Homeowners left with £3.9bn bill from ‘Bodger the Builder’

New research has found that UK homeowners are falling victim to ‘Bodger the Builder’ - sloppy workmen who are causing significant amounts of damage to peoples homes.

The research by Abbey Home Insurance, shows that nearly one in five (18 per cent) of homeowners who have used a builder have suffered damage to their property through poor work.

Abbey’s research shows that these cowboy workmen are costing their victims more than £3.9 billion, or on average £224 per botched job. Indeed nearly one in ten people (9 per cent) have seen damage in excess of £1,000. Worst still, nearly half (48 per cent) of the victims ended up footing the bill for the damage themselves.

Abbey is encouraging homeowners to take more care when choosing any craftsmen to work on their home, as poor workmanship, poor quality materials and defective design is unlikely to be covered in their insurance policy, and, as the research shows, it can be very hard to recoup the cost of damage from the faulty workmen.

Prasad Shastri, Head of Insurance Marketing at Abbey said: "The potential damage that could be caused by rogue tradesmen is staggering, and we are encouraging anyone looking to hire a contractor to work on their home to ensure that they have a reputable background. Using workmen who are less that reputable may seem like the cheaper option in the first instance, but you may not have an enforceable contract or any comebacks if the job goes wrong and that could end up costing a lot more in the long run" .

Regionally, Londoners are the biggest victims of ‘Bodger’ workmen with 26 per cent at the receiving end of a dodgy building job, in comparison to the North West (12 per cent), which saw the least damage.

The bank’s research also found that most of the damage caused by ‘Bodger the Builder’ was conducted in the kitchen, bathroom and living room.

Top Tips

Abbey Home Insurance offers the following tips when looking for a good builder:

Avoid the ‘hard sell’ - Don’t be swayed into making an instant decision. If a tradesman is being too pushy or is clearly after just closing the sale, try to avoid being drawn into a contract until you have done your research about the job that needs to be done, the estimated cost and the company you plan to use.

Don’t pay in advance - Advance payments, particularly at the start of the job, should be avoided. Also, avoid demands for cash payments, it is normally a good sign that the workmen are operating on the black economy and you are potentially putting yourself at risk from rogue traders.

Endorsement - Does the builder have reputable third party endorsements?

Second-hand recommendation - seek advice from friends and family who have had work done to their homes. Was the work done to a good standard and if so, can they recommend an appropriate tradesman?

Research- Find out more information and advice on the National federation of Builders (NFB) website on builders.org.uk

Abbey Peace of Mind insurance policy has been given a five star rating (for homes with up to and including 5 bedrooms) by Defaqto, for the third year running.