Wantage builder sentenced for fraud
A self employed builder has been sentenced for five fraud offences following an investigation by Oxfordshire County Council’s trading standards team.
Ben Arthur Eltham, of Chalbar, Denchworth Road, Grove, near Wantage, had previously pleaded guilty at Oxford Crown Court of dishonestly entering into contracts for projects where he charged for materials he did not purchase and for failing to finish work. The work he did carry out was of poor quality.
He also began work on properties without the necessary applications according to building regulations and failed to have work inspected at the required stages, despite assuring clients that this had been done.
Eltham, 41, was sentenced on Friday 30 May to 40 months imprisonment.
Davina Walkin, Trading Standards Operations Manager at Oxfordshire County Council, said: The vast majority of Oxfordshire’s builders complete their work on time and to their customers satisfaction. When this is not the case and traders take money for inadequate work and misuse funds intended for materials before lying to their clients about why projects are delayed, then our trading standards works hard to give residents as much protection as possible from such rogue traders.”
At the time of the offences, committed between 2021 and 2023, Eltham was trading as Ben Eltham General Builder and JFE Building Contractor.
He was contracted to complete work for five customers, primarily in the Wantage area, on garage conversions, extensions and remodelling projects.
There was a distinct pattern to the projects undertaken by Eltham. Work initially progressed well but soon slowed, and it would become difficult for his customers to reach him.
His clients were given increasingly implausible reasons why no work was being carried out and, in some cases, the work was never finished years after starting.
Investigations found that instead of ordering materials and paying staff to carry out the work, Eltham was spending considerable amounts on gambling, holidays and social events.
Davina continued: “We always advise anybody looking for a reliable trader to get a number of detailed quotes, check with friends and family for trusted recommendations and consider a trading standards’ approved trader from our Buy With Confidence scheme.
“People should proceed with caution when agreeing payment for large scale building projects. Paying in instalments is entirely sensible but when the payment schedule is too heavily weighted towards the beginning of the work, as was the case with Mr Eltham, this can be a warning sign and can leave customers heavily out of pocket with little work completed.
“The same applies when making significant down payments for items like fitted kitchens and bathrooms, glazing and heating systems. Always ensure there is proof orders have been made to avoid incurring the expense of having to re-order if an unscrupulous trader uses the money to cover other spending.”
Any Oxfordshire resident that has concerns about activity of this nature should report it using the national consumer helpline 0808 223 1133