Mary Nelson, 90, was looking forward to having a ground-floor bedroom built to drastically ‘improve’ her standard of living
Elizabeth Mackley Live Reporter and SWNSCharlieFenton (Charlie Fenton)
13:45, 27 May 2026Updated 13:45, 27 May 2026
A 90-year-old Leeds grandmother paid a builder part of her life savings for an extension so she could sleep downstairs – but he left the too small for her bed.
A 90-year-old Leeds grandmother paid a builder part of her life savings for an extension so she could sleep downstairs – but he left the too small for her bed.
Mary Nelson, 90, was looking forward to having a ground-floor bedroom built on her home which she said would drastically ‘improve’ her standard of living. The retired midwife lives with rheumatoid arthritis, which makes climbing her stairs to bed “painfully difficult” since she does not have a stair life.
She forked out £36,000 for the 5 x 3 metre extension, which was also meant to include a fully functioning wet room. Instead, the builder constructed it 12 inches too narrow, leaving her with a 5 x 2.7 metre room.
Mary claims the builder “walked off the job” in October, leaving her “out of pocket” and facing a comparable bill to have the extension demolished and rebuilt.
Mary forked out £36,000 for the 5 x 3 metre extension, which was also meant to include a fully functioning wet room
The builder has denied all of Mary’s allegations, describing them as “inaccurate” and expressing that it was a “great shame” he had left a client “dissatisfied”. He maintains that the drawings provided by Mary “didn’t measure 3m wide” and that the construction “in fact was built to the correct width”, adding that he departed after his staff were subjected to abuse.
Mary said: “I feel like I have been taken advantage of because of my age – it has happened before.
“The stress has been unbelievable, I was kept in hospital for 11 days due to my blood pressure being really high.
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“I’m angered by what has happened.”
Mary said she contacted the builder in July 2024 when she submitted her planning permission application, though she declined his services at that point. Then in March 2025, Mary asked for his help after approaching several builders, and agreed on a fee of £36,150 for the four-week project, due to commence on June 8, and paid an initial deposit of £4,000.
“He was very charming, polite, and kind,” she said. “He seemed very positive and was great at explaining the project to my family and me, letting them know I was in safe hands.”
Mary confirmed she handed over a total of £16,000 in June once work got underway. The pensioner said things began promisingly after the successful demolition of her conservatory, but once the footing process was complete, Mary said she had a “gut feeling” it was too small.
Mary said: “I have a similarly sized bedroom upstairs in my house, and from just looking at the size of the space, it just looked smaller.”
Mary’s home
The builder disputes this claim.
She further alleges that the brickwork is “shoddy”, with some mortar gaps measuring one inch (25mm) — some 15mm wider than the industry standard — and that the roof has begun leaking following a number of tiles coming loose.
The builder denies both claims, insisting the roof was “water tight” while he was on site. He then turned his attention to the wet room, which Mary claims he also “disregarded”, fitting a shower cubicle in its place. The builder maintains that his quotations did not include a wet room, asserting it was never discussed during their meetings and would have “significantly” increased the overall cost.
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He further stated there was insufficient space to accommodate a disabled toilet, and that “no grab handles were priced during the quoting process”.
Mary said: “The whole thing has been a disaster.
“I had the option of a stair lift or the new room, and now I wish I had gone with the lift.”
Mary says she feels taken advantage of
Mary had only paid him £33,490 before she says the builder walked off the job in October, two months behind schedule, leaving her to retain the remaining funds so another tradesperson could complete the work.
The builder insisted the delays were attributed to “weather, materials delays, and late payments”.
Good Samaritan builder Graham Nash – who had no involvement in the original work – has advised that the most viable solution for Mary is to “knock it down and have it rebuilt”, a job he offered to undertake for £30,000, covering materials alone with no labour costs included.
She further alleges that the brickwork is “shoddy”
Graham – who operates his own company, Pinnacle Builders – regularly exposes rogue traders on his social media channels and supports homeowners who have fallen victim to substandard work.
Mary says she is currently attempting to get the work signed off by the building inspector, but claims he is refusing to authorise this, insisting the inspector has “already passed it”. She claims her own inspector identified numerous additional issues, despite the builder stating he left the project “finished” up to the point at which he departed the site.
The builder maintained that he had a building inspector “attend to inspect the works at key points of the build”, and that they “wouldn’t have been able to proceed if work was not up to standard”.
