Victim of 'remorseless' builder who conned homeowners recalls how he ruined lives

Richard James Nicholls, 38, who was a director at Shrewsbury-based firm, The Property Advantage, was jailed for three years.

Inner London Crown Court heard he left homeowners in the capital with a string of unfinished extensions and shoddy home improvement projects.

Southwark’s trading standards team said he, and the four companies he managed, had come to their attention after customers reported he took large sums of money up front, for work never completed, and in some cases never started.

One of his victims, Owen Rees, said: “It really doesn’t feel like five years ago that Richard Nicholls came into our lives and ultimately ruined them for a substantial period of time. His lies, deceit, and total lack of moral compass left my wife and I emotionally and financially traumatised.”

He added: “Towards the end of our dealings with Richard Nicholls, the stress caused by his greed and sheer ineptitude as a building contractor caused my wife to suffer panic attacks whilst she was heavily pregnant with our first son.

“Despite me pleading with him at the time to make right his wrongs and telling him what we were going through, he disappeared into thin air.

“We had to borrow the money stolen by Richard from our family to complete the job, which ultimately meant selling the house and leaving London to pay back the loan.

“Had we not had this support, we would have lost everything. I would describe dealing with Richard as the darkest period in our married life and one we’ll never forget.

“What upset me almost more than being conned was the total lack of remorse from Richard.

“He blamed everyone but himself and then disappeared.”

Nicholls, of Hotspur Street in Shrewsbury, told one client who had already paid him £90,000, that he would only be able to finish their job, when he received funds from a new client, for another project.

The same client had to spend a further £150,000 to correct and complete Nicholls’ work, because the foundations laid were only half the depth they needed to be. Building work for another family’s kitchen overran again and again, forcing them to live in their living room, with just a microwave to cook meals. The work was never finished by Nicholls.

Analysis of Nicholls’ bank records showed that he had used £52,000 received from customers for online gambling purposes.

Councillor Dora Dixon-Fyle, Southwark Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said: “I am pleased that the Courts recognise the seriousness of the crimes Nicholls committed. The prison sentence also reflects the terrible impact his failures had on his clients.

“This case highlights how important it is for trading standards to tackle fraudulent behaviour, which too often impacts on vulnerable people.

“I congratulate our trading standards officers for their determination in bringing this man to justice and thank all involved in the investigation.”

The scale of the investigation was such that Southwark received funding from National Trading Standards (NTS), which also helped take witness statements from victims.

Trish Burls, Chair of the National Trading Standards Tri Regional Investigation Team said: “Nicholls preyed on his victims under a veil of lies, false claims and deceit. He deliberately misled people into agreeing to home improvement works that he was not qualified to carry out, leaving victims distressed and out of pocket by tens of thousands of pounds. This sentence sends a clear message that, in the long-run, fraudulent trading does not pay – instead, it ends behind bars.”