:12:27Ding-dong! One's just turned up on your doorstep
0:12:27 > 0:12:30and he can do exactly what you want him to.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Builders. Unless you live in a tent,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39at some point in your life, the chances are, you'll have to use one.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41For a consumer trying to find a builder,
0:12:41 > 0:12:44it can be a very daunting process because in this country,
0:12:44 > 0:12:47anyone can set themselves up as a building company.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49There are no standard qualifications,
0:12:49 > 0:12:51there is no national registration.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55It makes it hard to differentiate between a good and bad builder.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59There are plenty of good builders out there, but take it from me,
0:12:59 > 0:13:01there are a few rogue ones ready to scam people as well.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05But between 2005 and 2007,
0:13:05 > 0:13:09a group of Gloucestershire builders took rogue trading to another level.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13They devised a scheme to scam people out of their savings.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16Scores of homeowners were drawn into their web of deceit.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19Using two firms, Construction Management Development Ltd
0:13:19 > 0:13:22and CMD Construction Services Ltd,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25the conmen raked in almost £1 million
0:13:25 > 0:13:28by taking on jobs they had no intention of finishing.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31But working alongside the police,
0:13:31 > 0:13:34Gloucester's Trading Standards Office were determined
0:13:34 > 0:13:38to catch the men who'd left customers' lives in ruins.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42There were people who were very, very distressed.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46You know, you're living in a home that is a building site
0:13:46 > 0:13:50and you'll just awake to it every single day.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Joanna and Michael Doherty, Debbie Mitchell and Helen Wicks
0:13:53 > 0:13:56were all customers of CMD Construction Services
0:13:56 > 0:13:58and their troubles began
0:13:58 > 0:14:00when they decided to extend their homes.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04My dad had passed away suddenly.
0:14:04 > 0:14:06And because we didn't want my mum to be on her own,
0:14:06 > 0:14:10what we decided to do was to sell our own house
0:14:10 > 0:14:13and have a granny flat
0:14:13 > 0:14:16built on the existing house
0:14:16 > 0:14:18so we could all be together,
0:14:18 > 0:14:21but my mum would still have her own independence, if she wanted to.
0:14:21 > 0:14:26Debbie's grand plans were built around an extension to her kitchen.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29Also there were going to be two new rooms added on upstairs,
0:14:29 > 0:14:32an en suite bathroom and a dressing room.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36Helen was also planning a two-storey extension.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Which was a third bedroom
0:14:38 > 0:14:41and an extension on the kitchen and a garage.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47These were all major projects that required a lot of money and work.
0:14:47 > 0:14:49Stage one was to get planning permission
0:14:49 > 0:14:53and as part of this process, Joanna, Michael, Debbie and Helen
0:14:53 > 0:14:55had to make their applications public
0:14:55 > 0:14:57so people could raise any objections.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00But that meant their plans could be seen
0:15:00 > 0:15:03by the beady eyes of the crooks behind CMD Construction Services,
0:15:03 > 0:15:06and it wasn't long before they got in touch.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09I thought it must have been
0:15:09 > 0:15:12some sort of pre-approved supplier list by the council
0:15:12 > 0:15:14because no-one had my details,
0:15:14 > 0:15:18I hadn't approached anybody other than the few quotes I'd already had.
0:15:18 > 0:15:20It sounded too good to be true,
0:15:20 > 0:15:24the quote, because we had been quoted twice that price
0:15:24 > 0:15:26by other builders locally.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30We had a quote for £45,000.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33we also had a quote around 42, which was the quote we were going for,
0:15:33 > 0:15:37and they came in about £36,000.
0:15:37 > 0:15:44How on earth did they know enough detail to give us this quote?
0:15:44 > 0:15:47And when I rang them and asked them that, they said...
0:15:47 > 0:15:50With the information available on the internet
0:15:50 > 0:15:53they were able to put together a competitive quote.
0:15:53 > 0:15:54And there was one man
0:15:54 > 0:15:58who seemed to be CMD Construction Services' main salesman.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00- Matthew.- Matthew Higgins.
