Trader demanded £700 for £20 job

A WARNING has gone out to Warrington residents about rogue traders cold-calling in the borough.
Trading Standards chiefs are concerned following an incident in Thelwall where a man asked a resident for £700 after quoting him just £20 to jet wash his driveway
The trader arrived at the house and offered to clean the front drive for £20 – which he claimed was the “going rate”.
As the resident had been going to clean his drive himself he agreed – and was pleased with the job after it had been powerwashed. He asked for a quote for the rear of his property
But later the man said the cost would be £700 – and that the figure of £20 was per square metre. The householder refused to pay.
The trader reduced the price to £14 per metre – then to £8. The he asked for £270 and said he would wait while the householder went to the bank. The householder offered to pay £100.
The workers were wearing dark green polo shirts including the name of the company and a phone number in yellow lettering which offered further reassurance that this was a reputable trader.
He used a small white van which he parked some distance from the property where he was working
Edwina Greenwood, principal Trading Standards officer said: “The trader should have given the customer have a seven day cooling off period because the job was over £35 in value. As this was not given the contract is unenforceable and the householder did not have to pay.
“I would urge consumers not to employ people who cold call as this is an example of how people can be misled. It can be quite difficult to deal with traders at the door, especially if you feel pressurised into paying.
“Traders who cold call can be very difficult to trace and we urge people to contact Trading Standards as soon as possible – especially if the trader is still present.”
Trading Standards can be contact on 0845 404 0506