Invoice fraud

[mygenericusername]

Can someone advice whether overbilling is a crime in the U.K. like it is in the USA.

I can provide concrete evidence that on the day someone says they were working on my product, it was sat at my premises. I have dated images.

I am going to start the legal process and see a solicitor but I can’t do this until next weeks appointment.

Can anyone assist in the meantime?

Sorry if I am being a bit thick but have you challenged them yet and/or refused to pay?

Have they actually carried out the work specified but put down the wrong date, or have they not done the work at all?

Just query it with them.

Hello

This saga has been going on for several weeks. I was unhappy with the quantity of work a contractor was undertaking for the hours he was charging and promptly ended our agreement.

I asked him for a final invoice and was shocked to receive a bill for twenty days of work.

I explained that I was unhappy with the bill and asked him when he had undertook the work he claimed to have done. In the meantime I paid him for the work I know is a fair representation of his hours.

I have asked him for 31 days to provide me with a breakdown of the days he says he worked for us. Nothing emerged until yesterday evening when he finally gave me some dates. The issue is on the dates that he claimed to be working for us, the part he was working on at the time was clearly visible from pictures we were taking in our own workshop.

Now normally I would say take me to court for the rest but he is refusing to hand over tools that we leant to him until we pay the balance of his invoice.

I have not provided him with the evidence of his deception yet and am waiting for legal assistance regarding what to do next.

I have acknowledged receipt of the dates

Well get back to him then, and politely ask him to check his dates, as you have reviewed them yourself and there appear to be some discrepancies.

Stay absolutely polite and professional, and keep copies of everything.

Agree with the previous poster. It is too early to start the legal process and talk of criminal offences is over the top. This is a civil dispute. You need to ask him to check his dates. You should only consider legal action if you reach an impasse. Even then, you must send him a letter before action, setting out your claim and giving him time to return the tools. If he still fails to return the tools, that is the point at which you could take legal action.

If this would be a small claim you should deal with this yourself. You will not be able to recover your legal costs from the contractor.