The biggest DIY don’ts which could knock value off homes from solar panels to OTT wallpaper

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Judge Rinder

Q) MY sister was recently demoted at work.

She was a nursery manager and has now been dropped two places to room leader, and has had her pay cut by £4,000.

She was employed at the nursery to troubleshoot it as it was failing. The Ofsted reports improved under her leadership.

What are her rights on demotion?

They did not even give her notice they were going to do it, just a meeting on the day, and she did not have a representative present.

My sister has the qualifications to manage a nursery. Vic, Essex

A) From the version of events that you have described, your sister may have a claim for constructive dismissal and more.

A company can lawfully demote an employee but only in specific circumstances and the process they must go through is strictly regulated.

This nursery has without question breached the contract they have with your sister by changing her role and reducing her salary without giving her any notice or conducting a genuine review of your sister’s performance.

The nursery has also failed to explain its actions or give your sister a fair opportunity to make representations.

Given the findings of Ofsted, the nursery’s decision to demote your sister could not have been based on her work, which means it has almost certainly acted entirely unlawfully in this case.

I would advise your sister to ask the head of the nursery to explain the reasons for their actions in writing and to make clear that your sister refuses to accept a demotion and wishes her original salary to be reinstated.

I would also strongly urge your sister to get in touch with the Free Representation Unit or Citizens Advice and, if this cannot be resolved, to bring a claim against the nursery as soon as she can as there are strict time limits for bringing claims before the Employment Tribunal.

Q) MY son has a joint mortgage with his now ex-girlfriend.

She walked out of the property six months ago and has not made any payments to the mortgage since.

My son paid all the deposit and is now paying the mortgage in full.
The problem is we do not know where she is.

We have contacted a solicitor regarding this as they have a deed of trust.

What happens if we cannot find her?

Jacqui, Suffolk

A) The bottom line here is that unless your son’s ex-girlfriend has disappeared entirely, it would be in your son’s best interest to spend some money hiring an Inquiry Agent to locate her.

These companies are often successful.

Your son and this woman are jointly liable to pay the mortgage and, even though he has taken on the responsibility of making the monthly repayments, this ex-girlfriend might still be entitled to some of the value of the house and could even make a claim against your son when, or if, she eventually returns.

Your son must get the house transferred into his name as soon as possible.

This will require him to get approved by the lender and, once this woman is found, for her to consent to the transfer.

I doubt that this woman has gone for good.

Mel Hunter, Reader's champion

Q) MY husband took out a service and MOT plan with car firm Arnold Clark in February 2018 that would last until 2021.

Unfortunately, my husband passed away in December 2018 and, as I am a non-driver, I phoned to see what happens with the policy.

I was told it was not transferable.

The policy cost £439 and my husband only used it for one service, so Arnold Clark has kept around £300 of the remaining balance.

Now it has sent my husband a reminder, even though I have told the company he has died.

M Devlin, Ayrshire

A) As things stood, Arnold Clark was able to keep the money your husband had paid, even though it would be doing absolutely nothing for it.

What is more, you had written to Arnold Clark chief executive Eddie Hawthorne regarding this matter and had not heard back.

I asked Arnold Clark to reconsider and I am pleased to say it did refund the remainder on the policy, sending you £350 along with an apology.

I think this was the right and fair thing to do.

Q) WE were awarded nearly £1,600 in PPI compensation from GE Money Home Finance. This has yet to be paid to us and has been going on since last November.

The company required photographic evidence of our identity plus our bank account numbers, which we provided months ago.

We have written numerous times but got no reply and we have now stopped trying to phone, after waiting so long in a queue.

We feel if positions were reversed, the company would probably have had us in court for non-payment, plus interest.

Mr and Mrs O'Connor, Newry, Co Down

A) You may well have a point. I got on to GE Capital, the finance arm of global company GE.

No explanation was given for the delay in awarding your compensation, but I am pleased to say I did manage to get the money paid out to you.

I am glad I could help take this weight off your shoulders, which I know was causing you stress.

• Do you have a consumer issue? Email readers.champion@mcb777.fun