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Hi There,
Four months ago we spent a few thousand pounds on a Travertine Marble floor from Tops Tiles. It was laid in our kitchen and within the first week cracks started to appear. We called Tops Tiles and they sent the adhesive engineer who said that it was not a problem of movement as the adhesive was not cracked nor had it moved. Great big holes then started to appear and we awaited the tile expert from Tops. He came out and said no it is not my tiles. Meanwhile the floor is cracking and holes are appearing everyday. Next we receive a visit from the area manager who says that because we have an old house there is movement and this is causing the cracks................... ....the holes are part of the feature of the tile and we are supposed to fill them each time they appear all few thousand of them! He said he would give us spare tiles and filler ..........we are still waiting!. I wish now I had gone for ceramic! My bathrooms are tiled and I have had no problems.
Today i called the legal advice line on my home insurance policy to see If I am covered ...............I am waiting for them to call me back! I am unsure of my rights. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.......my floor looks like the surface of the moon!:o
Barclays Personal Account
04/03/2007 -S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) sent – no statements yet!
17/04/2007- non compliance letter sent
20/04/2007 - complaint to Information Commissioners Office
10/05/2007 - Statements received
10/06/2007- prelim letter sent for repayment
Woolwich Personal Account
04/03/2007 – S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) Sent
04/04/2007 – Prelim letter for repayment sent
17/03/2007 - LBA sent
10/05/2007 - Offer received
24/05/2007-Claim form issued
21/06/2007-Defence Filed by Barclays
09/07/2007-Allocation Questionaire Filed
Contact the Tile Association The Tile Association Phone 020 8663 0946 speak to Margaret Reid or Phil Reid - very helpful. They might be able to recommend a specialist who could inspect these for you.
Now I'm no Tiler but I do have connections There is a situation, and I don't know if this is what has happened to yours of course, but something happens to tiles if the preparation is incorrect - it's called 'Crystallisation'. This is when Natural Stone Tiles are set with Adhesives without being primed first and the tiles actually crack as a result. Sounds a bit like that to me from your description, but if you talk to The Tile Association first then if they don't know they can put you in touch with a specialist from a tiling company who do know.
If you still don't get any answers, come back here and I'll give you some names.
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Sarah PLEASE DONATE IF SUCCESSFUL - Every little helps
PLEASE, Do not Private Message me with basic questions, start your own thread and PM a link if you wish, but I will not be able respond to all individual questions as I am very busy on numerous other things and anyway, others cannot learn from PM's. It also stifles contributions from the vast talent base this site offers from it's contributors and I'm not all that clever really! Thank you.
Hi Sequenci,
Thank you for that, you are right, I just had a call from the insurance legal team and they said that under the sales of goods act it appears that they are not fit for purpose and that there is a potential breach of contract claim. I have to right to Tops Tiles and give them seven days to put things right forexample If I require a new floor I must put in quotes etc. If they do not respond favourably then The insurance company will become involved - well the legal department. I didnt realise the legal expenses bit on the household insurance covered me for this so I am quite pleased I now have to write a letter and send it recorded. Thank you for your help.
Barclays Personal Account
04/03/2007 -S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) sent – no statements yet!
17/04/2007- non compliance letter sent
20/04/2007 - complaint to Information Commissioners Office
10/05/2007 - Statements received
10/06/2007- prelim letter sent for repayment
Woolwich Personal Account
04/03/2007 – S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) Sent
04/04/2007 – Prelim letter for repayment sent
17/03/2007 - LBA sent
10/05/2007 - Offer received
24/05/2007-Claim form issued
21/06/2007-Defence Filed by Barclays
09/07/2007-Allocation Questionaire Filed
Hi thank you Andrew, i will definately give them a call first thing tomorrow, when the tiler was laying them they were cracking. I will let you know what they say.
Barclays Personal Account
04/03/2007 -S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) sent – no statements yet!
