Poor tiling job. What are our rights?

[Ren26]

We had our kitchen tiled last week and we're not at all happy with the work. The tiles aren't level, the spacings all the over the place, trim looks terrible, no expansion gap between worktop and tiles, grout not silicone between worktop and tiles, grout is varying shades of grey, tiles not flush next to windows. I'll try and add some photos. It's so bad we want to take all tiles off and start again. I think we need to do this because of the lack of expansion gap and silicone. We haven't paid and don't intend to pay for the work (we supplied the tiles). I've read that the tiler could request that he gets the opportunity to fix the job but I don't want him doing any more work in my house. Can I refuse to allow him to do this? I plan to email him today and tell him we won't be paying but want to start removing the tiles tonight. Should we wait before starting to remove tiles?

I've nothing useful to add, except to say that tiling is bloody grim!

That is sooooo bad ! Why did you even pay him before he left ?! It looks like a 5 year old did it

Sorry re read you haven't paid . Thank goodness . Awful workmanship and I'm not a tiler but have had things tiled by a local tiler who is amazing!

It's good that you haven't paid him.

I would take lots of photos of the work then take the lot down. I wouldn't allow them the chance to rectify it as it is so bad. It would be different if there was a small area that needed attention but it looks as though he would have to remove all the tiles and start again. You've paid for the tiles and so that would mean that you'd have to pay again for more tiles and risk the same thing happening.

We had a Karndean floor fitted throughout our downstairs. It was the top of the range of their flooring and was very expensive. The fitting was unbelievably bad. We got the manager of the shop to look at it and he said he would replace it but then asked us to remove the flooring and return it to him! Because it was stuck down to the sub-floor and would have ruined it. We told him this wasn't going to happen and didn't pay... no repurcussions.

The Consumer Rights Act stipulates that a trader must perform the job with ‘reasonable care and skill’. That clearly hasn’t happened.
Under the act you now are entitled to the following ‘remedies’:

1. Trader corrects errors, at no extra cost to you, or redo the whole job again (whichever is appropriate) also at no extra cost, and without causing significant inconvenience.


2. If the job cannot be done again, or not without extra cost, or without significant inconvenience or in reasonable time, you are allowed to claim a price reduction. That could be 100% depending on the circumstances and should be actioned within 14 days (if you’d already paid they would have to refund for example).

Of course, despite being Consumer Rights law, they might not agree and then you’d have to decide whether to pursue it legally. As you haven’t paid them yet, presumably it would be them that might instigate a legal process.

Jesus, that's dreadful, truly!
I'd want him to be paying for replacement tiles tbh.