Paid for a finish. Got a first coat.
Decorating is the trade where 'that'll do' is easiest to spot. Drips, bleed, patches, paper lifting at the seams — or rooms never started. A letter before action asks for it to be put right, or finished, by a date. Written free, today.
Said vs got
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 painter and decorator lets you down
In England and Wales a trade you pay must do the work with reasonable care and skill and, where no time was fixed, within a reasonable time — terms the Consumer Rights Act 2015 implies into the contract whether or not anything was written down. The usual remedy is to have it done properly, or a price reduction, and damages for the cost of putting it right.
ActConsumer Rights Act 2015, s.49A paid-for service must generally be performed with reasonable care and skill.
Where a consumer pays a trader for a service, section 49 usually implies a term that it will be performed with reasonable care and skill. Work that fails, has to be redone, or is left in a worse state than before may be treated as a breach, depending on the facts.
Read it on legislation.gov.uk ↗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 ↗ActConsumer Rights Act 2015, s.52A service must usually be performed within a reasonable time if no time was agreed.
Where the contract does not fix a time for the service, section 52 generally implies a term that the trader will perform it within a reasonable time. What is reasonable is a question of fact — a job that stalls for months with no good explanation may be treated as a breach.
Read it on legislation.gov.uk ↗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.
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.
Reasonable care and skill is the standard, and an independent trade can say whether this meets it. A second opinion, in writing, usually settles the argument.
Using a kitchen with the doors hanging off is not accepting it. The remedy is repeat performance or a price reduction; using what you can while they stall doesn't waive that.
The letter fixes the gap. Put it right by a date, or pay for someone else to. Silence is what turns this into a claim.
The other way round. The letter sets the balance against the cost of the remedial work and states what, if anything, is still owed.
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
Can I claim against a painter and decorator who did a bad job?
Yes. The law implies that the work is done with reasonable care and skill; if it wasn't, you can usually require it to be redone or claim a price reduction, and recover the cost of having someone else put it right. The letter asks for that by a date.
It looked fine at first and failed within weeks. Can I still claim?
Yes. Work done with reasonable care and skill should last; paper that lifts or paint that flakes in weeks usually points to poor preparation. Photos with dates and a second decorator's view make the case.
There was no written contract.
A quote, a start date and a payment is a contract. Messages and bank transfers are the paperwork; the law doesn't require a signed document.
Should I let them come back and fix it?
Usually offer them one chance in writing, with a date — the letter does this. If they don't take it, the cost of someone else fixing it becomes the claim, and you've shown you were reasonable.
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.
Job gone wrong?
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 →