A rogue trader left customers thousands of pounds out of pocket, faking asbestos reports to say they needed the dangerous material removed when they didn't.
Andrew Curtis York, who traded as ACFL Asbestos Ltd, misled three customers into parting with large amounts of money for the removal of asbestos from parts of their homes.
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council's trading standards team discovered York altered test reports from a lab.
The residents of Stockton and Eaglescliffe suffered losses as York quoted for the removal of asbestos which was not there and made a gain by charging for work that was not necessary.
York quoted one of the customers an additional £9,500 for further asbestos removal work that was not required, as no asbestos had been detected.
The customers of York also incurred additional expenses for boarding and plastering that they would not have had to pay out if the correct test report had been supplied to them.
After pleading guilty to four charges of fraud and was handed 16-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, when he appeared at Teesside Crown Court on Friday (April 10).
He was ordered to pay back £14,235 for asbestos removal from their homes - which he was ordered to pay back in full as well as £1,250 in costs.
He has paid back the money to customers.
Stockton Councillor Norma Stephenson said: "The dishonest actions of York in these cases were beyond belief.
"When the samples he sent off to the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) were returned showing that there was no trace of asbestos in the homes of his customers, he altered the results to line his own pockets by using his business to carry out work that was completely unnecessary.
"York fraudulently took money from those customers, but was stopped in his tracks from defrauding others, thanks to the hard work of our trading standards team.
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"Their detailed investigation helped to identify potential victims of this fraudulent trading and ensured that York has now been brought to account.
"I hope this case also issues a warning to others thinking about trading unfairly that our trading standards team will leave no stone unturned.
"I always urge residents looking to get home improvement work done to obtain at least three quotes, seek recommendations from friends and family, and do not hand over large sums of money upfront."
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