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Owners warned to watch out for damp rip-off

Tuesday, 13 December 2011 9:33 AM

Home owners could be spending hundreds of pounds on unnecessary damp-proofing treatment, according to an investigation by Which?.

The magazine found in two thirds of cases, damp-treatment companies recommended action that experts said was unnecessary or inappropriate or else missed the problem completely.

It borrowed two houses with a total of three potential damp problems and asked 11 companies to visit each.

In one home, five out of 11 recommended unnecessary treatment - one quoting £1,440 for the work – when they should have suggested getting a plumber to fix a leak.

In another, only two out of 11 recommended a suitable solution for penetrating damp in the hall.

One firm failed to offer good advice on any of the problems but charged £144 per property for its surveys. All the other surveys were free.

The magazine estimates that a significant number of owners could be affected by similar problems.

In an online survey of 1,600 people conducted last year, a quarter had experienced damp problems in the previous two years and a quarter of them had damp-proofing carried out.

Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said: "People could be left massively out of pocket by the dodgy advice given by these damp-proofing companies. At a time when many people are struggling with their finances, this is simply unacceptable."

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