Morning all,

(BTW – I know this is a bike forum so apologies for the seriously off topic post)

After some advice, had a kitchen made back in April by a local kitchen company. The run up to it being delivered was superb but the delivery seriously let us down and delayed our fitter causing some extra cost.

However, once fitted it turns out the cabinets haven’t been made to the right measurements and we have some doors which don’t fit the cabinets.

We got the MD round and his first reaction was to blame our fitter, but I managed to later disprove this and show that it was how his company had made the cabinets – about 4mm too short.

So we’ve been working with them to try to resolve this before paying them for the kitchen. But this has been dragging on now for 6 months and we’re seriously fed up as they keep saying they will sort it, then not turning up or keeping promises.

We owe them a reasonable amount of money and I want to pay them but I refuse to pay them until this is sorted. I made them an offer on what I would pay but they declined this.

Now the question is – what should I do next? It’s like pulling teeth to get this fixed. Any ideas? I’ve thought about talking to trading standards.

You have the money still tell them you are going to pay another company to come out and quote for making good tell them you will a deduct the cost of the quote from what you owe them and b if they dont pull finger out will instruct the other co to go ahead and make good you will also deduct that from their bill.
Or write saying given the fault and failure to rectify you have lost all trust and confidence in their ability and are getting the work done elsewhere and will look to them to meet the cost from what you owe them.
You need to fix deadlines before going elsewhere.

It’s worth talking to Trading Standards but I don’t think they will be able to do much for you.

Approach other companies and get some quotes for either new doors to be made, or the ones you have remade, so that they fit. If they can not confirm the match will be perfect then get all new doors made.

Remove any old doors that are no longer needed and return to original company. Pay them cost of kitchen less cost of new doors and any other costs incurred.

IANAL.

Any of the payments so far by credit card? Get your card provider to lean hard on them, usually it’s removal of the card facility. Companies tend to listen very closely to the card payment industry.

Did your fitter not measure up and realise the problem before fitting it.

You wouldn’t expect the kitchen fitter to notice that the doors were 4mm too short until they attempted to fit them.

It’s reasonable to assume that doors supplied to fit specific units are the correct size.

You have my sympathy, effen trades constantly muck you around, from manufacturers to workers I am seldom impressed buy the end results.
I am not a Lawyer, but I suggest you get one.
Then after talking to lawyer I would imagine he will recommend getting a building surveyor or similar, they can inspect and make a report. Which if it shows error on the manufacturers part you can then ask your lawyer to stick up the aforementioned manufacturers proverbial. Then pay someone else to put it right. If there is anything left after surveyor, lawyer and rectification then pay that to the original company. Possibly you may end up a little out of pocket, in which case sue the original company for your loss.
Demand satisfaction.

The doors were not to short, the cupboards were.

If it’s an off the shelf kitchen, carcasses are generally not perfect in size or even squareness.
That is why you have such a great amount of adjustment in the hinges and drawers.

A good fitter can make a silk purse out of a pigs ear.
They are generally poorly mass produced chipboard boxes and the bling is in the doors, drawer fronts, cornices, end panels and fillets.

A truely bespoke kitchen normally comes finished but the fitter may have to shave a little here or a little there, and then they send some one to reinstate a perfect paint finish.

If this had been spotted earlier the easiest option would have been to pack out the 4mm difference between units. Probably too late now if everything else has been installed.

Thanks for your comments.

The kitchen is bespoke in that the cabinets are slightly shorter than normal.

The issue arises from one side they’ve built to 580mm high, the other side they built to the same size but they incorrectly measured the extractor which has made the overall height 584mm – but the doors and end panels for both sides are 580mm.

Plus the carcasses were provided first and the doors about a week later (rather than the next day as promised which is the delivery issue) When he fixed them up it was all good, but when the extractor was fitted and then the doors it was when he noticed the issue. The guy who fitted it is a bespoke kitchen fitter and came highly recommended – his work was amazing and the attention to detail really shows – but unfortunately this pigs ear isn’t going to be a silk purse.

It’s a bit hard to understand how this went wrong without knowing all the details. Sounds like you are in the right but the easiest way to get matching items would be through the original supplier.

How many doors and panels are needed?

You’re in the power position as you haven’t paid.
Write a letter saying they come and make it good within 14 days
If not you get another company to do it and subtract all that money form what you owe them.

Simple.

Tell your credit card peeps too. If it’s on credit card (even a deposit of £100 covers whole cost regardless of balance payment method)

Who took the original measurements?
Why are you using a seperate fitter? Did the kitchen co not have their own fitters?
Did you take the fitter’s advice on suppliers?
Is it just wall units that are incorrect?

Edited…

Before you get ( or tell them you’re getting ) someone else to do the remedial I’d email them with a week or 10 days notice, then email offering them a final opportunity to put things right, 3 days after that you will just go ahead and get the work done at their cost.

