Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
 Printable version
|
 E-mail this to a friend
|
Midlands man jailed over damp proofing scam
A surveyor has been sent to jail and a damp proofing business fined thousands of pounds after they ripped off a number of elderly people across the Midlands.
An investigation by the Midlands 'Scambusters' team and Walsall Trading Standards found that Aqualine Damp Systems Ltd had conned householders by misdiagnosing damp so that it could sell unnecessary work.
In court on Thursday 31 January the following sentences were given:
* Phil Vyse, a surveyor who worked for company, was sent to jail for eight months
* Aqualine was fined £6,750 and ordered to pay compensation to the householders of £11,032 and prosecution costs of £11, 986
* Mark Camm, the company's director, was sentenced to a community service order of 300 hours unpaid work and ordered to pay costs of £5,000
* Barry Purcell, also a surveyor, was sentenced to a community service order of 200 hours unpaid work and ordered to pay costs of £3,000
Consumer Affairs Minister Gareth Thomas said:
"This is a real success for Scambusters and Walsall Trading Standards. The Government funds Scambusters so that they can bring rogue traders to justice. These conmen cost vulnerable people thousands of pounds and give honest businesses a bad name. They deserve to be punished for their crimes."
In sentencing, Mr Recorder Wall QC told Vyse that he deliberately targeted elderly and easily confused people. He continued that Vyse had shown no outward sign of remorse for misleading people.
In sentencing Camm the judge said that Camm had set the ethos of the company, and had created a culture in which the salesmen could misdiagnose. The judge said that Purcell had diagnosed damp not caring for whether that diagnosis was correct.
Phil Page, Acting Project Manager for the Scambusters Team, said:
"We are very pleased with the result of the case. The consumers affected were, in the main, elderly and vulnerable and placed their trust in the hands of the company and its staff. Unfortunately, that trust was misplaced, and they paid large amounts of money out for unnecessary work."
Notes for Editors
1. The Central England Trading Standards Scambuster Team is a Regional Trading Standards Team set up with funding from the Department of Business and Regulatory Reform (BERR). The Team covers the 14 Authorities that make up Central England.
2. The case was heard at Wolverhampton Crown Court
3. The case was brought in relation to offences against 9 different households.
4. At a hearing in November 2007, Aqualine Damp Systems Ltd had pleaded guilty to 9 offences, Camm pleaded guilty to 4 offences, and Purcell to 6 offences under section 14 of the Trade Descriptions Act 1968.
5. Section 14 of the Trade Descriptions Act creates a criminal offence for a person to make a false statement in relation to certain matters, including the provision of a service. The offence can be made 'knowingly (section 14(1)(a)) or 'recklessly' (section 14(1)(b)). 'Reckless' in this sense means without regard to whether it is true or false.
6. The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform helps UK business succeed in an increasingly competitive world. It promotes business growth and a strong enterprise economy, leads the better regulation agenda and champions free and fair markets. It is the shareholder in a number of Government-owned assets and it works to secure, clean and competitively priced energy supplies
