Rogue trader jailed for three years after gardening con

Our Trading Standards team took legal action against Ambrose Fletcher, 32, after the woman contacted us when he failed to show up to carry out work she had paid for.

Garden works

The work was arranged through Fletcher's company, A&F Tree Services, where he cut down conifers in the woman's garden for a cash payment of £75.

Fletcher then agreed to carry out further work to install artificial grass for a fee of £1,500, with a £240 deposit.

Shortly after, Fletcher requested a further £900 followed by £124 for better quality grass.

He then asked for a further £318 for machinery needed to carry out the work, bringing the total paid to £1,582.

Court action

When Fletcher failed to show up to do any of the agreed work, he was contacted by the woman's daughter asking for the money to be returned.

The matter was taken to court where Fletcher's solicitors submitted several requests for the case to be adjourned due to his ill health, providing letters from his GP as evidence.

The letters were later shared with the lead doctor of the practice, who examined them and confirmed they were not legitimate.

The case was transferred to Durham Crown Court and, after Fletcher failed to attend, a warrant was issued for his arrest.

Sentencing

At the time of the hearing, Fletcher was remanded in custody at HMP Durham, awaiting sentence. He appeared at Durham Crown Court via a video link and pleaded guilty to charges of theft, possessing criminal property, perverting the course of justice, and failing to attend court.

He was sentenced to three years' imprisonment and ordered to pay back the full £1,582 in compensation.

Gary Carr, our strategic regulation manager, said: "We take reports of rogue trading very seriously and will investigate criminal allegations where it is suspected a trader has broken the law. In this case, Fletcher built trust with his customer by carrying out initial work, only to then cause significant amounts of stress by not showing up for the further work and dragging out court proceedings.

"We always recommend that people use an approved trader site when sourcing a tradesperson to carry out work on their property or garden. If anyone has concerns about the legitimacy of a tradesperson or rogue trader activity, we would encourage them to report it to our Community Protection Service's Trading Standards officers or the Consumer Helpline on 0808 223 1133."