Rogue builder Richard Sullivan, who defrauded Island residents out of around £20,000 as part of a ‘get rich quick scheme’, has been jailed for more than 3 years.
e years and nine months, after a successful Isle of Wight Council prosecution.
50-year-old Sullivan, of Royal Street in Sandown, posed as a reputable tradesman offering roofing and general building work, but repeatedly failed to provide the legally required 14-day cancellation notice for contracts formed through door-to-door sales, leaving customers without protection.
Over several months, Sullivan targeted homeowners by making unsolicited approaches offering guttering and similar work, often leaving handwritten notes through letterboxes thanking residents for their ‘enquiry’ – even though no such enquiries had been made.
Once contacted, he would agree work verbally, take large deposits or full payments, and then either fail to start the job or abandon it after carrying out minimal, substandard work.
One victim handed over £2,960 for a garden wall rebuild that never began. In several cases, Sullivan pocketed thousands and never returned the money when customers cancelled.
Sullivan was sentenced to 3 years, 9 months behind bars at the Isle of Wight Crown Court last Wednesday (29th October) after being found guilty of offences under the Fraud Act 2006.
In sentencing, Recorder James Bromige said that Sullivan had caused harm that went beyond financial loss, leaving victims with property damage and emotional distress, as shown in their personal statements.
The judge highlighted that Sullivan acted as a sole trader with full control over the operation and personally profited from the fraud.
Addressing Sullivan directly, the judge said:
“You needed money, and you needed it fast. You turned to building work — a get-rich-quick scheme.”
Money intended for home improvements was instead used to pay off debts and outgoings, while many residents were left with incomplete or poor-quality work. The court also noted that this scam mirrored the structure of his previous offences in 2016.
James Potter, the council’s Trading Standards and community safety manager, welcomed the sentence and urged residents to remain vigilant. He said:
“Richard Sullivan caused significant financial detriment to local residents through his trading practices and had many previous criminal convictions.
“Hopefully this result will serve as a deterrent to others, demonstrate what we do to protect our local residents and ensure there’s a level playing field for genuine and honest businesses on the island”.
There are too many cowboys masquerading around
in vans posing as tradesmen.
Always check a trader first and get references from
previous work.
On the island maintenance should be next to get investigated. Their work is so shoddy they haven’t got a clue about the building trade and building regs. # on the island cowboys
The island is run by cowboys.
Nearly every road you drive down some
Numpty tradesman is parked on pavements or
double yellow lines, there are NO rules on the island.
“”DROP YOUR TOOLS / MATERIALS OFF THEN GO AND
PARK UP, DON’T PARK ILLEGALLY””
Wouldn’t be allowed in Pompey, roll on devolution.