An elderly widow needed a leaky skylight fixing - a 'rogue trader' fleeced her for £7k

She had to pay another trader almost £5k to reinstall her roof - but he's now in prison

A 'rogue trader' who fleeced an elderly widow out of almost £8,000 after he was called out to fix a leaky skylight at her home has been jailed.

Christopher Parr - who traded from Salford as 'Up and Over Roofing and Building' - told her a section of her roof needed to be replaced and removed tiles, a council said.

The pensioner, who was 85 at the time, 'felt she had no alternative but to agree to the work' and made five payments into Parr's bank account totalling £7,800, Salford council added.

But the town hall said he failed to return to complete the work and cited 'excuses' including that his child and wife were seriously ill and that he had been diagnosed with cancer. As a result, the woman's home in Salford was left exposed to the elements over winter months.

The council said she had to pay another trader to reinstall the roof, at a cost of £4,777, and shell out a further £300 to decorate a room after the roof leaked because Parr, 36, had removed the tiles. Salfordcouncil's Trading Standards team was alerted and launched an investigation.

At Preston Crown Court on Friday, Parr, of Filey Drive, Salford, was jailed for two years and three months and ordered to pay the pensioner compensation of £12,887 - covering what he charged her and what she had to pay to fix her home. The council said Parr gave the woman 'many excuses over three to four months as to why he couldn't return'. He first went to her home in November, 2023.

In a statement released after the sentencing hearing, the council said: "The victim's property was left exposed to the elements throughout the winter months, apart from an ineffective membrane, until she realised that Parr was not going to return.

"She then had to pay another trader to reinstall the roof, at a cost of £4,777, and pay a further £300 for redecoration of a room due to a leak in the roof when it was left exposed to the elements by Parr.

"When Salford City Council's Trading Standards team were contacted about this case, they instructed an independent expert to provide a report on the work undertaken.

"The report concluded that the work that had been done was of a very poor standard, the value of the work undertaken was zero and the victim would incur additional costs in rectifying the work. The report also stated that it was highly unlikely, based on the rest of the roof, that the roof Parr had removed needed replacing, as he had claimed."

Following an investigation, Parr was invited to attend an interview with a Trading Standards officer under caution. But the council said he didn't attend 'after many opportunities' to do so. He was then summonsed to court, but failed to attend the first hearing in August last year. A warrant for his arrest was then issued.

Parr pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud and four counts of engaging in a commercial practice that contravened the requirements of professional diligence contrary to Regulation 8 and Regulation 13 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, the council said.

Councillor Barbara Bentham, lead member for neighbourhoods, environment and community safety, said: "I'm pleased to hear this sentence today and I hope it sends a strong message to rogue traders who prey on vulnerable people in our city. Our Trading Standards team have worked tirelessly to bring this offender to justice and will continue to investigate and prosecute those who think they are above the law."

Credit to:

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/an-elderly-widow-needed-a-30805948