A FATHER said he was left with an ‘uninhabitable’ home after claiming a builder conned him.

Luke Boyce, 42, who lives in Barton, Oxford, was excited after saving up thousands of pounds to renovate his home last summer. He paid a builder £20,000 to refurbish his kitchen, bathrooms, radiators, doors and boiler.

But having ripped out the units, the tradesman ‘walked out of the job’ leaving Mr Boyce with an unfinished home – until local tradesmen stepped in to help get his house back to normal.

He said: “It’s been horrendous, my house was uninhabitable. He didn’t care that he left my house in an absolute state. It was the worst six months of my life.”

Since May, Mr Boyce has been without heating and hot water meaning he couldn’t wash and cook meals properly and has had to use a camping gas cooker instead.

Oxford Mail:

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He added: “He also left a hole in the roof for weeks because he took the chimney out and put a pavement slab on top.

"He ruined every room and he didn’t do a carbon monoxide test which means he put me in serious danger. He just didn’t care.”

Oxford Mail:

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The father-of-two posted his frustration on social media, after which local tradesmen rallied round to get his house back to normal – all offering their services free of charge.

Martin Probbitts who runs Middle Barton-based carpentry business MJP Home Improvement has fixed flooring and is still in the process of fitting the kitchen, while Kenny Belcher from MBFI Plumbing Services Blewbury fixed the heating, boiler and other areas of the house.

Oxford Mail:

Mr Boyce said: “They’ve given up their time and I cannot express how grateful I am for their help. It shows that not all builders are bad.”

He has reported the original builder to Action Fraud which is in the process of assessing the complaint by its National Fraud Intelligence Bureau.

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After being contacted by the Oxford Mail, the builder, who we have decided not to name, denied walking out on the job and said he was not fully paid for work in the kitchen.

He said he had sought to agree a way forward via a ‘dispute resolution’, but My Boyce denied that.

The builder said social media posts about him were "best described as a hate campaign".