We constantly see examples of the blatant fraud that Property Care Association member Peter Cox Ltd attempts to pull on the unsuspecting public. This example is one of the worst I’ve seen, and needs to be shouted from the rooftops. These criminals need to be stopped from conning the public once and for all. This was a report prepared by a con artist named Andy Clark, working out of the Lincoln office of Peter Cox. His ‘report’ is covered in Property Care Association logos. I love their strapline: “Raising Standards in Property Preservation”. The best standards of fraudulent trickery and con jobs I’ve ever seen…
I was asked to examine a wonderful 17th Century stone farmhouse, after the sale fell through. The valuation surveyor wanted a ‘timber and damp’ report – so 2 damp proofing wallies provided free ‘reports’ which both said the house had rampant ‘rising damp’ and needed all the internal plaster hacking off and replacing with cement and gypsum. One even wanted to pour tanking slurry all over an original Georgian encaustic tiled floor, claiming it was wet. Both wanted to spray all the timbers with toxic cocktails of chemicals, despite there being no evidence of ANY rot or beetle. The ‘quotes’ were around £12,000 for what would have been utter and complete fraud. Luckily the owners realised what was happening and asked us to investigate.
It is Grade 2 Listed. The building is in extraordinary condition – almost perfect. It has had none of the usual modern materials applied, and is bone dry. It is well ventilated, and beautifully maintained using traditional materials. Of particular interest is the very rare early cavity construction – all the external walls have a timber frame internally, over which is thick lath and plaster, with heavily haired lime plaster. It insulates the external walls, and provides a ventilated cavity to keep them dry. It is these walls that Peter Cox wanted to strip and replace with cement. They claimed ‘rising damp’ was rampant. Every wall is bone dry. We even carbide tested the stonework behind the lath screening and it was bone dry. Stripping plaster would have destroyed the magnificent timber skirtings and plinth blocks. It would have destroyed a pristine Grade 2 Listed interior.
The walls are so original that the outside has the thickest coating of limewash I have ever seen. I’ll show photos of it here – it is extraordinary. It has also kept the building in perfect condition by allowing it to breathe – preventing ANY build up of interstitial condensation – which the con artists refer to as ‘rising damp’. The cellar was said by Peter Cox to have ‘woodworm’ and other problems. It is bone dry – and apart from a few flight holes in a piece of wood that would have been there when it was placed there, no beetle was found – nor could be – the timber is all bone dry, and beetle don’t live in dry timber.
What I find staggering is that it is still possible for Peter Cox Ltd to engage in brazen fraud, proudly displaying their Property Care Association membership as a badge of honour – attempting to take £12,000 of homeowners money for something that was not needed. The house has been dry and free of both damp and beetle for over 250 years.
In this case there is a more sinister issue. Peter Cox Ltd are well aware that this was Grade 2 Listed. To propose that they rip off historically significant lath and plaster formwork, and then drill hundreds of holes in delicate stone and brickwork which would physically damage it, is criminal. It is a criminal offense to damage a Listed Building. Peter Cox Ltd proposed to criminally damage a Grade 2 Listed building, and as a result place the owners in danger of being taken to court for criminal damage as well. They knowingly led these owners into a criminal act. This is not the first time I have seen this happen when owners of Listed Buildings are forced to have ‘damp surveys’ done by Peter Cox Ltd.
Peter Cox Ltd are nothing other than bare faced, brazen criminals.
I’ll list a few of the standard paragraphs that they use – if you get a ‘quote’ with any of these, you know you are being conned:
Install a chemical damp proof course incorporating our Peter Cox Diffusion Process to those walls indicated on the sketch.
At the time of our inspection visible signs of dampness, supported by moisture profile readings obtained with an electronic moisture meter, indicated the presence of rising dampness to those walls indicated for treatment on the attached sketch. The rising dampness appears to be due to the apparent absence of an effective damp proof course.
(There was NO sign of ANY dampness in ANY of the walls! Resistance meter readings are off the scale everywhere because the walls are conductive with organic materials in the plaster)
Rising dampness is a commo (Is it? In 10 years and thousands of surveys we’ve never once seen it) naturally occurring phenomenon caused by moisture rising via capillary action into the building fabric. (Actually, any moisture is there because its been trapped by impermeable materials – it got there by diffusion, and condensed in masonry below the dew point – capillary action just does not happen) Most masonry building materials can be subject to rising dampness (no – condensation) and without suitable protectio (no – take all your fraudulent rubbish OFF the walls and they stay magically dry) your property can suffer from the problem…
Our method of installing a new damp proof course will control rising dampness above the level of the newly installed damp proof course.. (Well I suppose it will really, seeing as though rising damp doesnt exist – the wall will look dry because it always was!).
