I find this and other sites like it really useful for reintroducing some of the close-knit neighbourhood community spirit that would once have been much more common than it is now. In the case of tradesmen recommendations this means that good service and happy customers can readily pass on feedback to others and likewise we can find out about dissatisfied customers.

I wondered why Balmain seem so keen to distance themselves from Ferriby Construction but didn't mention that the Ferriby Group is currently registered at 59 Broomwood Road? Can they confirm there is no connection with Ferriby Group and explain why both Balmain and Ferriby Group share the same address?

I think it is so sad that this building firm went to so much effort to get people to dispute the original post, yet have obviously not made any effort to sort out the problems with this job. I know it is very difficult for small firms when people post negative feedback about them but one way to avoid this is to sort out problems when they occur and not leave angry customers. I have no doubt that they have successfully completed many building jobs, but the way they dealt with this makes me grateful that I know never to use them.

A quick web search of Companies House records reveals the following:

The Ferriby Group Limited
59 Broomwood Road
SW11 6HU
Company no: 05312914

Status: active. Proposal to strike out.

Next return due: 11/1/2011 (overdue).

It is more difficult to find details of Balmain at companies house - on an initial search I couldn't find a company with a Broomwood Road address. Perhaps they could let us know which company no. Balmain is registered as?

http://www.insidebattersea.co.uk/feature.asp?id=92
Not sure when this was written but clearly states it

Hmmmmmmm.

Can Balmain please clarify that their current or ex-directors are not ex-directors of Ferriby?

That's funny since Colin of Balmain told me they were previously one half of ferriby!

At no point did I request them to employ a cheap party wall surveyor, a cheap plasterer, a cheap plumber, a cheap tiler and a bad bathroom fitter! We have spent a substantial amount of money on this whole house refurb in an attempt to achieve a very high specification with a high level finish, so we are not talking about a job for a bathroom refit at a couple of thousand. We used this company as we expected them to have quality contacts but unfortunately all of the above including Balmain it's self have caused us nothing but headache and hassle. We are yet to get in the bills for tradesmen fixing their bad and unfinished work but it will come in much higher than the measly one percent retention payment which we have not paid them, and they therefore refuse to give us our certificates from trades men I.e no building regs sign off!

We have been reading the string of posts with interest and feel we should respond.
We would firstly like to state that we are not associated with Ferriby Construction who liquidated as a company two years ago. If we are able to assist Abbevillemum in any way with the problems she has please contact us on 020 7223 6333.
The posts aren't 'dodgy'. We saw the original one not recommending us and highlighted it to our past, present and even potential clients who have posted of their own accord in our defence. Any Nappy Valley user is able to contact these clients to verify the claims if they wish. We are delighted by the positive feedback and feel it is a reflection of the high level of service we have delivered.
Our mission has always been to make arduous building projects as seamless and stress free as is possible, and to work within budget. In the current economic climate we find clients having to work to tighter budgets and this inevitably causes frustration when the budget doesn't match expectations. We do everything possible to resolve any isssues as part of the project. It is our number one company aim to deliver customer satisfaction. We would like to thank all our clients for their kind intervention and positive remarks on our behalf.

Thanks for this, very useful post. Absolutely agree with comments on the sudden array of positive posts from people who all joined on the same day and have only posted once. Rather insulting to the average nappy valley readers intelligence too!

I just want to add that Ferriby Construction was renamed Bexhill not Balmain. Can't remember the reason wh but we used Ferriby/ Bexhill twice. Once for a kitchen/ side return extension and also for our loft. On both occasions we were very pleased with the work etc etc.

I know everyone's experience is different with all builders but wanted to clear up the name issue!

It is odd that the initial critical post does not specify exactly what the problem was with Balmain. I used Balmain for the refitting of a bathroom two years ago and they did a great job. This is the fourth time I have had to get this bathroom done due to a succession of poor quality bathroom companies and plumbers. Previous work was absolutely atrocious. This time (with Balmain) however it was a huge success. I also found them very professional and the people who work for them (plumbers, tilers etc.) very good. I would certainly use them again. Balmain's plumbers, tilers, plasterers, designers, etc., as far as I know, did not work for Ferriby Construction (and Ferriby Kitchens at Broomwood Road was separate from Ferriby Construction).

Yes, these builders used to be called Ferriby Construction but for some reason changed their name to Balmain (I wonder why) and they have a kitchen shop on Broomwood Rd. We had a similar problem to HappyMama above. We used them about 4 or 5 years ago on a project and the plumber was useless (and yes he was the son of one of the partners). The electrician (his name was Gary) was incompetent, not to mention unbelievably rude and most unhelpful. The carpenter was awful and quite possibly the crankiest man I have ever met. I would definitely NOT recommend them. We had an extremely stressful experience with these builders with severe delays and aggravation and would never dream of using them again. This is the first and probably the last time I will ever post something negative on here, but I just can't help myself this time.

I also agree that the positive comments sound dubious....all the positive comments are from people who joined NPV in the last few days and have only posted once ?? I think very strange....

I think Balmain used to be called Ferreby Construction ? Are they based on Broomwood Road? If they were we had a dreadful experience with them. We spent over £4,000 fixing promblems they left us with. It was a total disaster. 3 years later and we are still finding issues with their work (especially with the plumbing. The plumber they used was the son of the owner of the company and he clearly had no idea what he was doing).

Not a positive experience from us I am afraid...

The positive posts do sound very dodgy!

I can only speak for myself (as we all should and not speak for others) but I have used Balmain for one bathroom and a shower room and have been very pleased with their work and the final product. We have had subsequent problems with a tile that we broke and they have been more than helpful in sourcing, lifting and refitting tiles.
I would definitely recommend them to others.

top spot working mum, top spot.