Michael Haslam, director of M and J Builders, has had his 28-month jail sentence suspended after an appeal. Haslam pleaded guilty to fraudulent trading after taking money from eight families between 2021 and 2022 for incomplete or unsafe building work.
Haslam's company failed to pay its debts and was eventually wound up in November 2022. He was initially sentenced in July at Derby Crown Court and given bail, but the appeals court has now suspended his sentence for two years. This suspension includes a requirement for 160 hours of unpaid work and rehabilitation.
During the period of 2021 and 2022, Haslam charged customers for work that was never completed or for materials that were never delivered. In some instances, the work carried out was of such poor quality that it had to be demolished and rebuilt.
One victim, a woman living with her partner and baby, paid Haslam over £47,000 into his personal account in the spring of 2022. After less than three months, work stopped, leaving her property unsafe and without running water. Haslam then informed her that his company was likely to go into liquidation.
Another woman, who has two adult children with special needs, paid Haslam nearly £18,000 for work that was never finished and materials that were never ordered. A court heard that this woman was later informed by the local council that rebuilding would be more feasible than attempting to repair the shoddy work.
Haslam, from Derby, was found to have "kept taking money" from the public, with customers often required to pay upfront for services that were not rendered. A judge ruled that Haslam had "closed his eyes to the inevitable" and defrauded families in an attempt to "stay afloat."
In their judgment, the appeals court justices stated that the original sentencing decision was "borderline between suspension and immediate custody." They acknowledged that the judge could have made either decision. However, they noted that the subsequent custodial sentence "leaves us with a sense of injustice, because it did not match the appellant's expectation, which expectation had been created by the judge at the earlier hearings."
M and J Builders experienced financial difficulties starting in 2019. The company ultimately became insolvent and was officially wound up at the High Court following a petition in November 2022. The total amount fleeced from customers reportedly exceeded £200,000.
