‘Cowboy builder forced me back to work at 73 after scamming me out of £30k’ | UK | News

A couple said their lives have been “ruined” after a £30,000 payment to a serial “cowboy builder” plunged them into debt and forced them out of retirement to pay the bills.

Sidney Rose and his partner Catherine Beetham, two retired teachers from Totnes, South Devon, both aged 73, took out a loan against their terraced Edwardian house so they could renovate the property to “make life easier” and “more comfortable” in their old age.

They contracted White Rock Building Services, run by Steven Gent, in February 2023, who they said “seemed to be a nice guy” and had shown them “impressive pictures” of previous work he had done even claiming one of his former clients had been the English singer-songwriter Kate Bush.

Over the next few weeks, the couple paid Steven £30,000 to convert their upstairs bedroom into a bathroom and build a conservatory, but became increasingly concerned after the workmen quickly stopped turning up and were slow to answer messages.

The “penny dropped” just two weeks into the build but it was too late, Steven eventually stopped responding altogether and Sidney has now been forced to return to work as a supply teacher so he can pay off his loan and finish the project which he has done at an extra cost of £20,000.

Sidney and Catherine contacted Citizens Advice and Trading Standards about the matter before finding out that they were not alone and being told by their lawyer that there is little to no chance of them getting their money back.

PA Real Life understand at least 30 people have reported being scammed out of vast sums of money by Steven, with complaints dating back to 2009 and the total amount he pocketed estimated at more than £440,000.

“We were very cleverly scammed by this cowboy builder,” Sidney told PA Real Life. “We got taken for a ride and of course there’s a lot of shame and embarrassment in that.”

“We’re £30,000 out of pocket and it cost an extra £20,000 to put everything right and finish it off. It’s put us under a lot of strain because we are retired teachers and our pensions are not fantastic.

“Besides that, there’s been all of the mental issues that we’ve had to suffer and go through my partner almost had a mental breakdown.

“I went back to work, doing some supply teaching at a local secondary school and consultancy work at 73 years old, to pay bills and put Gent’s mess to right.

“This is something I never thought I would have to do.”

The retired couple took out a loan against their beloved home to pay for a new conservatory and convert one of their upstairs bedrooms into a bathroom.

“The idea was to put a bathroom upstairs and build a conservatory to make life easier in our old age,” he said.

They advertised the job online on February 9, 2023 and were contacted by several tradesmen, including Steven who presented himself under the alias “Martyn Evans” and offered to pay them a visit the next day.

“He was very convincing and seemed to be a nice guy,” said Sidney. “He showed us impressive photographs of work which he had supposedly done.”

“He also said he had done work for Kate Bush, who lives in South Devon. So it all seemed pretty good and he said he could start straight away.”

The couple received a quote of £21,785 for the conservatory and £12,475 for the upstairs bathroom a day later, which was in line with other offers they received.

They signed on the dotted line after doing some background research and seeing a website which stated “general builder with over 20 years in the industry”.

The workmen arrived on schedule the next day and, from what Sidney and Catherine could see, they were off to a good start.

“His guys came the very next day, ripped up the decking and began digging footings for the conservatory,” he said.

“They seemed to be quite nice and friendly.”

But the couple’s optimism quickly evaporated.

Sidney said communication with Steven soon became “less frequent and shorter” and that the quality of the work was “extremely shoddy”, with pipes sticking out of the wall and leaking.

“He came back saying ‘Oh I’m sorry about all that, I’m going to put it right, I’ll do a great job for you in the end’,” Sidney said.

“But we were getting more and more concerned.”

The penny suddenly dropped two weeks later that this could be a scam and Sidney contacted Citizens Advice who opened a case.

“It was a total botch up and really sloppy work,” he said. “The men turned up sporadically and only stayed for a few hours.

“As time went on, it got worse and worse and by the end of February we were very worried about the progress.”

Citizens Advice suggested Sidney write a “registered letter” to Steven outlining his concerns, which he did four times.

At first, they said Steven reassured them the work would be completed and provided excuses about why his builders were not showing up.

But he then disappeared and stopped answering messages after May 14, 2023.

In total, the couple paid Steven £30,000 in four instalments, which has never been repaid despite them sending a “letter before court claim” requesting the funds be returned.

The couple said their beloved garden, which took them 30 years to develop, was ruined by the construction and the bathroom was a “bloody mess”.

The ordeal took a heavy toll on Catherine who feels “guilty and ashamed” of being taken advantage of and conned out of so much money.

Sidney reported Steven to Trading Standards about a month into the project who later inspected the property and said they would investigate the matter.

The couple were later told that they were not the only ones who were trying to get their money back from Steven.

They discovered a Facebook group which had been set up by a woman called Wendy Craig, 66, who had a similar experience.

More than 30 people have told PA Real Life they are owed money for construction work that was never completed by Steven.

In total, the group said they have lost more than £440,000.

Sidney contacted his lawyers but after investigating the case, they said the chances of getting any money back were slim.

“We have not received a penny back from Gent and are not likely to,” he said.

“Our lawyers couldn’t do anything.”

Out of options, Sidney was forced to come out of retirement at the age of 73 and has been doing “supply teaching” and consultancy work.

To finish the work on their home, the couple have paid an additional £20,000 to a new builder.

Asked what “red flags” people should look out for when contracting builders, Sidney said conducting thorough research into the company is key.

He also said people should be wary of anyone who offers to start work immediately and those seeking work should refuse to pay any large sums of money up front.

“The first amount he asked us for was £10,000 to get the job going,” he said.

“Then he needed a bit more money to buy the conservatory and it went on like that.”

Sidney later learned that while the conservatory had been ordered it had never been paid for.

“We were able to buy that (again) from the window company directly and use it with our new builder,” he said.

The work on their property has now been completed but Sidney and Catherine have all but given hope of one day getting their money back.

“Our lives and many other lives have been ruined by Gent,” he said.

PA Real Life contacted Steven Gent who said: “They are unproven allegations and Wendy Craig is currently under investigation by the police.”

A spokesperson for the Heart of the Southwest Trading Standards Service said: “We have received a number of complaints regarding Mr Gent and we are investigating.”

“Members of the public who feel that they have been unfairly treated, misled or owed money by a tradesperson are entitled to pursue a civil court claim and in the first instance they should contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service who will be able to advise further.”