17/04/2007- non compliance letter sent
20/04/2007 - complaint to Information Commissioners Office
10/05/2007 - Statements received
10/06/2007- prelim letter sent for repayment
Woolwich Personal Account
04/03/2007 – S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) Sent
04/04/2007 – Prelim letter for repayment sent
17/03/2007 - LBA sent
10/05/2007 - Offer received
24/05/2007-Claim form issued
21/06/2007-Defence Filed by Barclays
09/07/2007-Allocation Questionaire Filed
That doesn't sound like crystalisation then if they were cracking as they were being laid. It usually takes a couple of months from what I understand. The Tile Association are a very mixed bag of knowledge and expertise made up from all the tile suppliers, fitters, adhesive companies and so on - anything to do with a tile from the time it's cut out of the pit in the middle of nowhere until its sitting pretty on your wall or floor they are involved in so they should be able to help. It's a science believe me. If you have the name of the Adhesive they used when installing that might help when speaking to them. The manufacturers are very helpful too. If it's Topps then it was probably a BAL adhesive. I can give you the contacts to speak to anyway. Just ask away.
A click on the scales below is appreciated if my posts were helpful
Do not regard my postings or suggestions as professional advice. If in doubt seek a professional opinion.
Sarah PLEASE DONATE IF SUCCESSFUL - Every little helps
PLEASE, Do not Private Message me with basic questions, start your own thread and PM a link if you wish, but I will not be able respond to all individual questions as I am very busy on numerous other things and anyway, others cannot learn from PM's. It also stifles contributions from the vast talent base this site offers from it's contributors and I'm not all that clever really! Thank you.
We called Tops Tiles and they sent the adhesive engineer who said that it was not a problem of movement as the adhesive was not cracked nor had it moved.
was this engineer from topps or the adhesive manuacturer
Originally Posted by Lastlaugh
Next we receive a visit from the area manager who says that because we have an old house there is movement and this is causing the cracks
one says 'movement' the other says 'no movement' They can't both be right
The adhesive was flexible and when the adhesive man came out he was from the adhesive company. He said that the adhesive was fine and he said he thought that the tile was at fault. He said if there was movement then it would show in the grout.
Then when the other man came out he said the movement wouldnt show because the adhesive was flexible................h e also said that the holes will keep appearing because that is a feature of this type of tile. We bought polished honed and filled tiles.
Barclays Personal Account
04/03/2007 -S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) sent – no statements yet!
17/04/2007- non compliance letter sent
20/04/2007 - complaint to Information Commissioners Office
10/05/2007 - Statements received
10/06/2007- prelim letter sent for repayment
Woolwich Personal Account
04/03/2007 – S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) Sent
04/04/2007 – Prelim letter for repayment sent
17/03/2007 - LBA sent
10/05/2007 - Offer received
24/05/2007-Claim form issued
21/06/2007-Defence Filed by Barclays
09/07/2007-Allocation Questionaire Filed
I think you left this message last year, unfortunetly, I have just laid Travertine marble on my new en-suit shower room YESTERDAY!!! I am very very concerned what it would happen to my floor, especially, the staff in Tops tiles strongly recommended special board ( for water proof & floor to be firmed) which cost about 500GBP and my tiler said that we wouldn't need it. The tiler carried on last night just onto chipboard floor...
I would love to hear what happened to yours afterwards, did you manage to change the tiles offered by tops tiles? how was the fitting fee & etc?
Also, about tops tiles, I found the staff there, in Highgate branch in London, are very cheeky... they charged me 14.99GBP per sheet for the marble mosaic which I should be charged at 7.99GBP after 4m2 purchase, I had to go back several times to complain, very mean to give me discount which was officially displayed in everybranch in Tops tiles...
If anyone has any problems with tiling then I'm sure these guys wouldn't mind answering your questions, it's a tiling forum and they are there to make sure tilers get it right....
A click on the scales below is appreciated if my posts were helpful
Do not regard my postings or suggestions as professional advice. If in doubt seek a professional opinion.
Sarah PLEASE DONATE IF SUCCESSFUL - Every little helps
PLEASE, Do not Private Message me with basic questions, start your own thread and PM a link if you wish, but I will not be able respond to all individual questions as I am very busy on numerous other things and anyway, others cannot learn from PM's. It also stifles contributions from the vast talent base this site offers from it's contributors and I'm not all that clever really! Thank you.
Sounds like the common problem with the cheaper travertines....especially those that are filled honed/polished......
