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In August 2006 I signed a contract with St Helens Glass for a conservatory. The finance was coming through GE Money on an unsecure basis.
To prevent boring you with all the details I will tell you that the conservatory is still not finished! The main body and framework is completed but the insides are not. The electrician and plasterer need to come out to complete.
I have entered into communication with St Helens Glass and they just ignore me. I have spoken to GE Money too and they are investigating. It is my belief that they are jointly liable (but for what?). As a result of not having a product I have suspended my payments to GE Money (I made 2 payments and I've missed 2). I refuse to pay for something I haven't got.
To my surprise the plasterer came yesterday. He told me that he couldn't finish the job because he couldn't get the materials. He stated that St Helens Glass can't get credit and they didn't have the cash to allow him to buy the products. He also said that even if they could he wouldn't do it 'cos there was no gurantee that he would get paid!!!!
I'm left with no conservatory and no prospect of getting it finished.
HELP!!
What can I do to get my conservatory finished? What about the repayments? Should I get the work completed myself? If so who do I claim that cost against?
Any help would be appreciated. I'm at the end of my tether.
Do not stop your payments to GE Money. They can sue you then for breach of contract and two wrongs do not make a right. It is best not to put yourself on the back foot in this way.
I do not know what you have written to St Helens already, but before you go somewhere else to get it finished you need to be sure that you have given them a reasonable opportunity to put the job right.
By this you would need to write to them giving them a reasonable date to finish the work, and state that if they fail to do this you will hold them in breach of contract and employ another trader to finish the job. You will then pursue them in the small claims court for the additional costs that you will have incurred.
How much did the conservatory work cost? If the conservatory cost less than £30,000 and the amount of credit is less than £25,000 (so you have a regulated credit agreement), then GE Money will be equally liable for the costs of putting the faults right and you can pursue them also.
Ultimately you would need to sue in a court, but you would be better advised to follow the proper channels and take the action yourself rather than putting yourself in breach of contract and being sued.
Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.
However - Watchdog did a piece on them a month or so ago about problems like this, and requesting full payment from the finance house in advance of the work being completed.
There's certainly no harm in trying that, but I suspect that GE will probably drag their heels and demand invoices for the work. They would be entitled to ask for this, of course.
Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.
To say I'm not happy with St Helens is an understatement!
I'm not happy about paying for something that I haven't got because, like in the first 2 months, nothing was getting done. Since my payments stopped there has been some activity but not a lot.
Excellent news! With the contract not delivered and the Finance House liable, it looks as though you'll be able to walk away from this due to the firms non-performance.
Excellent news! With the contract not delivered and the Finance House liable, it looks as though you'll be able to walk away from this due to the firms non-performance.
What he means is if they are no longer trading, you can simply claim damages from the finance company for the cost of getting another trader to put the faults right, without having to faff about giving St Helens a reasonable opportunity to do the work themselves.
Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.
With the conservatory not completed, and the company in liquidation, it would be reasonable to assume that the work will not be completed as agreed, so you turn to GE and advise them of the effective abandonment of the project. To this end, and due to the fact that they are jointly liable with the glazing company to complete, you want to know what their proposals are to complete the job in hand.
In the meantime, you are advising it would be inappropriate for you to continue paying towards the agreement until the matter is resolved to your satisfaction.
In the meantime, you are advising it would be inappropriate for you to continue paying towards the agreement until the matter is resolved to your satisfaction.
I would still be concerned about this part.
Just be prepared for the company to play hardball if you do withhold payments, and you will then potentially be the person sued.
Please note I'm not insured in this capacity, so if you need to, do get official legal advice.
There is a very slight risk of this, the problem here is the consumer should not blindly pay a third pary for finance for a purchase that is neither completed nor of merchantable quality. It is also possible that St Helens said the conservatory was completed and made a call for the payment, asserting it had been completed to the customers satisfaction, this would be fraud.
I'm not clear how much has already been paid, but no court would take GEs complaint on non-payment until the item purchased was built and completed. It is important to remember payments are not being withheld, simply suspended until the contractural liabilities are sorted out.
The next course of action is to cancel the order and ask for the item to be removed and all monies refunded.
Its not only the finance houses that can play hard ball!
Help Please! St Helens Glass
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Originally Posted by buzby
