Desperatly seeking a solution

Falconer2406 · Post by **Falconer2406** » Thu Feb 22, 2024 12:48 pm

Hi all, Both my wife and I are at our wits end.
We have had circa 50 sqr mtrs of large tiles laid 600 x 600mm and 1200 x 600mm, all tiles laid on top of a durabase membrane laid on top of underfloor heating trays.
When starting the job the tiler stated that there was some movement with the underfloor heating trays but he was "pouring adhesive down" to rectify this.
Within days the tiles started popping and clicking when walking on and despite repeated applications the grout keeps coming out.
We have been and continue to try to be the epitome of friendliness and kindness with the tiler whom agreed that he would come back and replace the grouting with an epoxy resin grout instead of the standard grout used, he was meant to do a few tiles to start with to see if that rectified the issue.
He contacted me last night to say that he had been "thrown under a bus" by the plumbers that it wasn't his fault and we should now make a claim against the plumbers insurance, i've asked him to come and do just a few tiles to see if it will work with epoxy resin so i can make an informed decision, pay him to do it (We just want an end to it) or pay someone else, however i doubt anyone would want to do it.
I have been advised by my house insurance legal helpline to try arbitration and if that's refused to sue both the plumbers and the tiler. We really aren't that sort and just want to resolve as amicably as possible, but to move forward i need an assessment of the current job to try and get some sort of evidence as to what's wrong so i can get quotes to rectify it.
Anyone willing to do this, paid of course (Cambridge area SG8) or know a professional organisation i can contact or has been down this route before. Thanks for reading

dewaltdisney · Post by **dewaltdisney** » Thu Feb 22, 2024 5:07 pm

I am sorry to hear of your problem. From a layman looking in it would appear that the substrate is unsound and the underfloor heating trays have movement causing the tiling issue. To resolve this you know in your heart it will have to come up and this will possibly involve a legal remedy. The only way forward is to try to arrange a meeting between the tiler and the plumber to find a way to resolve the issue. They both should have trade insurance that you could claim against that if necessary but you may have to go through the county court process. You can do it yourself and the Judge will hear it in chambers so it is not intimidating, do not use a solicitor as they are in the main expensive and useless. Let us hope it does not come to that. If you pull up the ceramic tiles ditch them and lay Karndean flooring or similar vinyl which is much better in my opinion.

Good luck sorting it.

DWD

Falconer2406 · Post by **Falconer2406** » Fri Feb 23, 2024 12:11 pm

Thanks so much for your comments, i do know that it's all got to come up and in so doing it will probably wreck the underfloor heating, my estimate is between £10-£12k to put right, it's just a nightmare, tiler now wont respond and plumber and his family are all close friends, with the plumber blaming the tiler (I tend to agree) and the tiler blaming the plumber, horrendous situation for us all!

dewaltdisney wrote: ↑Thu Feb 22, 2024 5:07 pm I am sorry to hear of your problem. From a layman looking in it would appear that the substrate is unsound and the underfloor heating trays have movement causing the tiling issue. To resolve this you know in your heart it will have to come up and this will possibly involve a legal remedy. The only way forward is to try to arrange a meeting between the tiler and the plumber to find a way to resolve the issue. They both should have trade insurance that you could claim against that if necessary but you may have to go through the county court process. You can do it yourself and the Judge will hear it in chambers so it is not intimidating, do not use a solicitor as they are in the main expensive and useless. Let us hope it does not come to that. If you pull up the ceramic tiles ditch them and lay Karndean flooring or similar vinyl which is much better in my opinion.

Good luck sorting it.

DWD

dewaltdisney · Post by **dewaltdisney** » Fri Feb 23, 2024 2:09 pm

I think possibly your only solution now is to start the legal process. You need to send a letter of intent to both parties saying that unless steps are taken to meet you and discuss correcting the issues you have with their work within 28 days ( add a list of the defects) you intend to sue them for a sum equivalent to the cost of making good unless they rectify the problems within 28 days. Depending how that goes will indicate what you are up against. The next step is to get written quotes from 3 different firms and use these to determine the amount you will have to sue them for. Small claims court can deal with sums of up to £10k but the costs are limited. This might be worth a read https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/recla ... ims-court/ You need to make sure that they are able to pay if you win though. Most firms and traders cannot afford to have judgments against them as it ruins their credit rating. However, it will mean £500 of costs up front to lodge but it is a very straightforward online process. See https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money I can understand you would not want to do this but you need to get these people to the table to find a way forward.

DWD