Bit of advice needed.

right, i havent had any contact with my painter for a month now, last time i text him he said he was far to busy with family stuff to get anything done. i replied saying its been 15 months, to which he said he couldnt give a ****, his family comes first. apparently he had breathing issues about 12 months ago, and they diagnosed him with pneumonia, now apparently his wife has cancer. i have compassion for the guy if this is true, but he told me he hasnt been at work since july 09, yet one of his ex work mates who i see sometimes has told me that the car is now at his house, and he has been at work all along. i have the v5 here in my name, and he hasnt told me where the car is or where he lives. i'd like some advice on what to do?

and dont take the piss please fellas.:thumb:

lets just clear this up buddy, you gave a car for him to spray 15months ago and you havent seen it since ???

You let him move the car from his premesis?

Seems abit stupid to me.

Why the funk dont you go to his house? and see if his mrs is like he says? if he has nothing etc?

lol, go to his house? go to his work?

whats his name and city?? pm me if you want.

At first i thought you meant your house lol ...

anyways serious note...

I would just call him and explain that you need the car back and painted to get on the road asap. if he cannot do that due to family issues then you need the car back and will get someone else to do the work.
if it is genuine family issues then he will understand you wanting the car back...

15 months is a fecking long time...

As with all these issues, you need to write officially to him stating the facts so far and giving him a date to contact and agree a way forward, trading standards won't do anything unless you do and you need proof just in case you later go to court.:thumb:

best of luck,

what Shaun says, explain you want your car back sprayed or not, i'd even put a bet on him hoping you'd ask for it

that is jeff, if its a genuine spray shop or just a 'mate' doing a job on the side?

trading standards wont do anything if joe bloggs is painting your car in his shed? corrrect me if im wrong?

edit - ok just re read his op lol

my fecking one was gone a year, it was a bloody nightmare, i had to get on public transport with ordinary people who didn't want to talk nova'slol

Dude you are one patient guy. My car was at the body shop for around 3 months and that bodyshop was 0.6 miles from my house. I was there almost everyday coz it's my car. I'm a patient guy but I was so eager to get my car back I had to go see it as much as poss.

If this person is telling the truth then it's understandable to a degree that he wants to be with famliy, but at the end of the day he is also running a business and should at least update you every so often or offer a solution/alternative because let's face it, it's your car and you'd like it done/back.

I'd go round to his place of business (out of the blue) just to check things out, if he's telling then truth the he won't be there. Ring him up and tell him you want your car back. The bottom line is, if he needs to be with family due to health problems and he doesn't know when he'll be able to finish your car off, take your car back, take pressure off him and take it somewhere else where you'll see your car done sooner.

It's the only way to get it sorted.