Family of four left homeless after builder ‘leaves £125,000 house in ruins with NO roof in botched loft conversion’
A FAMILY of four have been left homeless after a builder allegedly left their £125,000 house in ruins with no roof after a botched loft conversion.
Samina Kausar, 46, is facing a bill of at least £35,000 to fix her wrecked two-bedroom house in Ashton-under-lyme, Greater Manchester.
The mum-of-three paid more than £10,000 for building work, including converting a loft into a bedroom for her 15-year-old son.
But her dreams of a new home became a nightmare after builders disappeared and left the roof exposed, causing rain to wreck their rooms.
A ceiling has collapsed in her 16-year-old daughter's bedroom with torrential rain pouring into the home which Samina has lived in for 21 years.
Experts fear the home is in danger of caving in after the chimney was removed without a Rolled Steel Joint installed to support it.
Mattresses, clothes, electrical equipment, books, furniture and furnishings are ruined after they were covered with thick soot.
Choking back tears, dinner lady Samina said: "He has not only destroyed our house he has destroyed our family, too.
MUM'S TEARS
"He opened the loft and he left it open. And it was raining so much water came and it damaged all of our house.
";He didn’t cover anything when he took the roof out. All our stuff was there.
"My daughter’s mattress, two wardrobes and her mirror are all destroyed.
"It makes me very sad and emotional."
The builder was recommended to do the renovations, with Samina saying they agreed to pay £16,000 to renovate the loft and the kitchen.
Samina, who suffers from polio in her right hand, then decided to remove the chimneys to give them more space.
She paid £3,200 up front and then transferred more money into the builder's bank account as the work progressed.
But she said the builder and his team would leave work after just three hours, and didn't come to work every day.
He has not only destroyed our house he has destroyed our family, too
Samina Kausar
The builder told them it was not safe to live in the house because he removed the roof.
Samina said she has called him "every day" after he disappeared in April, but his phone is now going to voicemail.
The family had paid hundreds of pounds to decorate Samina's 16-year-old daughter's bedroom with a new mattress and floor, which are now destroyed.
Wires were left "just hanging out" in the unfinished kitchen after the builders downed tools.
The home is now too dangerous for the family to live in, with Samina forced to sleep on her sister's couch, while her children stay with family.
Samina's cousin, Sarah Yaseen, 49, has now launched a to raise money for Samina and her family.
She says the "absolutely shocking" building work has been "an absolute disaster" for the family.
Sarah said: "I feel so embarrassed we have had to do this. But you get to the point where you feel you have no choice.
"The 15-year-old boy, he cried in my arms for help. The children are suffering.
"She gave a lump sum, She said he was continually asking for money every time but she could not see that he was finishing jobs.
"I was gobsmacked. The roof is a gaping, open space.
"She has literally been on the phone chasing him for months. She should have been in her house now.
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“He took advantage of her nature.
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"For me to look at now it is such a shock. The destruction is huge."
The builder refused to comment when contacted by The Sun Online.
