Victims lose thousands to MyBuilder cowboy trader

Homeowners say they have been left thousands of pounds out of pocket and facing costly repair bills after a rogue builder took their money and vanished.

One man said he paid Stephen Pickersgill £9,000 upfront to buy materials for a kitchen extension before he disappeared after just one day's work.

Another woman said she had been forced to take out a £5,000 loan to repair the damage caused by Pickersgill, from Leeds, after he was hired to remove a chimney breast and create space for a stairlift.

Pickersgill, who is in prison for unrelated offences, did not respond to the BBC's request for a comment.

A BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire investigation found Pickersgill used the online trades directory MyBuilder.com to advertise his services, creating several different profiles and names to do so.

It was also discovered that Pickersgill lied on insurance documents about his business and asked to be paid for work through other people's bank accounts.

Stefano, from Leeds, hired Pickersgill in October 2025 via the website after being quoted £27,000 for a kitchen extension.

He said he paid £9,000 up front for materials, equipment and a skip that never arrived.

Pickersgill did one day of work - causing significant damage to Stefano's garden and to a public walkway beside his home - and then disappeared.

"He did all of this and then he just left, and I never heard from him again," said Stefano, who asked us not to use his surname.

"It just comes across as such an injustice, and that has made me really depressed."

The BBC has seen evidence that Pickersgill requested payments to bank accounts in other people's names, which Stefano said he had "good excuses" for at the time.

But Stefano said there were no red flags before Pickersgill disappeared.

However, the BBC has found evidence that Pickersgill was bankrupt at the time he took on the job - something he failed to disclose in an insurance document he filled out for Stefano.

Stefano said as a result he could not claim on his insurance because Pickersgill's "false declaration" would render the agreement void.

MyBuilder.com claims on its website that before tradespeople are put on their platform it carries out quality checks, such as ensuring people are linked to a registered business, confirming ID and making sure they have the relevant skillset.

The site also says when complaints are made it acts promptly.

But Stefano said when he reported multiple profiles linked to Pickersgill to them they took weeks to remove them - which he felt was too long.

The BBC learned that after Stefano reported Pickersgill to MyBuilder.com he continued to use the site to obtain work.

Marion Heard from Leyland, in Lancashire, hired Pickersgill in January after finding him on the site.

She wanted him to remove a chimney breast and create space for a stairlift for her partner, Leslie Jackson, who had been diagnosed with cancer.

Heard said she was quoted £4,000 for the work and paid nearly £2,500 in upfront costs.

"He shook Les's hand and said he wouldn't let us down," she said.

"He made a big hole in the wall, asked for more money, and then we never saw him again."

She told the BBC she now fears the structure "could collapse at any moment".

"We didn't check the reviews because we were in a rush to get the work done before Les came home from hospital. No one walks in with 'scammer' written on their forehead," Heard said.

She said she reported the issue to MyBuilder.com, but again it took weeks for his profiles to be taken down.

She also reported the matter to police and said she spent further money pursuing the case through the small claims court.

"We've had to take out another loan of £5,000 to get this work completed and make up for what we've lost," she said.

In a statement to the BBC, MyBuilder.com said it took reports of misconduct on its platform "seriously" but that some scammers would purposefully try to bypass its controls.

It said since Pickersgill's scams came to light it had strengthened its checks and monitoring processes "to better identify and prevent this type of behaviour and continue to invest in improving detection and response times".

When Stefano reported the debris that Pickersgill had left behind to Leeds City Council sent him a flytipping notice.

The letter from the council told him if he failed to comply he could face prosecution, with a maximum penalty of £2,500 or may be fined £100 to avoid prosecution.

After the BBC asked the council for a comment it dropped its Community Protection Notice against him and apologised, accepting it had not been the best way to resolve the matter.

"We remain committed to resolving the original issue of the fly-tipped material," a spokeswoman said, adding that the council took its responsibility for environmental enforcement seriously.

Dr Tim Day from the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, said it can be "really difficult" for homeowners to know which builders are genuine, "because anyone can set up a company with very few checks".

He advised people to "get several detailed quotes" before committing to a tradesperson, to look at the builder's previous work, and avoid paying large sums upfront.

"Using a Trading Standards‑approved trader platform is one of the safest ways to find someone reputable," he added.