We instructed Luckings last Oct for a simple single story extension. Six months later we are still looking at a bombsite. It has been the worst experience of our life. A job that should have taken 10-14 weeks hasn't even been completed half a year later.
The ground works took an age. When you have one bloke digging (2 metres down on his own), I guess it would. The same chap loaded the wheelbarrow and took it to the front and unloaded it in the skip. If trench digging were left to Luckings in the Somme, history would be different now. Instead of getting a second chap in (even just to load a wheelbarrow with mud), Luckings decided to retain the margin by allowing this one guy to plough on - I say plough, he had a spade.
We have subsequently been told by two other reputable builders the foundations could have been dug in two weeks, not four months by using 600mm pots joined...or simply using machinery, some of which has been around a couple of hundred years.
The operative on site kept telling us to beware of the company - and outlined several ways we will be ripped off. He had no love for the boss and appeared to be on our side. Some of his warnings may have been true others may not, who knows, but as a client do you want to be dealing with this during a long and arduous build?
Five days before Christmas we were told we needed to pay £2k before the end of the day! We were stupid enough to pay 80% up front - but more about that later. The £2k was for block and beams we were sheepishly told. They don't make the size in the plans anymore. Pay it now and we'll get different ones in 10 days, or it make take months if not. We paid. Our architect said that with some notice he could have reconfigured the floor or done something different. Our builder said the architect had clearly got it wrong. Either way, it certainly wasn't our fault. To this day we still don't know who was responsible, but with further investigation and understanding of the building process it has become fairly obvious. Our architect said, Luckings are disorganized and leave things late, this causes problems...handing over £2k five days before Christmas is a problem for most of us.
On a project so delayed, they did not work over Christmas and indeed worked probably four Saturdays in the six months they were on site, clearly juggling jobs with limited resources. On four occasions they said they're not coming because it is expected to rain...Luckings were as bad at weather forecasting as they were project management...clear skies all day.
By this time we had also had enough of the miscommunication. We were constantly told of what we agreed or what was said. "We thought you didn't want us to work over Christmas!?". This was a constant theme. The other was that around 5pm, we were told they were doing something else with the build tomorrow and we had to make a decision about something for next morning. I work away, and my wife tries to run the business whilst looking after a baby. However, she had to make decisions on the spot.
Things came to a head when after months of being the perfect customer - making tea and smiling and not complaining about the behaviour of operatives or the time that things were taken, there foreman decided to be rude to my wife (I won't go into detail, but he had been rude and unhelpful throughout - this was the final straw).
Ron Luckings response to the behaviour of his staff member, was pretty much - if you want a different guy, you'll have to pay!!! No apologies or looking to make amends were realized. We received emails justifying behaviour and timescales, and stating if you don't like it, get another building company in to finish it!
Luckings have been shocking. They have no consideration for people and homeowners, and the stress that they cause. My toddler is not just asking for his playroom six months on, but our hard earned savings are spent, and he lives in a dangerous site breathing in dust for the last half year. We just want our home back.
We made the mistake of paying 80% up front. We couldn't get a start date from them until we did. The money was clearly spent on other projects and who knows what else, as we were told by one of there staff it was the reason for some of the delays - they didn't have our cash for the next part of the build.
We sacked Luckings, and got in a great builder who is finishing the work brilliantly.
A day after sacking them someone had left dog poo on our doorstep. We've lived in this house for ten years and never had that before. I am convinced it is coincidence.
There are huge amounts more to this story most of which are based upon lies (e.g. Ron Luckings said he has sacked one of his troublesome staff - he has not), misrepresentation, and massaging of facts, but I simply can't be bothered to go into the detail of what we endured.
A wholeheartedly dreadful experience. read more
