A WOMAN taking on her builders in court refused to pay them for three years because they did an “abysmal job” on her home. 

Miranda Chimanikire-Dona, of Jefferson Close, Gants Hill, has been fighting a £12,465 claim from her builders Sehbac Ltd for three years because she believes her conservatory was badly built and not what they agreed.

After hearings at Romford, and the Central London County Court, the 47-year-old mother-of-one saw her case heard at the Technology and Construction Court (TCC) this week (December 5,6).

Despite no prior legal knowledge, Ms Chimanikire-Dona has represented herself throughout and risks losing her home if she does not win the case and has to pay an estimated £60,000 in court costs.

The builders claim Ms Chimanikire-Dona breached her contract by refusing to pay for the conservatory and letting them in to fix any problems.

But she maintains she did not hand over any money after the builders left in November 2013 because she could already see the lights and windows were wrong. 

She said: “I didn’t give them the cheque because I could immediately see things weren’t right.

“I was very suspicious, I needed someone else to look at it first.

“I had to remain vigilant to protect myself and my family.”

Five months later in March 2014, Ms Chimanikire-Dona claims she started to notice “serious problems” with the conservatory.

She said: “There were huge cracks in the structure.

“When the weather was bad the whole thing flooded, and the foundations are uneven.

“I also believe I was sold ex-display glass from their showroom in Romford that closed down around the same time.

“They used DIY products I could have asked my local builder to buy and put together for me for a few thousand pound.

“But they quoted me a lot of money and I am just a poor person living in east London.”

Judge Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart agreed the builders did an “absolutely abysmal job”.

Sehbac’s managing director John Savage admitted the work on Ms Chimanikire-Dona’s had been subcontracted out and he “couldn’t defend it”. 

But he said: “To say we would go to the lengths of using old display glass for just a £12,000 job is an absolutely ridiculous.

“We make mistakes like anybody else, but we put them right.

“If we had been allowed into the property to fix the problems, this whole thing would never have happened.”

He added: “I have worked for this company for 37 years and I we have never had anything like this happen.

"We turnover £18 million a year, of which £10 million comes from conservatories.

“We have been subjected to upsetting allegations of being bullying and racism.

“Our reputation is everything. I feel so strongly about this case that in principle I just cannot drop it.”

Ms Chimanikire-Dona claims Sehbac prevented her from finding her own surveyor to look at the problems, which is why she would not hand over any money and the case went to court.

She said: “As a homeowner it is very difficult to spot those kind of problems – that’s how builders cheat consumers – so I knew I couldn’t give them any money before someone else had come to look.”

Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart will decide his verdict after both sides submit their final written evidence this week.