A fraudulent builder who left work unfinished or of poor quality and built one of the worst additions a surveyor has ever seen has been found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison.
Barrie Parkin, aged 73, of no fixed address, was found guilty of taking part in a fraudulent trade by a self-employed person following an investigation by Nottinghamshire County Council’s Trading Standards team and a trial at Nottingham Crown Court.
The court heard that between March 2014 and February 2019, Parkin carried out construction work for a number of victims, including building extensions, conservatories and an orangery, for which he grossly overcharged before delivering substandard work.
Victims were often contacted by Parkin after they registered their requirements on business websites and, after being quoted for the works, he agreed a timetable and price without any formal contract detailing the right to cancel.
The prices for the work were often inflated, and in a number of cases Parkin demanded payment before the due date according to the payment plans he had established. Once he received most of the said money, if not more, he often failed to show up to complete the jobs, and some victims said he became angry when challenged.
The court also heard that Parkin would tell the victims he would get the necessary planning permission, but this never materialised, resulting in the victims completing the work without planning approval.
One victim was left with dangling electrical wires and an overflow pipe sticking out into the conservatory, which Parkin had originally estimated would take six weeks to build.
10 months later the conservatory was still a shell and it was only after contacting the council that the victim realized the work had gone ahead without planning approval.
In this case, an expert report from a chartered surveyor concluded that the works required should have cost around £8,000, but that Parkin quoted £14,000 and added a number of other charges.
Another victim was offered £19,495 for an orangery she wished to build, which Parkin estimated would take eight weeks.
16 weeks later, after the victim became concerned about the poor standard of work being carried out and increasing demands for advance payments, she arranged for building inspectors to attend and was informed that there were a number of defects and that the work was of poor quality. bad quality. She then contacted Parkin with a request to cancel the works and Parkin responded to this request by asking for an additional £4,000 for the cancellation.
The court also heard that in another case an inspector said an extension built by Parkin was “one of the worst he had ever seen and should be condemned”.
In this case, the value of the work carried out was estimated at around £5,000, despite the victims having paid £20,591.23.
In other cases, Parkin left the house exposed and open to the elements as he built the extension, throwing stones from the driveway onto the conservatory walls to mimic the pebbly dashed effect of the rest of the house.
Andrea Reeves, 57, and George Reeves, 68, from Sutton-In-Ashfield, said: “When we met Barry Parkin in 2016, he introduced himself as a successful builder and showed us photographs of work he claimed was his, but this turned out to be a complete facade.
“We trusted Barrie Parkin and used all our savings to pay for him to build a new kitchen and bathroom extension, but the work was so bad that experts told us it needed to be demolished and rebuilt. In the midst of this ordeal, George was diagnosed with cancer. We were left with cramped, temporary bathroom and kitchen equipment, which made caring for George very difficult, and the worry of repairing our home added to the stress of his treatment.
“We had to wait until 2021 before we could afford to repair the damage that Barrie Parkin had caused. This has been horrible to experience and our lives have been put on hold for the last eight years because of it. We don’t want anyone else to go through what we have. Now with this verdict we can finally start living our lives again.”
Mark Walker, interim service director for the site at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We would like to acknowledge the courage of the victims who came forward and worked with our trading standards team to support the investigation and legal proceedings.
“I would also like to acknowledge the work of the Trading Standards team as their ongoing investigation into the defendant resulted in three victims.
“In all these cases, the work was not carried out to a high standard or remained incomplete, leaving the victims to foot the bill for remediation. If you or someone you know has found yourself in a similar situation, we would like to ask you to seek free advice and report it via the Consumer Advice Service on 0808 223 1133.”