0:16:00 > 0:16:01Matt Higgins.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04And he certainly had the gift of the gab.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09He seemed quite a warm, genuine character.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11- He was very professional.- He was.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14He sounded very convincing. He also sounded very likeable.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16He also gave us the name of a customer
0:16:16 > 0:16:19who they were doing some work for at the time.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21We rang her up
0:16:21 > 0:16:24and everything seemed to be going smoothly and she was happy.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29Debbie, Helen, Joanna and Michael decided to go ahead.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33CMD's next move was to send someone round with a contract to sign.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36He didn't necessarily talk us through the contract.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38We just read the contract and then signed it.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41At that point we were, you know, quite pleased,
0:16:41 > 0:16:43the fact that the price was good
0:16:43 > 0:16:46and we were getting somebody who sounded very competent.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50All three couples went ahead and signed their contracts,
0:16:50 > 0:16:52something that would later come back to haunt them.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56It's not uncommon to pay a small deposit,
0:16:56 > 0:16:59up to about 10% of the building project,
0:16:59 > 0:17:03because the builder may need to buy expensive building materials.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07If it's more than 10%, I think alarm bells should be ringing.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10About £5,800 as a down payment.
0:17:12 > 0:17:17I think it was something like 20% of the total amount.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19I think £10,000
0:17:19 > 0:17:23was the figure that comes to mind.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26- I had to give them a cheque for just over £5,000, I think.- Yeah.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28And sign the contract at the same time.
0:17:28 > 0:17:32They came every day for the first week.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36They were digging out the foundations in the snow.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39Actually, I think I phoned up Matt as well
0:17:39 > 0:17:42- to thank him for the commitment they'd shown.- Yeah.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45But it didn't last.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49I think they came, it may have been one day, it may have been two.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52Certainly no more than two days, and we didn't see them again.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55We would be on the phone asking Matthew where the builders were,
0:17:55 > 0:17:56what was happening.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59They left us with a big hole outside the kitchen
0:17:59 > 0:18:02and a little plank to walk over.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04We had no internal wires. We had no lights.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08We had nothing. No floor.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Martin Bruton, a Trading Standards officer with Gloucestershire
0:18:12 > 0:18:16County Council, first heard about CMD Construction Services in 2005.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20It was a fairly straightforward complaint coming in,
0:18:20 > 0:18:23people reporting that a builder hadn't finished the job.
0:18:23 > 0:18:25But what was unusual in this instance,
0:18:25 > 0:18:29is we had two or three following on fairly close to each other.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32They were starting the job, they were taking substantial deposits and
0:18:32 > 0:18:38leaving with very little work done, or lots of work left incomplete.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40Joanna and Michael, Helen and Debbie,
0:18:40 > 0:18:45had all been talked into using CMD Construction Services
0:18:45 > 0:18:47by the company's silver-tongued salesman, Matthew Higgins.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52Their quotes had ranged from £25,000 to £36,000,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55and all had paid very substantial deposits upfront.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57But shortly after work began,
0:18:57 > 0:19:01CMD Construction began demanding more money,
0:19:01 > 0:19:03hoping that the desire to get their work finished
0:19:03 > 0:19:05would encourage people to cough up.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09"We need more money". I said "What for?" He said, "The roof joist".
0:19:09 > 0:19:11I said, "We've already paid that."
0:19:11 > 0:19:14He said, "No, that's gone on other things."
0:19:14 > 0:19:19They asked for a further 2,700 or just over £2,000 cheque.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23Almost...not threatening, but he was wondering why
0:19:23 > 0:19:26I was questioning why they needed the money.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30"You could affect the bill, we're ready, we want to get bricks done,
0:19:30 > 0:19:33"we want to push it through, you've told us timing's important."
0:19:33 > 0:19:37"Are you going to pay us?" I said, "I need to talk to my husband,"
0:19:37 > 0:19:42and he said, "Obviously we can't carry on the work if you don't."
