Government Clamps Down on Cowboy Builders with Approved Scheme

A new clampdown on cowboy builders has been announced by the government today. 

From September, a government supported scheme will help people identify and hire trusted traders with confidence.

Customers will be able to search for builders that have signed up to an Approved Code, demonstrating that they meet higher standards of customer service, transparency and dispute resolution.

There will also be a new system to protect people’s money during building projects via an app, with payments directly linked to key project milestones.

One in Four Experience Problems

The government measures are designed to address the one in four UK adults who carried out home improvements work in the past 18 months who experienced problems. Home occupiers reported problems such as projects being abandoned halfway through, undue pressure, including on elderly people to overpay for shoddy work, or even builders disappearing on holiday with upfront payments with little to no work completed.

More than 1 in 3 of these faced extra costs, losing an average of £750. In 2024, people lost a total of £10.3 billion on home and garden maintenance costs due to losses, overpriced costs or unfair practices. Delays and mounting costs can also cause severe stress.

Putting Cowboys Out of Business

Prime Minister, Andy Burnham said: “Cowboy builders don’t just rip people off. They leave families with months of stress, the disruption of unfinished work, and that horrible feeling of being taken advantage of. Not only that, but they give the vast majority of decent, hardworking tradespeople a bad name.

“So we’re putting the cowboys out of business. These changes mean you’ll now have the option to make sure your money is held safely and released bit by bit as the work gets done.  Now we’re coming for the cowboy builders. Enough is enough.”

Trusted Payment and Approved Codes Scheme

The Trusted Payment and Approved Codes Scheme have been developed by the Trusted Payments and the Furniture and Home Improvement Ombudsman (FHIO) respectively.

The Trusted Payments app will go live next week, with over 100,000 traders able to access it before the end of September.

The Approved Code will be live with first retailers offering it by end of September and fully live by December 2026.

Brian Berry, FMB Chief Executive

Responding the the announcement of the scheme, Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB said: “The Prime Minister’s push to crackdown on rogue builders is a great move for the industry. However, it is a real concern that this is just another voluntary programme without regulation behind it. That said it signals a positive change in the Government’s commitment on the issue. We look forward to seeing more detail and working with the Government to deliver the best result for builders and consumers alike.”

“In the long term the Government should be looking at a compulsory licensing scheme for building companies. Currently anyone can call themselves a builder with no minimum competence level required to run a building company. Voluntary schemes have never filled the gap for good regulation that protects both reputable builders and consumers. Without statutory licensing any voluntary scheme, however well intended, is likely to struggle to gain traction.”

Rogue Traders are Thriving

Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “In recent years the consumer enforcement system has been hollowed out to the point where cowboy builders and other rogue traders are thriving – leaving ordinary people feeling powerless as their complaints are routinely ignored.

“This is a really positive step and the government rightly recognises that action to tackle rogue traders now must go hand-in-hand with wider reform of the consumer protection landscape.

“The system urgently needs a major overhaul to make it fit for the digital age and give consumers confidence that they won’t be ripped off by crooks or conmen when they hand over their hard-earned cash for home improvements or other products and services.”

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