Lack of written contract doesn't equal no liability

摘要

The recent case of Iliffe & Anor v Feltham Construction Ltd & Affleck Mechanical Services Ltd [2014] EWHC 2125 (TCC) provides a useful reminder that even if a written contract for the works is not in place, a defendant contractor who is at fault is unlikely to get off the hook if things go wrong. In this case, the claimant house owner had engaged the defendant contractor to build a house in three phases. The third and final phase included installation of a log-burning stove whose flues passed through the roofspace.