Understand
Dozens scammed out of £500,000 by South Coast Construction (Sussex) Ltd
Overview
More than 30 customers across the south of England claim they lost nearly £500,000 in total after paying deposits to South Coast Construction (Sussex) Ltd (SCC) for building work that was not delivered. Sussex Police are investigating reports of alleged fraud, while the company's director has strongly denied deliberately scamming customers.
Key points
- More than 30 customers claim to have paid deposits totalling nearly £500,000 to SCC for uncompleted building work.
- Sussex Police are investigating reports of alleged fraud in connection with the company.
- SCC falsely claimed to be insured by Home Improvement Protection and certified by Certass, leading to its expulsion from various accreditation schemes.
- The sole director of SCC, Brandon Harris-Lee, denied deliberately scamming customers, attributing issues to financial deterioration and project delays.
- Many customers have sought refunds through their banks, while others are pursuing claims via the financial ombudsman service.