The conduct of an Ipswich surveying company and its manager, who has admitted "misleading" customers, has been described to a court.
Many of the people who were cold called by Justin Brason were elderly and vulnerable, Ipswich Crown Court was told on Thursday, when the 45-year-old appeared in the dock.
Brason, 45, was the manager and salesman for Riba Surveyors Ltd, later known as Riva Surveyors Ltd, an Ipswich-based company selling spray foam loft installation.
Brason, of Brambling Close, Stowmarket, pleaded guilty to eight counts of engaging in a commercial practice which was a misleading action contrary to regulations 5 and 9 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulation 2008.
The company has also admitted 21 counts of the same charge.
The court heard that despite its name, the company did not appear to have any qualified surveyors. The ‘surveyors’ would “cold call” people on their doorsteps, with customers often told they could have a free assessment of their roof spaces.
These assessments would often find “non-existent” issues for which customers were quoted thousands of pounds in repairs, which were supposedly discounted by government grant schemes.
A summary of each of the charges, which related to 2019, were read out before the court.
One man aged 90 was quoted more than £8,000 for damage caused by dry rot, an offer he declined. An expert later gave evidence that the roof was in good working order, and the proposed works would offer “no benefits”.
The man’s daughter said her parents “never recovered” from the stress and anxiety the situation caused.
Another customer told of her dismay when she realised she had been "played", with men arriving at her home the day after she had been visited, but refusing to clarify exactly what work they were undertaking.
The woman said she felt "stupid" and felt unable to tell her son what had happened. She described the company as "getting rich off people's vulnerability".
In his defence, Brason was described as a man who was previously a “pillar of his community” who would assist his neighbours whenever they were in need.
Judge David Wilson will deliver his sentencing in the case on November 20.
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