Taken in by a con artist

Don’t feel stupid. Assuming someone is acting honestly and fairly until proved otherwise is a wonderful
thing. I made a similar mistake a few years ago. I posted about my experience on here and was torn to shreds, I’m so happy to see kinder responses now.

Police wouldn’t do anything, the guy hasn’t broken the law.

They do it because it works. If you can afford the money then you can write this one off as experience.

I guess you can let the Police know, but its not like you have to have a liscence so I have no idea what they would charge him.

Jeez, he saw you coming. "working at a neighbours" is their usual phrase, load of bollox. "Extra treatment", another phrase when they think you're an easy target.

Had a tree 'surgeon' knock on my door, said he was working at a neighbours, not one single house in our 35 house cul-de-sac has a feckin tree but us. Anyway, he wanted £300 to chop down a (small) tree by our house, this would have been a 5 min job for us to do by the way, he wasn't even going to take the tree away. I told him I'd have to 'speak with my husband', he stood there looking at me waiting for me to speak with him! When I realised he was waiting, he told me to call him now. I said no, he's in work. He then told me to call him at work! I said no, because he's at work. His face getting redder and redder with anger. He stormed off cursing in the end.

Fucking chancers.

Lesson learned for you OP.

What the guys done isn’t against the rules of trading standards.

It's the grifter that's in the wrong, not you. You're just a nice person who momentarily forgot that not everyone is honest. Tell trading standards and your neighbours, then write off the money and send your bad luck with it.

DH has too.

DH did something similar, it does happen to even sensible people unfortunately.
He got suckered into agreeing for people to dig out a border in our back garden. Think he paid £350 and the weeds were back within a year🙄

I still get irritated when I look at that border which is still full of weeds but mostly I do laugh about it now!

That’s a crazy amount. Even paying £350 out of the blue for something unplanned and unfun as that is hard to fathom but you obviously had the cash and agreed to the price so best to own it really, and enjoy your slightly better driveway.

Try not to beat yourself up, you’re the victim here and you won’t be the only one. Maybe you can let trading standards or the police know so they can have him in their sights.

Yeah it's quite common £500 scam has been for years granny used to be forever taken in on "new driveway £500" "your roof needs doing £500" her family persuaded her to sell up and move closer to them in the end because she was ALWAYS being scammed its like they passed her name around (don't get me started on the neighbours taking advantage)

Lesson learned haggle next time they will be less likely to return if the money isn't easy

£400 is a normal price if it’s London. My sister’s cost about £410

It's not always women who get conned. My DH isn't stupid but has been caught similarly. You live and learn.

Jeeze, my karcher pressure washer only cost £60!

3 quotes for everything.

Sorry but wow
why on earth did you agree to that?! Lesson learned I hope ?

Oh dear.

You've been well and truly had my friend. Sorry 😔

£500 I'd expected him to have replaced your bloody patio!

Your DH could have been more helpful though. He could have supported you. I know it's sexist, but often if a man is on the scene they don't often try this shit. He sounds like he just left you to it.

If my DH got a whiff of something like this , he'd have come to the door pretty sharpish to check the bloke out. But there again my DH would do weeding/patio pressure wash himself. (We're a bit of a pink jobs/blue jobs household 😄)

I feel for you. It's a horrible feeling. But at least you now have learnt a valuable lesson and will proceed with more caution next time. Chalk it up to experience.

Nobody jump on me please : but the travelling community are known for this kind of thing. Just keep your wits about you. "Nice" "naive" people are often easily targeted. So sometimes it's wise to take heed of known stereotypes.

I've also done this and I know others who have done the same. These companies can be very convincing and even forceful if you try say no.

Take it as a lesson learned and next time don't answer the door or just say no. I also now make sure I say my (non existent) husband is home and says no. I think they think a woman might say yes easily

These cold callers always use the same hook. I had a guy chap the door saying he was working up the road on a new driveway and had a little bit of material left, was I looking for a new drive?

I asked which number he was doing and he couldn't answer. Also didn't have a business card or flyer on him, which was another red flag.

Had a double glazing salesman say he could get me a discount on new windows if I let him recycle the old windows.

You were caught off guard so don't be too hard on yourself. Just be a bit more guarded any time the door goes.

We joke about it, but my wife can't say no to cold callers but invariably says "let me just get my husband" and I have to be the one to say we don't need windows, a new roof or a broadband deal.

Pop £350 in your idiot tax leger for this one.
Honestly we all do things that we regret. There are far bigger/worse mistakes to make than this one

Why the fook did you agree to £500 regardless of whether he worked on a neighbours property or not? I'd have sent him on his way

£500 to pull a few weeds up and point a pressure washer at the ground?! Fuck me im in the wrong job

£500 seems very steep. But it sounds like you can afford it and he’s done a decent job, so I would just try and forget about it.

You could report this guy’s company but technically what he’s done isn’t illegal although it is sneaky. “Your neighbour” could literally refer to anyone in your road.

did you pay upfront or after he’d done it?

YANBU

Ooft thats a lot. Yes you were had. Enjoy the weed free drive and warn the neighbours.