You paid for the materials. They're in his van.
When a job stops, the materials you paid for don't become the builder's. They're yours, or the money is. A letter before action asks for them back — or their value — by a fixed date. Written free, today.
Alongside the money itself, courts may award simple interest on money you have been kept out of — commonly 8% a year under the County Courts Act 1984 — and the court fee is typically added to a successful claim. Interest is discretionary. The letter sets this out so the other side can see what ignoring it costs.
How people describe it when they reach us
The sorts of things people tell us. Illustrative, based on patterns in the cases that reach us.
Your legal rights when a builder keeps materials you paid for
In England and Wales materials bought for a customer's job and paid for by the customer are normally the customer's property; keeping them may be a breach of contract and, once return is demanded, conversion. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 governs the underlying job where you are a consumer.
Case lawContract law — breach of contractFailing to do what was paid for may amount to breach of contract.
A job, a purchase or a loan is typically analysed as a contract. If one side does not perform a central promise — work not done, money not repaid, goods not handed over — a court may find a breach and will then consider what loss flowed from it. The measure is normally the money you are out of pocket, proved with evidence.
Case lawBailment and conversion — keeping someone else's propertyHolding on to goods that belong to someone else may be actionable.
Where one person is entrusted with another's goods, or simply has them, and refuses to return them on request, the law of bailment and the tort of conversion may allow the owner to demand their return or their value. Courts typically ask whose the goods are, whether return was demanded, and what they are worth.
ActConsumer Rights Act 2015, s.54If a service isn't done properly, the usual remedies are repeat performance or a price reduction.
Section 54 generally sets out the consumer's remedies where a service breaches the statutory terms: the right to require repeat performance, and, where that is impossible or not done in a reasonable time, the right to a price reduction. Courts may also consider damages for loss caused, depending on the circumstances.
Read it on legislation.gov.uk ↗This is general information about the law in England and Wales, not advice about your case. Which provisions apply, and how, depends on the facts.
Four things you'll hear. None of them end it.
With your money, for your job. Goods bought for a customer and paid for by the customer are usually the customer's. A merchant invoice in the builder's name doesn't change who paid.
The letter fixes a date. Deliver them by then, or refund what was paid. Either answer moves you on; silence turns it into a claim.
Then the letter itemises it. Invoices and receipts separate materials from labour. The claim is for the materials paid for and not delivered.
A quote, a payment and a delivery you didn't get is a contract. Written terms help; the law doesn't require a signed document.
Five things worth gathering now
The letter first. Court only if they ignore it.
Your side, your words
What happened, what was agreed, what you are out of pocket. We ask what a court would ask, so the letter says what a court would need to hear.
Written for you, free
A formal letter before action with a 14-day deadline, setting out what is owed and why. You see it at no charge. Posting it by tracked mail and watching the deadline is £15.
Court claim, prepared
If the deadline passes: one tap turns the letter into a small claim, drafted, checked and filed. The £15 comes off our fee. The decision is the court's.
What JustClaim is: we prepare and file the paperwork for your claim, for a fixed price shown before you pay. We're not a law firm, this isn't legal advice, and no outcome is ever guaranteed — what you get is the strongest honest version of your case, properly made.
Questions people in this exact spot ask
Do materials I paid for belong to me or the builder?
Usually you. Where you paid for specific materials for your job, the law generally treats them as yours once paid for, whether or not the builder placed the order. The letter demands their delivery or their value.
The builder says the money was for labour too.
Then the invoices settle it. The letter separates what was billed for materials from what was billed for labour, and claims the materials paid for and not delivered.
Can I claim the money instead of the materials?
Yes. The letter asks for delivery by a date or repayment of what was paid. Most people prefer the money and a fresh start with another trader.
What if the builder has gone bust?
Then the route changes: a dissolved company can't be sued and a bankrupt individual is a claim in the bankruptcy. Check Companies House first; tell us what you find.
How much does it cost if it goes further?
If the letter is ignored, a court claim has a court fee set by the amount: £35 up to £300, £50 up to £500, £70 up to £1,000, £115 up to £3,000. If you win, the fee is normally added to what the other side is ordered to pay. Our fixed price is shown before you pay anything.
Is the letter really free?
Yes. Tell us what happened and the letter before action is written and shown to you at no charge. If you want us to post it by tracked mail and watch the 14-day deadline, that is £15, shown before you pay — and it comes off our fee if it later becomes a court claim.
Paid for it, never got it?
Tell us what happened. The letter before action is written free and shown to you today; posting it and watching the deadline is £15.
Write the letter — free →