Yorkshire cowboy builder jailed for 'creating useless work' and defrauding couple while working on their home

Thomas Howell, 35, of Wetherby, was hired by Simon Lamb and Cindy Jonas to build a conservatory extension, new drive and porch at their home in Tadcaster.

However, he halted work during the first Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020 and when the couple asked for the money to be refunded until it could resume, he did not return it and falsely claimed his bank had prevented him accessing the cash.

A structural survey also revealed that the work he had already completed was of a poor standard, with concerns highlighted including inadequate depth to the conservatory foundations.

On December 3 Howell, having failed to turn up to an earlier hearing, pleaded guilty at York Magistrates Court to one count of fraud by making a dishonest representation and one count of knowingly and recklessly engaging in commercial practice which contravened professional standards.

He has now been jailed for 10 months at York Crown Court and ordered to repay £4,500 to Mr Lamb and Ms Jonas in £200 monthly instalments.

Howell's solicitor said his client suffered from OCD, depression and anxiety, and also has caring responsibilities for his five-year-old child.

The court heard he had an offer of a job in waste management when he leaves prison and was a man of previous good character who had never been in custody before.

Judge Simon Hickey acknowledged that although there had been 'no intention to defraud', the victims' marriage and financial situation had suffered as a result of him 'creating useless work'.

Howell had claimed that his bank had begun an investigation into his account which prevented him transferring the money back to Mr Lamb and Ms Jonas, giving various excuses before eventually admitting he no longer had the cash due to his poor financial management. The bank confirmed that there had been no restrictions placed on his account.

Mr Lamb and Ms Jonas had to hire alternative builders to complete the work, which included rebuilding the porch and destroying the base and walls of the conservatory.

North Yorkshire Trading Standards, who prosecuted Mr Howell, tried to contact him three times in writing about the issue, but received no response. They applied for over £7,000 on compensation on behalf of Mr Lamb and Ms Jonas.

He had done some satisfactory work for them in late 2019 and in March last year arranged to build a conservatory, add a porch and block pave a driveway at their home and took a payment of £4,500 to install footings and a £2,500 deposit towards landscaping work.

However, he then pressed his customers to pay a further £9,000 for materials, in order to secure them before the anticipated Covid-19 lockdown, which was causing supply problems.

The householders were already concerned about the quality of work to the foundations Howell had constructed and found work stopped completely when they had paid the additional £9,000.

In mid-April, they asked Howell to return their deposit as the lockdown appeared likely to continue but he failed to do so, falsely claiming his bank had put a ‘hold’ on his account.

An independent surveyor called in to assess the work done by Howell found a number of faults, including conservatory foundations of inadequate depth, which did not comply with building regulations, failure to bridge a public drain, and failure to tie the porch roof to its walls or correctly install a lintel above the porch door.

County councillor Derek Bastiman portfolio holder for Trading Standards, said: “We know that the pandemic created very difficult trading conditions for small businesses, but it is simply not acceptable for a trader to retain £11,500 when he made no effort to complete the work he had been paid to do, and then lied to the householders about the whereabouts of their money.

“That fraud was made worse by the poor standard of the work that had been completed and I am pleased that the court has recognised the impact of Howell’s actions on our residents in passing sentence today.

“I am very proud of the work done by our Trading Standards team and this case should act as a warning that this sort of behaviour will not be tolerated in North Yorkshire.”