04 June 2024 , 13:53
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A woman whose artificial lawn was left looking like "Teletubbyland" after builders worked on it has been awarded £8,000 in compensation.
Val Starbuck said the £10,000 job left her garden "virtually unusable" by the company she hired to lay down a new 100m2 turf. At first, the 64-year-old was pleased with the makeover, but dips began to emerge on the lawn just a week after completion at her home in Wroxall, Isle of Wight.
A small claims court heard that despite a mole being the culprit for the original lumps, the work by firm Kositoes had been done so poorly that the surface would have eventually "lost its trueness" anyway. Ms Starbuck fears her garden is now "dangerous" as it "gives way underneath you" and is still "worse than ever".
After taking the company's director, Robert Briggs, to court, and following a trial at Isle of Wight County Court, a judge awarded her £8,000 for the project as it was "not carried out to a high standard as promised".
Ms Starbuck, representing herself, had paid Kositoes £10,000 for her lawn which was completed in July 2021. She was initially "delighted" with the end result and even signed a document expressing her satisfaction before noticing lumps appearing just days later.
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Val was awarded £8,000 in compensation for the lumpy lawn (IOW County Press/Solent News)But Ms Starbuck then required pest control to fix her mole problem. Kositoes revisited a few times, but nothing was resolved and parts of the garden began sinking. She argued the mole would not have caused as much damage had the work been carried out to a
"proper standard" - which Mr Briggs said was "totally incorrect".
The court heard from expert witness, James Firth, who boasts 40 years' experience in the landscape industry. After inspecting the back garden, he said it "presented well", but the depth was "too shallow", which meant it had sunk and there were "constructional inadequacies".
Even if the mole had not come into the garden, the surface would have eventually lost its "trueness" anyway, he said. Mr Firth added it is generally considered good practice to lay membrane underneath, but Kositoes had skipped this step. He said this would have made it "more difficult" for the mole to get through, to which Mr Briggs asked: "Are you aware moles can dig through concrete?"
Deputy District Judge Palacio said the mole's presence prompted Ms Starbuck to investigate and find that the "whole project had not been carried out to a high standard as promised".
The homeowner said her garden resembled Teletubbyland (Heritage Images/Getty Images)She agreed that had works been done to the required standard, "it was more likely than not" that the mole problem might not have arisen or the damage been as bad as it was. She ruled in favour of Ms Starbuck, awarding her £8,000 plus additional costs. A counter claim from Mr Briggs to be recompensed for remedial works was dismissed.
Speaking afterwards, Ms Starbuck, revealed the garden was still "worse than ever" despite the conclusion of court proceedings.
"I haven't been able to use large parts of the garden because it's far too dangerous, it's dangerous, it just gives way underneath you," she said. "They just didn't do it properly at all. It's just a mess, it's all falling apart. It looks a bit like Teletubbyland."
She said while the mole had "started the process", the sub-base layer "wasn't done properly" and led to further deterioration. "It's been a mess from the start," she added. "It has taken nearly three years - it's been a long, hard slog. It's been quite an ordeal for me. I just don't want anybody else to have to go through what I've had to go through."
On whether the court case finishing offered closure, she said: "Not at all. What I now have to do is get all this rubbish taken away and start again with someone else."