If they build bespoke kitchens, they should I would imagine have fitters.
Did you notify them as soon as possible. If so I do not see why they have not sent there own people to put it right. Even if it meant replacing parts.

Surely you were supplied detailed plans with all the dimensions which were agreed.
And any parts that did not meet these specs should not have got past the unpacking stage.

Disregarding who has cocked this up, there must be a way to gain 4mm.

This is a mess.I would suggest you try and keep a reasonable relationship with the manufacturers for the time being and try and get this resolved.They want to get paid and also hopefully want you to be pleased with the kitchen they’ve supplied. Try and meet with the most senior staff member you can, and get them to agree there’s a fault and come up with a plan with you that you are happy with. Unfortunately stuff like this happens from time to time and good reputations are partly built on how companies deal with instances like this-hopefully the outfit you are dealing with will come good. Otherwise its aggro as suggested in previous posts

Hi,

Both wall cabinets were made to be 580mm high which when you ignore the extractor they have been – but on specing it up the company didn’t didn’t factor this in as the extractor adds the 4mm and there is no tolerance to adjust – so totally their fault but they still like to make out it is my fitters fault.

We have 4 doors which need changing to make them 584 rather than 580 which they are currently and they have said they will remake those, but that was 6 weeks ago and despite numerous attempts at emailing and leaving messages with other staff the guy hasn’t called us back.

I don’t want to ruin the relationship as on the whole what they have done is excellent but it’s just these last minor points which are dragging this out.

The two wall cabinets in question – one on the left you can see the end panel sits slightly higher visually than the doors but this is because the doors are slightly shorter.

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Looks good , we had that splash back in our old flat.
Could they not trim the top off the end panel?
Only you would notice 🙂

You mean the end panel is too long? Trim the top off and seal it.
I can’t honestly see what else is wrong other than your grass needs cutting…

Sadly not (and the end panel has been swapped already so is the “right” size 584mm) – they have a strip along the top and you would notice it – also you can see the top of the carcass above the doors currently – we’ve tried moving the doors up to adjust it and hide the carcass but then the extractor isn’t lined up… Argh!

The fitter had a right challenge trying to work out what was wrong.

OT – how much was the glass splashback and was there any faff getting it fitted?

The fitter really should have picked this up before hanging the units. It’s part of the job to double check what has been provided is correct.

I don’t think giving you the cold shoulder is the appropriate way to deal with this, but it seems like he’s hoping you will just decide live with it. They must be chasing payment by now?

I can’t see any other way to save this apart from getting the new doors made.

I fit kitchens and unless I supply them, it’s got sweet FA to do with me if the customers cabinets are the wrong size?
I’ll try and help to rectify but a lot of the time the doors are boxed separately to the units so to try and go through a mountain of boxes before hand isn’t going to happen.
The responsibility lies with the supplier to rectify.
I can’t see what the problem is from the photo, but usually the doors are slightly smaller than the units/end panels etc.
A 500×720 wall unit would have a door size of 496×716 or there abouts.
I take it that the extractor has a frontal attached to it. Can that not be adjusted to align it?

Exactly doors are smaller so when used in conjunction with other doors as part of a kitchen you have room to stop the leading edge striking and allow for them not to rub.

I fit kitchens and I do check it’s all there , horses for courses.

did you fitter identify a problem. Or were your concerns news to him.

The fitter picked it up as soon as the doors where delivered and discussed it with us. He tried and tried to get them to fit but they wouldnt. One side of the wall cabinets is perfect the other is not and due to the design it sticks out. Totally not the fitters problem

On the splashback we had them measured and made for about £500 from a local firm. Fitted ourselves. Used mirror adhesive amd silicon. Bit of a faff but not as bad as I expected

I fit kitchens and unless I supply them, it’s got sweet FA to do with me if the customers cabinets are the wrong size?
I’ll try and help to rectify but a lot of the time the doors are boxed separately to the units so to try and go through a mountain of boxes before hand isn’t going to happen.

The doors fit the cabinets, as should be expected, the cabinet does not fit the extractor unit, which should have been checked before hanging. Assuming it’s down to the wall plate, 5 minutes with a router, 4mm gained. No more problem.

The end panels are normally either the same length as the sides of the carcass but deeper to cloak the edge of the doors or longer to allow the bottom plinth to run into it.

The doors as said before have to be smaller than the carcass as you would not be able to physically open them if used a part of a collection of units.

My kitchen (excuse the grubbiness)

Glendevon white?

😀

I forgot I had this picture.

See, differerent people, different expectations. If I was paying for a fitted kitchen I couldn’t live with that miss-aligned cornice and plinth chip. Sorry!

Is that for your unsatisfied customers chip?

Totally accept that the door should be slightly smaller than the carcass etc, but with one side different to the other I just want both sides to be the same so they dont look mismatched