Tackling Rogue Builders

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Tuesday 13th June 2023 Westminster Hall

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I commend the hon. Member for introducing the debate. He is right: most builders are good workmen and do a grand job. That is the case in my constituency, but we also have cases of shoddy workmanship that go unchallenged as people cannot afford costly litigation on small claims, and feel unable to represent themselves. Does he agree that perhaps there should be a role for local authorities—I know that it is different in Northern Ireland than on the UK mainland—to take on the cases of people who have had shoddy workmanship and do not have the wherewithal to chase the case themselves?

[Mark Garnier]

I am grateful for the intervention. To a certain extent, local authorities can step in where builders fail to meet building standards, but the problem is that that does not work. That is what I am worried about. As I unwind my speech, the hon. Member will be able to understand a little of what I am proposing, which may be a solution to the problems in his constituency.

Of course, highly qualified and professional firms are not the target of any control that we may want to bring in, but a lot of those very good quality firms would benefit from a simple regime that demonstrates beyond any doubt that a builder firm is legitimate and that the workers within it are both honest and qualified. Repeated surveys from organisations within the sector reinforce that consumers are put off by stories of rogue builders. The FMB estimated a few years ago that up to £3 billion a year is wiped off building activity by consumers fearful of falling victims to rogues.

More recently, the HomeOwners Alliance conducted a survey of consumer worries: 79% of those surveyed reported obstacles in the way of their project, including 42% reporting that it was difficult to find a reliable builder, 29% a lack of available builders, and 15% a lack of confidence in the system. The problem that I am trying to address, working with the FMB, is that of rogue builders who prey on clients who are wholly inexperienced in this area. The vast majority of people who employ a builder have no idea how to manage them. Most of us will only infrequently need the work of a builder or tradesman.