Flintshire Trading Standards prosecutes landscape gardener

Flintshire Trading Standards Service has successfully prosecuted a landscape gardener who posted false customer reviews and photographs on social media to attract customers as well as presenting himself as a competent and professional trader when he was not.

Brian Oxton of Drury Lane in Buckley, who traded as Oasis Landscapes and Bespoke Chester, pleaded guilty to one charge under The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations that related to 2 victims.

In the first case Mr Oxton had been employed to carry out extensive work on the back garden including moving a summer house. Despite having been paid over £9,000 and agreeing a timetable for the work, Mr Oxton’s team only showed up sporadically and the work that was undertaken was of such poor quality that it was worthless.

Mr Oxton’s next victim contacted him to carry out work including making a decking area and pergola.  They were told the work would take 6 days, however, it ended up taking months but was never finished. The work was of a very poor quality, and they felt that Mr Oxton had misled them into believing he was a competent and professional trader who was in a position to complete the work in a timely manner.

In addition, during the investigation it was found that Mr Oxton had trusted trader review cards that had positive reviews of his work that he had written himself, along with other online reviews that had been posted by people from outside the UK.  There were also photographs of work that Mr Oxton claimed to have carried out that were proven to be photographs of other companies’ work.

Sentencing Mr Oxton Judge Parry said:

“Despite your protestations it is clear you can be a conman.”

He went on to state that the deceit was extensive and the work carried out was of poor quality. He gave Mr Oxton an 8 month sentence, suspended for 12 months, a curfew he must observe between 8pm and 6am, as well as 80 hours of unpaid work. It was acknowledged that Mr Oxton had paid £13,000 in compensation and prosecution costs.

Councillor Chris Bithell, Cabinet Member for Planning, Public Health and Public Protection said:

“The guilty plea and the punishment imposed was, on this occasion, fitting for a case where the trader has not only used false reviews and has also tried to claim that the work carried out by others is his own, but has also carried out very poor-quality work to the detriment of consumers. 

“This case shows how Flintshire’s Community and Business Protection Service is willing and able to take necessary action to bring such fraudsters before the courts and ensure that they are punished and hopefully will be unable to take advantage of other vulnerable members of the community in Flintshire. The service continues to investigate allegations of rogue traders working in the county.”