Artisan Home Improvements Ltd

STAY CLEAR. Zero star rating I was left several hundred pounds out of pocket. Work was never done!

Trading standards wrote seven times to warn company, based in Somerville Park, off Halifax Road, over infringement 7:00am Saturday 27th October 2012 A south Bradford home improvement company has been fined nearly £7,000 after incorrectly claiming it was a member of the Consumer Protection Association (CPA). Artisan Home Improvements, whose managing director is Darren Mark Ludbrook, was fined £6,000 at Leeds Magistrates’ Court yesterday and ordered to pay £689 costs after pleading guilty under Consumer Protection Regulations for the false use of a logo. The company is based at Somerville Park, off Halifax Road. The action was brought by West Yorkshire Trading Standards, which received a complaint from the Consumer Protection Association last November saying it had written to Mr Ludbrook seven times informing him not to use the CPA logo because his membership ended on October 8, 2009. Consumers who employ a member of the CPA get deposit protection and a ten-year insurance-backed guarantee on all installations. The CPA kept getting complaints from the public despite their letters to Mr Ludbrook and checks on the Artisan Home Improvements website resulted in more letters being sent, but they were unanswered, trading standards said. Trading standards also got a complaint in August last year from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) because a member of the public had seen the FMB certificate displayed on Mr Ludbrook’s website despite him not being a member. In a statement trading standards said using a trust mark or authorisation mark without certification is a banned practice and offence under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. “This is because it may mislead potential consumers into contacting a business they may not have contracted with otherwise,” the statement said. “The FMB logo is a sign of quality workmanship which is recognised by consumers. “Tradepersons seek to be members of trade associations to gain a greater amount of work, which results in greater financial income and to gain a competitive edge against competitors.” David Lodge, the divisional manager at trading standards, said: “Trading standards works closely with a number of trade associations and always acts upon any complaints that are made to us. “This result shows that the courts take these matters very seriously and will hopefully serve as a warning to any traders who use trade logos dishonestly.”

I used Artisan home improvements for a simple soffit & facia replacement. The job was carried out & initially looked ok from the ground. Then problems started to arise within a few weeks & on closer inspection the work was shoddy at best. Artisan home improvements from bradford after 8 months have still not put things right. They hardly ever answer the phone of which I have several contact numbers for them, they never reply to messages left, if I do get through they always say they will send someone out, which they never do. Please avoid these cowboys at all cost, if they cant do a simple small job correctly then I wouldn't want to see some of their larger jobs.

We had a dorma put on our detached house Dec 2012 . This included adding an extra bedroom and 2 en suites. The roof had new fascias put on the whole house. There were many problems during the whole project, which Darren and his team sorted as efficiently as possible. We were left satisfied on completion, with the guarantee that should any issues arise they would come back to sort. I am currently awaiting that guarantee fulfilling at this point Feb 2014. But hopeful i will be able to award 5 stars one day.

We had a garage conversion done nearly 3 years ago I was very pleased with the attention Darren paid to all the details. Darren ensured everything we wanted was done, however the final mortar on the exterior is a different colour to the rest of the house so does not match. This is a shame and despite asking numerous times has never been corrected otherwise I would have given them 5 stars and used them again. We get lots of comments from friends regarding this finish and will probably pay to sort it ourselves.

Really pleased that Artisan have come out today and re done some areas that we had complaints with previously . Thank you for sticking to your word -we really appreciate it.

First Class Job. Tidy, Polite staff. Very happy and would use again. AAAAA+

Dear Mr Ludbrook and Artisan. Thank you for my new bedroom in our roof. The pink colour and big window are very nice and make me feel happy and special. Kitty Wells (8 years old). As Kitty's parents we also want to thank Artisan for all the help and great work they have done to our home.

Thank you for a fast response and well finished loft conversion. The loft is great and the new windows and doors are just amazing. We have put faith in Artisan and it has been well repaid. Great job

First Class Service. Darren Ludbrook who is the owner of Artisan was in attendance throughout the work to oversee our progress.. The work has been completed to a very good standard by polite, friendly workmen. After our initial verbal quote we received a written quote detailing all the costs. The final job was bang on price. Brilliant. Cheers Artisan

Excellent. No need to say anymore. Brilliant team of tradesmen and respectful, friendly sales staff.

Artisan created a new room and en-suite in our loft space. We are 100% happy with not only the quality of the workmanship but also the customer care. We were given a 'mentor' to talk us through the work and keep us updated. We are about to have our fascia and soffits done as well. Thank you Artisan . 5 Stars. Mark and Elenor Wright

We had a loft conversion done in May/June. Between Darren's first visit and work starting there was only just over a week, which didn't give us much time for panic! From the first day the workmen came to their last day, five weeks later, we had few issues. The team were pleasant and polite, they arrived early each morning and always tidied up before leaving. They even put up with the dog checking their work on daily basis! Anything we were unsure about was explained to us as to what they were doing and why and they happily incorporated changes we decided on along the way. We now have a beautiful new bedroom with en suite and loads of storage space, which we didn't have before, and we couldn't be more pleased.

I would highley recommend Darren and his team we have just had fascia/soffits and cladding on the front and back of the house fitted all was done on time and efficiently. We had had several different firms round and each said that they would give us a quote within a few days one took over a week and two of the others we had to chase up after nearly two weeks we went on holiday and said we would decide who we would go with when we got back in the pile of post when we got back was an Artisan leaflet so I thought I would give them a call Darren came round at a convenient time to suit myself and gave me a quote on the spot which was very competitive and because of the efficiency of this we decided there and then that this was the company that we wanted to carry out work out. We have since reccomended to my Mother-in-law who now has a new roof. The only complaint I have have was at the time if you reccomended you were given £75 but now I see that it is now £200 but Darren did give us a box of chocolates whenthe work was completed which I thought was a very nice touch.

We recently had our loft converted by Artisan Home Improvements, and would like to express our thanks to Darren Ludbrook and his team for the work carried out, Having a team of builders in your home for such a time may be can be a daunting prospect, especially having two young children at home, but all times you and your team have been professional, well mannered, considerate and good fun to have around. We had prepared ourselves for the whole house to be upside down and disrupted but we couldn’t have been more wrong it was actually a pleasure to have you around. From the very beginning your team were great the plastering was excellent and electrician even worked late to get the job done. Overall we are extremely pleased with both the way in which the work was carried out and the end result. Thank you very much.

Having just completed our loft conversion, we would like to thank you and your team. We are absolutely delighted with what you have achieved for us in such a short time. From the first meeting with you, to the finished product we could not fault the professionalism, expertise and patience of you and your team. Even as we were amending the original plans, you were there to advise us and were always happy to meet our requirements, Your team were always reliable, hardworking and friendly and the quality of work was outstanding. Thank you once again for the excellent have work you have done for us, we would happily recommend you to anyone.