A PREGNANT mum who sued Ikea over a “nightmare” kitchen fitting claims she is still owed more than £4,000 despite a judge ruling in her favour.
Jessica Holmes, 31, allegedly had a kitchen installed by the Swedish company two years ago, but was left horrified by the “terrible” workmanship.
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She ended up taking legal action on February 5 and was overjoyed to be told Ikea would have to pay her £4,192 within 14 days, as well as her court fees of £205.
But over a month later, the teaching assistant says she has still not received a penny and has “had enough”.
Mum-of-four Jessica, of Castleford, West Yorkshire, told The Sun: “It’s been an absolute nightmare.
“You wouldn’t think a big company like Ikea would do this. I’m currently on maternity leave.
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“I’ve spent all my pregnancy ringing Ikea and trying to sort this out.
Have you had a bad experience with an Ikea kitchen? Email: [email protected]
“I was literally on a drip in hospital making calls to Ikea.
“Financially it’s been a struggle having to keep fighting this in court to try and get my money.
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“We were looking forward to getting a new kitchen but the whole experience has just been awful.
“I have never experienced such poor communication. They’ve been so rude.”
Jessica claims the kitchen is usable, however the worktops have all blistered, cupboard doors haven’t been attached and there is a boiler cutout which “looks like it’s been done by a child”.
I used a super clever Ikea hack to turn my council house into a home and it costs just £1.75 and people say it looks ‘gorgeous’
She says she spoke to Ikea and they said their legal team would be back in touch, but she hasn’t received any more correspondence.
Jessica continued: “The judge was shocked. He said he couldn’t believe the state of the kitchen.
“Ikea didn’t even have the decency to turn up at court. We’ve now sent bailiffs to collect the debt.”
An Ikea spokesperson said: “Ikea was not notified of the court hearing, which went ahead in our absence, and judgement was accordingly entered against us without our knowledge.
“Having received a copy of the judgement, we are now in the process of ensuring that the customer is fully reimbursed and resolving the issue to their satisfaction.”
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What are my rights?
Under the Consumer Rights Act, anyone who enters a contract for goods and services can expect these to be supplied with reasonable care and skill – and this includes builders, plumbers, decorators and electricians.
It also includes materials, which should be of satisfactory quality, as described and fit for purpose.
If you’ve fallen victim to a cowboy builder, or had a dispute with your contractors, you should firstly collate all evidence you have, including paperwork, photos, videos, messages and bank statements.
Then, try to resolve the issues directly with the firm, before trying an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) scheme such as mediation or ombudsman services.
If this doesn’t work, contact your bank to find out whether you can recover any money spent using Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act (if the job cost between £100 and £30,000, your credit card company is jointly liable if something goes wrong).
If this doesn’t work, report them to the police on 101.
While the lines between what is criminal and just bad practice are blurred, a contractor could be done for fraud.
It is also important to contact Trading Standards. Citizens’ Advice has an online form to help you do this.
TS will then decide whether to investigate further based on the information you provide and help negotiate a settlement.
Even if it doesn’t, the details may help if anyone else complains about the same firm.
It is also possible to take builders to a small claims court if you have been left out of pocket. However, you run the risk of racking up significant costs.
While most home insurance policies don’t cover building work, it is worth confirming this with your provider.
And you should also, if possible, find out whether your builder holds liability insurance, which would also help.
