In January the number of tradesmen’s details viewed on our website reached a staggering 507,589 - the highest we have ever had by a considerable amount.
Some of the regular news stories put out to keep TrustMark in the mind of homeowners and tradesmen:
· The Cost of Waiting – how long people waste waiting for some tradesmen
· Back to basics – how much time people can save when using the Internet
Press releases can all be viewed and downloaded from the TrustMark website.
HIPs have gone, but devotion to red tape left a trail of damage
The Conservatives’ abhorrence of HIPs was well-known, which means that the abolition of the scheme is no surprise.
The speed of the announcement, however, highlights the new Government’s belief that the Home Information Packs were a drag on the recovery of the housing market and served no other purpose but the creation of yet more unnecessary red tape.
As a result buyers who were already suspicious of a dossier of information provided by a seller felt able to disregard the contents of the pack. Everyone is now waiting to see whether more people will be tempted to put their homes up for sale. Outside London the HIP, which cost an average of £500, was regarded as a disincentive to speculative sellers.
Damp Proof Fraudsters Jailed for 15 Years
The fight against rogue traders and conmen continues with a family of fraudsters recently being jailed for 15 years.
The family-owned company cheated hundreds of elderly and vulnerable homeowners in West Yorkshire out of almost £3million, claiming their properties were suffering from damp and charging, on average, between £2000 and £3000 to have a damp proof course fitted that they did not need.
Where damp proof work was actually carried out, nothing more than water was injected into wall cavities, rather than the required chemicals resulting in six defendants being sentenced for a total of 15 years for gaining money by deception.
A Royal Referral
The TrustMark office received a call last week from a gentleman who works for the Crown Estate as he had recently bought a house and had unfortunately found he had a number of problems with the property.
He had been advised by the Royal Household in Windsor to contact TrustMark to see how we could help him in dealing with these problems.
It’s good to know TrustMark’s tradesmen are being referred with this seal of approval.
Brit’s Spare Time is a Click Away
We all know that finding a tradesman can be a time-consuming job if you have to ask around friends, family and neighbours or trawl through bulky, old fashioned directories.
But it doesn’t have to be this way because TrustMark now has the largest online database of accredited tradesmen for the repair, maintenance and improvement sector in the UK. And its handy postcode search tool is quick and easy to use and can really help homeowners save time and money.
The fieldwork was undertaken amongst 3,000 in April 2010 by OnePoll on behalf of TrustMark.
