A ROGUE roofer who conned victims out of more than £368,000 has been jailed.
Residents across South Gloucestershire – including one in Alveston – as well as Bristol and Cornwall were ripped off by Richard Williams, aged 53, trading under names including Williams Roofing, Roofability, Roofing Home Service and R&K Property & Building Contractor.
Bristol Crown Court heard Williams preyed on the elderly and vulnerable: the oldest of his 19 victims was 99 years old.
One woman used her life savings and took out loans from banks and relatives to pay Williams almost £155,000 for building work.
A surveyor said most of the work the woman’s home, including a new roof, was unnecessary and valued the work Williams had done properly at less than £5,000 – but redoing other work he had botched has cost her another £100,000.
A ‘liar and a clever thief’
She described Williams as “a liar and clever thief who preys on honest, vulnerable people”.
Williams, of Greenridge Close in South Bristol and formerly of Little Stoke, was jailed for six years and four months in late November.
He was also made subject to an indefinite Criminal Behaviour Order, banning him from running a building business or doing any building, maintenance or gardening work, after pleading guilty to charges of fraudulent trading.
Williams was prosecuted by South Gloucestershire Council’s trading standards team, who first started to receive complaints about him in 2021.
A council spokesperson said he would start by offering to carry out small repairs but would end up charging thousands of pounds more to replace entire roofs.
However, Williams would often take large deposits upfront then never come back, or would start a job then fail to finish it, leaving homes exposed to the elements for months at a time.
The council said Williams was fully aware of his legal responsibilities, having been jailed for 14 months in 2020 for fraudulent trading in respect of a previous business, Platinum Roofing.
He continued to operate, generating more complaints, while he was on bail following his arrest.
The spokesperson said: “Williams used different business names and several false addresses.
“He used typical rogue trader tactics, such as pressure techniques and aggressive behaviour.”
Victim lost hair due to stress
Victims said Williams was initially very friendly and “charming”, and was described as a very good salesman.
Williams also failed to pay invoices totalling over £4,200 for advertising, putting one small business in financial difficulty.
Chartered surveyor Tim Davies, who examined some of the properties in the case, said most of the work didn’t need doing, was “excessively” overpriced and in one case the standard of workmanship was “deficient in almost all areas”.
Williams’ 99-year-old victim said he had “hit me for six”, turning her from a calm to a very anxious, worried person.
Another said he had lost hair due to the stress caused.
Williams initially denied the charges but changed his plea after additional evidence of continued offending was put in front of him.
‘Thoroughly dishonest’
Judge James Patrick said Williams was a “thoroughly dishonest man” who exploited the elderly and the vulnerable.
Afterwards council cabinet member for communities Sean Rhodes said: “This is a record sentence for South Gloucestershire Council and follows years of hard work by our Trading Standards team.
“The victims in this case have been left in devastating circumstances.”
For advice on avoiding rogue traders visit tinyurl.com/2nn6t9vr or call 0808 223 1133.