Patrick Rorey Cawley: Sheffield 'rogue roofer' pocketed £28,000 from victims for 'poor, unnecessary work'
A “rogue roofer” who pocketed over £28,000 from Sheffield residents for unnecessary and poor work has been jailed.
Patrick Rorey Cawley, of Royale Roofing Ltd, was caught for a series of shoddy, fraudulent jobs he did for three victims in Sheffield, according to Sheffield City Council.
The 33-year-old cold door knocked two of the victims whilst the third found him through an advertisement on Facebook - but all three victims were harassed, misled and coerced into agreeing to poor quality and unnecessary roofing work, the council claims.
However, after an investigation from Sheffield City Council’s trading standards team, Rawley has now been jailed for three years and three months for fraud.
He was also given a Criminal Behaviour Order which means that he will not be able to do roofing work for at least the next five years, and faces up to four more years in prison if he does.
Councillor Joe Otten said: “It’s absolutely essential that we prioritise work on cases like this one to make sure that those try to take money from residents fraudulently are held to account, fined and prosecuted.
“The work traders like this carry out can be left unfinished or sometimes they can take money and not carry out the work at all or it can be of a very poor standard and not meet building regulations. Often these traders will have no formal training or insurance to carry out work and they can leave people having to pay out more money for the work to be re-done, repaired or completed.”
The council is warning residents to be vigilant to avoid rogue traders by checking the credibility of businesses before handing over any money. Many rogue traders operate online and display professional-looking websites which appear genuine, but many are not.
Councillor Otten added: “There are many genuine and honest traders who advertise their services to the people of Sheffield online but unfortunately there are a number who are not who they say they are.
“When looking for traders online I would urge members of the public to be cautious and take some time to research who the traders are and if what they are offered seems too good to be true, it generally is.
“If you do find that you have been lied to, let down or misled by a rogue trader, remember that it can happen to pretty much anyone, so don’t be embarrassed. Report it and remember that our trading standards enforcement officers are there to help keep you safe from this kind of operation. They might also find that other people have reported the same person or company, which all helps when our enforcement officers put cases together for court.”
To stay safe, trading standards advise all residents who are considering using traders to carry out work on their homes to ask these questions before proceeding and before giving any money to anyone:
- Is the trader registered on Companies House?
- Does the trader have their own website?
- Is the trader claiming to be a member of a recognised trade association? If so, visit that organisation’s website to check
- Can you research the trader through an online search engine for any reviews?
- Ask family and friends for recommendations
- Shop around – try to get at least three quotes to give an overview of an average price and what you get for that price
- Get it in writing – get quotes, including timescale for completion, breakdown of costs and details of any guarantees or warranty in writing. Keep all correspondence, including text messages and emails
- In the event of an emergency a quick fix could be essential but still take time to ensure any trader you contact has the required skills and qualifications needed to carry out any specialist work and still ask for a quote in writing
- Request a receipt for the work carried out and any money paid
- Do not deal with anyone who refuses to take payment via cheque or bank transfer
- If a trader says they can do the work immediately, ask why?
- Don’t make a snap decision
Anyone who has been a victim of a rogue trader who would like to make a report can contact Citizens Advice Bureau consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 or at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/get-more-help/if-you-need-more-help-about-a-consumer-issue who will forward the information to the council’s trading standards enforcement officers.