What started out as a routine home extension for a British couple turned into a “nightmare” when their house was damaged and both were briefly detained by police.Rob and Lucy Davies, from Basildon, Essex, hired Steve Figg to build a single-storey extension, with the work expected to be completed within 12 weeks. Instead, the project dragged on for months, leaving their home in a precarious state. Figg, 35, had taken £44,000 but failed to complete the work. The situation escalated when he reported the couple to police, accusing them of harassment and claiming he wanted to kill them, the BBC reported.The couple were arrested at their workplace and held for 22 hours before being released. The police later issued an apology.“The only way I can describe it is that our house looks like a bomb site,” said Rob Davies, describing the condition of their home. Parts of the house were exposed, including a large hole where the kitchen should have been, and parts of the structure were in danger of collapsing.Unfinished work also makes daily life difficult. Rats got in through cracks in the walls and it became difficult to keep the house warm. Davis said the experience took a toll on their relationship, adding: “It was a complete nightmare… It tested our marriage tremendously.”The couple said they spent a total of around £75,000, including £28,000 to repair the damage and additional legal costs.A subsequent investigation by Basildon Council’s Building Control Team found a number of breaches of regulations. Figg’s operators, Figg Construction Ltd, admitted 22 breaches and were ordered to pay £85,000 in compensation.The BBC also discovered that the Davises were not the only ones affected. Other customers have made similar complaints, including claims their homes are structurally unsafe. In one case, a woman said Figg damaged her garden office during a payment dispute.Looking back on the experience, Davis said Feige “pretended to be a guy who could do all these things, but, when you got beneath the surface, there was nothing he could do.”The case highlights the risks homeowners face when construction projects go wrong and raises broader concerns about the regulation of small construction projects.
