Sentence: 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years, 35 days rehabilitation activity, 150 hours unpaid work, and £5,000 costs
Steven Millard, an electrician and sole trader, illegally obtained contracts from Birmingham City Council through his then partner, who worked in the Funerals and Protection of Property Team. He performed substandard work on vulnerable people's properties, including charging nearly £10,000 for inadequate repairs at a 90-year-old man's home in Bournville Lane, such as plastering, fitting a kitchen, and pipe repairs, which required further thousands to fix. He also charged around £5,500 for securing doors and windows at a property in Wordsworth Road, Small Heath, by fitting steel sheets inside, causing damage, and demanded additional penalty fees. He overcharged for pest control, buying £3 rat poison and billing £135 per treatment, despite knowing he was not an approved contractor. The offences occurred in 2017 and involved exploiting elderly and vulnerable individuals for financial gain.