Suffolk Trading Standards has successfully secured a conviction against Felixstowe builder Kevin Zizka for fraudulent and unfair trading, resulting in a suspended prison sentence and £27,841 in compensation for his victims.

Zizka, 56, of Coronation Drive, Felixstowe, traded as KHF Building & Landscaping Ltd and operated across Suffolk. However, complaints against the company quickly mounted after customers claimed that the work carried out by Zizka was dangerous and did not comply with building regulations or meet electrical safety standards.

Four victims contacted Suffolk Trading Standards after paying thousands of pounds to Zizka for substandard home improvements involving the fitting of steel beams and electrical work, which prompted Trading Standards to launch an investigation into the rogue trader.

One case saw a Felixstowe homeowner charged over £17,000 for the removal of a chimney breast, installation of steel beams and a kitchen renovation. Zizka left the job part way through, leaving the victim with essential parts of the chimney breast's steel support rusting in their garden, and the remaining chimney inadequately supported. Electrical work carried out on the property was inspected by the Chief Technical Officer of NAPIT and found to be unsafe, with a potential risk of fire or serious injury to users.  

Zizka left dangerous wiring (Picture credit: Suffolk Trading Standards)

Another customer from Ipswich who employed Zizka to install a kitchen and fit steel beams to her property reported that the work had caused her ceiling to drop, opening a gap between the ground and first floor of the property that had to be propped up, after he ignored the advice of structural engineers and failed to fit the beams properly. On inspection from an independent chartered surveyor, these were found to pose serious safety concerns, and urgent remedial works were required due to a risk of collapse from the supporting walls.

Stuart Hughes, Senior Investigating Officer for Suffolk Trading Standards, said: "The homeowners in this case have endured considerable upset and upheaval from the mess that Kevin Zizka caused to their properties, as well as the frustration of trying to get him back to correct unsafe work. 

"Rectifying his actions has been a stressful and costly process for the victims, who have had to find additional monies to fund repairs for work they had already paid for.   

"There is no doubt that Mr Zizka let his customers down badly, after they trusted him to act with honesty and integrity. Instead of improving their homes, he left them in a worse state than before, lied to them and ran off with their money." 

In addition to his dangerous work, Zizka fraudulently charged VAT to customers despite not being VAT registered with HMRC. He also took building control fees for applications but failed to submit these, and falsely claimed to be a member of Checkatrade to encourage customers to use his services.

A court hearing on 4 February saw Zizka plead guilty to one count of Fraudulent Trading under Section 993 of the Companies Act 2006 and two counts of commercial practice which contravened the requirements of professional diligence under regulation 8 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. 

He was subsequently sentenced to four months per offence in prison, to run concurrently, suspended for 18 months, at Ipswich Magistrates Court on Friday 27 May. The court also ruled that Zizka must carry out 200 hours of unpaid work, participate in rehabilitation activity, is disqualified from being a company director for five years, and will pay £27,841 in compensation to his victims, along with £10,000 in costs to Trading Standards.

Rusted beams led to ceiling sagging (Picture credit: Suffolk Trading Standards)

Councillor Andrew Reid, Suffolk County Council's cabinet member for Public Health and Public Protection, said: "I welcome Friday's outcome, which reflects the tireless work of our Trading Standards team to help protect consumers who are on the receiving end of unsafe services or products.

"The court ruling that Zizka should receive a suspended sentence, undertake a significant amount of unpaid work, and pay compensation to his victims sends a very clear message that there are severe consequences for carrying out substandard work or deliberately defrauding and misleading customers.

"We are fortunate to have many legitimate traders in our county who don't deserve to lose out on business to crooks such as Zizka, and I hope that his sentencing will ensure a fairer playing field for the building industry." 

Anyone who believes that they may have been the victim of a fraudulent or substandard trader should contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.