All travs, especially the cheap ones are full of holes.
The producers fill the surface ones with cement or resin based fillers..then they hone or polish the tile to thr rquired surface finish....
Some dealers sell product which is too much filler and not enough stone......real rubbish and a complete waste of money.
Others sell really dense material with very few voids....but of course this sells for alot more BUT you can still have problems with top end material aswell...but alot less likely.
a) sometimes these fillers don't bond well with the stone and then fall out...
Quarries have said this can also be affected by other factors inc temp and moisture at time of filling....its get pretty cold in Turkey in winter....!
b) holes appear in the surface because there can be loads of voids/cavities under the surface which break through with pressure from foot traffic etc.....if you look at the edge/underside of a tile you will see loads of cavities/voids....
I've seen holes start off as pin pricks end up the size of 50p piece....!
You are less likely to get issues on walls as they dont get the same impact from foot traffic....!
Experience retailers would/should explain to potential clients the risks with Trav. and therefore no comeback....in reality I try offer better stones....trav has gone the way of cheap Chinese slate being flogged to death by the sheds......
Problems usually much more obvious in polished/honed finishes as they look so flat and smooth...whereas unfilled/tumbled surfaces look very rustic and are usually slurry grouted to fill most voids....so any extra holes that appear are less obvious...!
Tilers can try and minimize problems by back buttering tiles to fill voids and solid bed adhesives as much as possible to 'help' strengthen the tiles.
Of course if the subfloor moves for any reason this can also create cracks in tiles....
I've heard all sorts of excuses from distributors over the years...and I've also cringed when I hear non-specialist retailers 'guide' customers about stone....
I just hope the independents survive the downturn/crunch and the presence of the multiples......
I have some good news ! Through my house insurance legal cover I am taking Topps to court. They have agreed that I have a case and have appointed a solicitor. The tiles are just wearing away the surface has gone in many places. The experts that came out who are tilers say it is the tiles. I think they are wall tiles! Anyway check your home insurance policy as you may have legal cover which covers disputes! I will let you know if it gets to court!
Barclays Personal Account
04/03/2007 -S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) sent – no statements yet!
17/04/2007- non compliance letter sent
20/04/2007 - complaint to Information Commissioners Office
10/05/2007 - Statements received
10/06/2007- prelim letter sent for repayment
Woolwich Personal Account
04/03/2007 – S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) Sent
04/04/2007 – Prelim letter for repayment sent
17/03/2007 - LBA sent
10/05/2007 - Offer received
24/05/2007-Claim form issued
21/06/2007-Defence Filed by Barclays
09/07/2007-Allocation Questionaire Filed
I have some good news ! Through my house insurance legal cover I am taking Topps to court. They have agreed that I have a case and have appointed a solicitor. The tiles are just wearing away the surface has gone in many places. The experts that came out who are tilers say it is the tiles. I think they are wall tiles! Anyway check your home insurance policy as you may have legal cover which covers disputes! I will let you know if it gets to court!
Good news and good luck. well done for going for it..
A click on the scales below is appreciated if my posts were helpful
Do not regard my postings or suggestions as professional advice. If in doubt seek a professional opinion.
Sarah PLEASE DONATE IF SUCCESSFUL - Every little helps
PLEASE, Do not Private Message me with basic questions, start your own thread and PM a link if you wish, but I will not be able respond to all individual questions as I am very busy on numerous other things and anyway, others cannot learn from PM's. It also stifles contributions from the vast talent base this site offers from it's contributors and I'm not all that clever really! Thank you.
Tops Tiles - Please Help
policy to see If I am covered ...............I am waiting for them to call me back! I am unsure of my rights. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.......my floor looks like the surface of the moon!:o
Reply With Quote
Re: Tops Tiles - Please Help
There is a situation, and I don't know if this is what has happened to yours of course, but something happens to tiles if the preparation is incorrect - it's called 'Crystallisation'. This is when Natural Stone Tiles are set with Adhesives without being primed first and the tiles actually crack as a result. Sounds a bit like that to me from your description, but if you talk to The Tile Association first then if they don't know they can put you in touch with a specialist from a tiling company who do know. 
Thank you.
Originally Posted by Lastlaugh
