Aloft Conversion

Dec 8th, 2017

I'm afraid to say the whole experience with a loft has been a nightmare. They built our loft conversion and a year on we still are unable to use it. It all starts off nice with Ray(builder) coming to visit you to finalise the project, but all the paperwork is finalised by Jane, who at the beginning is easy to deal with but then turns into a teenager to deal with. Ray will say things and then Jane will deny it later on. Although Jane has not been at the meeting but will tell you what was said during the meeting, some of which will be incorrect. When things have been questioned the company have no complaints policy and would not attend arbitration dates. We initially told them that the boiler was going to be in the eves and they had agreed that this could occur but when the time came to do the job they suddenly denied this could happen as the support hadn't been put in. This led to all our plans for the house being changed. The floor and ceiling of the loft are not level having a huge angle in them. Poor work Because the floor is not level the French doors don't work and they have not managed in 6 months to address this... poor service Our shower tray was not fitted correctly and they refuse to correct their mistakes. Pluming wise they will get Lee to do the work but he is not a plumber. This led to us having a leak in our brand new house due to his poor work. I spoke to him and he said he was forced to do the work even though he shouldn't have. Ray will not give you his number as he doesn't like to be disturbed during his lunch break. We have a new born baby and a loft have turned our life upside down during a stressful period. This isn't the first time this has happened either. Their workers have told me!! I suggest you get another company.
Nov 10th, 2017

Avoid, avoid, avoid!!! We contracted Aloft to build our loft conversion in early 2017. We picked this company as we thought that it was a nice friendly family run company. How wrong we were! The list of issues we had (and continue to have) is extensive, but I will try and cover most of the main points. If youd like more detailed information, please do get in touch via Facebook (Lee Cash in London). Jane will no doubt write a response to this review trying to make some kind of excuse for what I am writing. Well let me tell you that both Jane and Ray are cowards. Neither of them would agree to a meeting on-site to discuss and try and resolve the snagging issues. Their project management skills were appalling. Coupled with terrible communication about when things were happening this was a recipe for disaster. Ray would mumble something about being on schedule here and there (probably so that you would make the payments according to their contract), but then all of a sudden you would be told that you needed to make an important decision as no plans had been previously drawn up or discussed on the details. We had to pay approximately 2,000 extra for the useless electrician (Sammy) that Ray brought in because many crucial items (including the mains supply to the loft itself can you believe!?) were not included in the contract. The standard of work was also poor. Ray persuaded us that a luxury bathroom would add significant value to the property during the sales pitch. We agreed with this suggestion and so ordered a luxury bathroom including a walk-in shower, suspended vanity unit and suspended toilet and then Aloft refused to fit it as it was not standard?! When they did fit the shower tray, they did it incorrectly. After we had the tiling and shower surround all fitted and started to use the shower, the shower tray cracked and we had to have the whole thing redone. Aloft then claimed that it wasn't their responsibility to fit the shower but still invoiced us for it anyway! They damaged my boiler flue when they dropped some debris from the roof. As is standard for Aloft, Ray originally agreed that they would put right any damage done, and then when it came down to it, Jane stepped in and said that they hadnt done it and tried to blame it on the scaffolding firm. They did send one of their unskilled workers to try and fix it (which would have been illegal anyway) but he gave up and they left it to me to sort out. When I got a qualified gas engineer round he declared the boiler unfit for use and I had to have it replaced as the flue replacement parts were no longer available for my model of boiler. Another issue caused by poor project management was the placement of a radiator in the new loft bedroom. They placed it on the wall that was most convenient to them (immediately next to the supply) rather than asking where we wanted it. When we told them that it should be under the window they wanted to charge us over 1,000 to move it (approximately 2 metres to the left of where it was). I recently (November 2017) tried to chase up the Building Control Certificate which we did not receive. It appears they did not pay the bill or provide drawings to them. When I asked Aloft to sort this out I could hardly believe their response They sent me a new bill for additional items of over 13,000 and did not even respond to the question regarding Building Control! There were many other minor issues such as poor plaster finishing, botched stairwell skirting boards, door handles that didnt work etc. so when they say on their website that they We specialise in developing flawless loft conversions I can tell you that they are liars as well as cowards. In summary, once the contract is signed, Ray gets on with building a box on the top of your house as cheaply and quickly as he can before leaving site, never to be seen again Jane simply dismisses anything that Ray has agreed to previously and then only responds by sending you invoices and making up new ones to try and fob you off. What a nightmare company.
Sep 3rd, 2017