I help win lottery firm row

l iabi lity insurance, I should contact them. But I’d paid B&Q to do the job, not their contractor. And I’d had no control over who they sent.”

Her insurer Rias stepped in to help but she and Joe, 54, a civil servant , had to f ind hotel accommodation before being allocated a temporary house.

She said: “There was worse to come. During the installation, the plumber had fallen through the kitchen ceiling and this had been patched up.

“But we later discovered, via a specialist sent by Rias, that the artex on the ceiling tested positive for asbestos. All the other ceilings were affected too, apart from one bedroom.”

The two-bed property is now a shell and the couple don’t expect to be home for at least another three months.

B&Q said: “We’re sorry to hear of this customer’s very difficult experience. Until the Sunday Mail got in touch, we did not know of the ongoing challenges. We have not been contacted by the insurers.

“We wil l work with the customer and their insurers to find a suitable resolution.”

Rias said: “We are actively working on their claim. We will, be looking to recover our costs.” Sandy Carswell saw red when a lottery firm took £162 from his bank account.

He’d responded to an ad from Your Lotto Service offering free entry to the national lottery for a month. But he ended up tied into a direct debit of £54 a month for a year.

Sandy, of Dalry, Ayrshire, said: “Before the month was up, I told them to cancel the subscription.”

But when his bank statement stat arrived, they had taken payment for June, July and August.

He closed his account, called the firm twice, then sent a lawyer’s letter. But he called me in when the firm, based in Middlesex, still hadn’t refunded his cash.

I got on the case and Your Lotto Service returned the £162. They said: “We regret any unsatisfactory experience.”