0:19:42 > 0:19:45I accepted his argument for that and gave him a cheque.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48An ugly pattern was developing.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51CMD Construction Services would ask for thousands of pounds,
0:19:51 > 0:19:54which customers would grudgingly pay.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56Some workmen would then turn up
0:19:56 > 0:19:59and do a small amount of work before disappearing again
0:19:59 > 0:20:01and demanding more cash.
0:20:01 > 0:20:06With little to show for their money, customers began to get desperate.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11I eventually wrote to them and said, "We want our money back.
0:20:11 > 0:20:15"We don't want to deal with you, this has been going on for some time.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18"We don't feel that you're up to the work,
0:20:18 > 0:20:20"so we'd like the money back."
0:20:20 > 0:20:23They came up with excuses about the weather,
0:20:23 > 0:20:24and this, that and the other,
0:20:24 > 0:20:27and that if we pulled out, we'd be in breach of contract,
0:20:27 > 0:20:29and we'd have to pay the full amount.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32Debbie, Helen, Joanna and Michael
0:20:32 > 0:20:37all turned to their solicitors for help but were given a nasty shock.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40The contract they'd signed with CMD Construction Services
0:20:40 > 0:20:42had a cleverly-worded clause,
0:20:42 > 0:20:46which said building delays were not a sufficient reason to cancel.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53Not wanting to risk legal action against them for breach of contract,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55they were in a miserable Catch 22 situation,
0:20:55 > 0:20:58and felt they had to keep paying out thousands of pounds.
0:20:58 > 0:21:04But in the end, the quality of the work was just too poor to ignore.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07We knew when they put the floor up, it was wrong.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10We knew when they started to try and do the roof, it was wrong.
0:21:10 > 0:21:15Some of the work wasn't just wrong, it was downright dangerous.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19Where the flue was on the wall, they'd built the roof over it,
0:21:19 > 0:21:23so all the fumes going from the house, from the boiler,
0:21:23 > 0:21:27were actually pumping into the roof of the extension.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30I think that's when we said, didn't we, "Enough's enough".
0:21:30 > 0:21:33We were then basically saying, "Bring it on,
0:21:33 > 0:21:36"we're at a point where we're not going to pay you any more money."
0:21:36 > 0:21:40But although CMD Construction Services threatened legal action,
0:21:40 > 0:21:43they didn't follow it through.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45After all, they'd extracted thousands of pounds
0:21:45 > 0:21:49from their customers, and by turning up and doing the bare minimum,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52they'd kept the police at an arm's length.
0:21:52 > 0:21:57If they had taken deposits and left the site without any work done,
0:21:57 > 0:22:00that might have been a theft and that would prompt other action,
0:22:00 > 0:22:05but by starting work, it meant the consumers were in a situation
0:22:05 > 0:22:09where the trader had breached the contract, so it was a civil dispute.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13So it was quite a clever strategy of avoiding very close attention.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17Martin and the Trading Standards team began their investigation,
0:22:17 > 0:22:20and soon learned that there were three main men
0:22:20 > 0:22:23behind CMD Construction Services Ltd.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27Nicholas Harris, Mark Dixon and smooth talking Matthew Higgins.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30Trading Standards' first task was to try and stop the company
0:22:30 > 0:22:32from doing any more work.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34Using the Enterprise Act, they asked the three men
0:22:34 > 0:22:36to sign court undertakings
0:22:36 > 0:22:38that would ban them from this type of trading.
0:22:38 > 0:22:44But the court undertakings were only the first step of the solution.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47Trading Standards thought there was enough evidence for a criminal case
0:22:47 > 0:22:50so they presented their findings to the police,
0:22:50 > 0:22:51who launched an investigation.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55It must be incredibly distressing to have to live with a building site
0:22:55 > 0:22:59for a long period of time, when you've chosen those people
0:22:59 > 0:23:02to come into your home. That must be just so demoralising.
