This page sets out what to do in order. It is general information about how these situations usually run in England and Wales, not legal advice, and if the sums involved are large it is worth an hour with a solicitor.
First week: protect the building
Get the structure weather tight. A roof left open, a wall left without a temporary covering or an unsupported opening will turn a contract problem into a damage problem very quickly, and damage caused by leaving a site exposed is much harder to recover.
Take dated photographs of every part of the job from several angles, including anything about to be covered up. Note meter readings, secure or list materials on site, and change locks if keys were held. If scaffolding is on hire in your name, tell the hire company where things stand.
- Make the works weather tight and safe
- Photograph everything, dated, before anything changes
- Gather the quote, contract, invoices, payment records and messages
- Check who holds hire and delivery accounts in whose name
Work out where the money sits
Add up what you have paid and value what has actually been built. If you have paid ahead of the work, you have overpaid and that is the figure you would be chasing. If the work built is worth more than you have paid, the builder may have a claim against you, which changes your approach.
For an accurate figure on anything substantial, a quantity surveyor or an independent builder can value the work in place. We are regularly asked to price the completion of someone else's job and to say plainly what is there and what is missing.
Your position in law, briefly
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, work must be carried out with reasonable care and skill, within a reasonable time and for a reasonable price where none was agreed. Walking off an unfinished job is normally a breach of contract, and you are entitled to be put back in the position you would have been in, which usually means the reasonable extra cost of getting it finished.
Write to the builder, by email and by post, setting out what is unfinished, what you have paid, and a clear deadline to return or to refund. Keep it factual. If they were a member of a trade scheme there may be a complaints route. Sums under ten thousand pounds can be pursued through the small claims track, and payments made by credit card over one hundred pounds may be recoverable from the card provider.
Bringing in a second builder
Any competent firm taking over will want to inspect before quoting, because they inherit responsibility for what they build on. Expect them to open up covered work, check foundations, steel bearings, drainage and any building control notices, and to want structural elements signed off.
Do not expect a like for like price. A completion job carries unknowns that a fresh build does not. What you should expect is an itemised written quote that separates remedial work from completion work, so you can see exactly what you are paying to put right and what you would have paid anyway.
We take on unfinished projects across Kent. The site visit and the written quote cost nothing, and our workmanship carries a five year guarantee on what we build.
Common questions
Can I refuse to pay the final invoice?
If the work is genuinely incomplete or defective you are not obliged to pay for work that has not been done to a reasonable standard, but withholding money is a step to take on advice and in writing, setting out your reasons.
How do I value the work already done?
An independent builder or a quantity surveyor can measure and price what is in place. Photographs plus the original itemised quote make that far quicker and cheaper to do.
Will building control still sign off the work?
Usually yes, but only if the inspector can see the stages they need to see. Where work has been covered up without inspection, expect to open parts of it back up.
Do I have to give the original builder another chance?
Giving a clear written opportunity to return and finish within a reasonable deadline strengthens your position if the matter ever goes further, even when you have lost confidence in them.
Will you take over a job another builder started?
Yes, and we do it regularly. We inspect first, tell you honestly what needs redoing rather than finishing, and price the two separately.