New patio laid badly, am I unreasonable to complain?

[Purplecarrots123]

We had a new patio laid this week and I’m not too happy with it, the slabs aren’t smooth so some of the joins are a trip hazard, they didn’t put the gravel border round we agreed and the edges have been left in a total mess.

Am I t unreasonable to complain and is there a way this can be fixed without redoing the whole patio?

Have you paid them yet?

We were tempted to get a second opinion and look to have someone else fix it. I always worry if they do a poor job first time and think it’s ok to leave it like that they won’t be bothered about fixing it properly. I know it will cost us to have it out right but based on leaving it like this it’ll be another new patio in the not too distant future otherwise

So they changed what you wanted without your agreement? Give them a chance to rectify: be clear - there will be no extra payment and no second half until the AGREED work is completed. As it stands they are in breach of your contract. Give them a reasonable time frame to fix after which you’ll go to trading standards. And be using the other half of the cash to have the job fixed. I’d also make sure I’m on site so they don’t remove the slabs and make off.

Mercifully only half.

Ok. You don't pay! Sorry op but I think they look to have done a really shit job. Hard to tell from photos. Don't let them gaslight you. Have you got pictures of what it was laid on? That's the biggest worry. Adding jointing compound is easy, but if it all sinks and has no drainage, they need to start again

What would you say is a reasonable tike frame? They said they would be available to come back in September to sort the grass borders out for £1000

I believe it was laid on cement. There was a cement mixer here and lots of bags of cement. We asked about drainage during the quote stage and then again when work started and he said it was already in place and ok (my husband had that convo as I was at work) and he did say to me when I asked about said gravel borders that the slabs had been angled using a spirit level for drainage. Reading your message and what I have just written, I’m going to have a sinking patio though I think. How long have I got until it sinks……

We’ve just been out and looked at the edges again. This is not going to end well is it….photos attached

That isn’t a great base

The more we go round the garden the more I feel sick….

We’ve had a patio laid recently. They spent ages getting the base right. The developers who laid the original patio just put the slabs on soil (and covered a drain!)

They can run an angle grinder up as wide as you want and do the border - easy fix dusty that’s all

Did you see them doing the work or hear them (a compactor and cement mixers are loud!)

Yes - the cement mixer was going for days. We warned the neighbours of noise and work as we saw all the equipment arrive. We had a mini digger and cement mixer

There’s off cuts of patio underneath some
of it. These are going to pop up aren’t they. Can anyone advise on how long until they start lifting?

I don’t understand how the areas around the slabs aren’t compacted and there is no cement showing.

This is what ours looked like whilst it was being laid

Are they porcelain tiles OP?

They are

Assuming they are a reputable company, go to trust pilot and put a 1 star (you have to put something in) and those pictures. That is not a professional job and they're taking you for a ride. Then email them and tell them that you will go to a small claims court to get your money back plus repairs

I strongly recommend you do not permit them to "fix" what is a very poor job. Risk of collapse flooding is very real

If they had used cement and you were home, you would have KNOWN they' d used cement, so noisy is it

Very sorry and no wonder you're upset. You have every right to be!

Good luck

If I were you I would put my fingers under one of those tiles (where the gaps are in the mortar) and try and lift it up. I bet it comes away easily. They might feel stuck at first but it'll come up in one piece.

I speak from bitter experience. Porcelain tiles have to have a layer of primer applied on the back before laying on mortar. They're not porous and won't adhere without it.

I went round the garden and was able to lift them all up again weeks later with my bare hands. The back of the tile shouldn't be 'dry' - it should be coated with a layer of slurry primer. Those gaps alone in your pics are going to fill with rain and freeze over winter, causing them to expand and crack as well.

Very poor workmanship. I would have concerns about how the water will drain, gravel around the edge keeps the run off.

I agree, try and lift one
Also be aware if they did dot and dab method.

It certainly looks like dot and dab.
The OP can go onto the manufacturers website and download the instructions for laying them.

Yeah no. They can do the job that was agreed for the price ageeed or no final payment and trading standards. No discussion.

If they took two weeks and lots of cement, by the look of that they may have done a concrete slab first (did you see them do that before they laid the tiles?) and then laid the tabs with dot and dab.

It's not as good as laying them fully mortared in, but the good news is that if you do get movement it is much much easier to lift them and re-lay them, so if you have to get someone else in to fix it they can do it without needing any new tiles.