0:23:02 > 0:23:07But it was the staggering sums of money that CMD Construction Services
0:23:07 > 0:23:11prised from their customers that made this such a vicious scam.
0:23:11 > 0:23:15Helen and her husband handed over a shocking £32,000,
0:23:15 > 0:23:19and were left with work that had barely been started.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23We did think about getting someone in to value the work,
0:23:23 > 0:23:26but we could see for ourselves, there was no way the money
0:23:26 > 0:23:29we'd paid them matched what we had on site.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33Debbie and her partner paid £15,000.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37How on earth did I do that? How did I get there?
0:23:37 > 0:23:42And Joanna and Michael had borrowed nearly £20,000 to pay for their work.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46The house was in a state of panic,
0:23:46 > 0:23:49and we were unfortunately at each other's throats.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51It was very, very stressful.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58In late 2010, the three men main behind CMD Construction Services Ltd
0:23:58 > 0:24:01went on trial for conspiracy to defraud.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04And with 65 unhappy customers in total,
0:24:04 > 0:24:07there were plenty of people willing to testify.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12I had to give evidence back in September last year...
0:24:12 > 0:24:14on my birthday.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18A whole four hours of gruelling questioning.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22I was so pleased that they got the sentence that they got.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24Mark Dixon got seven years.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27Nicholas Harris, eight years...
0:24:28 > 0:24:30..and Matthew Higgins, six years.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34But that's small comfort to their customers,
0:24:34 > 0:24:37who've had to swallow the cost of this crime.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39The extension is complete now.
0:24:39 > 0:24:44We limped along for about 18 months and completed the work ourselves.
0:24:44 > 0:24:48I was lucky that I could find at least some of the money,
0:24:48 > 0:24:51and go ahead and have it done, and now I've got a lovely extension,
0:24:51 > 0:24:53I'm very happy with it.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56We accepted that we'd lost a lot of money,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59and we just wanted it out of our heads, really.
0:24:59 > 0:25:03Put it down to a very, very expensive, bad experience, didn't we?
0:25:03 > 0:25:04Yeah.
0:25:04 > 0:25:12For further advice on how to protect yourself against scams go to...
0:25:20 > 0:25:22Before we say goodbye, I want to tell you
0:25:22 > 0:25:25about two of the latest scams that are doing the rounds right now.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29I've come to meet an expert from the National Fraud Authority.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31Today we're looking at scams which target you
0:25:31 > 0:25:34when you're buying things online.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36First up, online ticket sales.
0:25:40 > 0:25:46With laser scanners, and the printers that we have available today,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49it is so easy to copy the genuine thing.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51The first thing that you know that you're a victim
0:25:51 > 0:25:56is when you try to get into that concert and your ticket won't scan through the door.
0:25:56 > 0:26:01So, if you do want to see your favourite band, ask the venue
0:26:01 > 0:26:04or the promoter who the authorised ticket agents are
0:26:04 > 0:26:06and only buy from them.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08Next - online auctions.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12Being given a chance to buy an item you missed out on first time round.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15The second chance scam, how does that work?
0:26:15 > 0:26:17It's targeting you
0:26:17 > 0:26:20because you've been disappointed that you haven't won that auction.
0:26:20 > 0:26:26You bid for this item, it's now become available again,
0:26:26 > 0:26:28pay this amount and you can have it.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32But that e-mail would've gone to 10, 15 other people.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35Everyone pays for it and the goods have genuinely been sold
0:26:35 > 0:26:37to the guy that won the auction.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40The best advice here is to only buy things within the confines
0:26:40 > 0:26:42of the auction website.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45That way, if things go wrong, you've got them on your side.
0:26:47 > 0:26:51Scammers will keep coming up with new and devious ways
0:26:51 > 0:26:52to get hold of our cash.
0:26:52 > 0:26:54But, armed with a little bit of knowledge,
0:26:54 > 0:26:57you can be one step ahead.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59Stay safe. I'll see you next time.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04Subtitling by Red Bee Media Ltd