Developer conned houseboat buyers

A DEVELOPER conned two buyers that the houseboats they bought had 125 years mooring licences yet did not even have any mooring rights whatsoever.

Two couples paid Mick Djurberg a total of 1.8 million for two houseboats moored near Hampton Court on the Thames claiming they had 125 years mooring rights, but had none whatsoever, as the mooring had no residential permission, Alan Tilbury reports.

Charged £250 a day for mooring

It was early this year that the two couples purchased two houseboats from the developer with the claimed mooring rights, then when moving in were charged £250 a day for mooring, then discovered the site where they were moored had no resident mooring right whatsoever, and so took Mick Djurberg to court to claim back their money, (Two couples sue marina owner over 'worthless' houseboats.)

On Friday the Court found in favour of the two couples and ordered Djurberg to pay back the £1.8 million for two houseboats by the High Court for misrepresentation and breach of contract.

Could not legally moor

The court found that Djurberg led his clients to believe extended mooring licences were included in the price of the two custom-built houseboats, but found there was 'no public right by which they could lawfully moor their houseboats for permanent or residential use' on the site.

Jennifer Small paid £1.25m for a three story houseboat,  was charged £250 a day for mooring then discovered there were no mooring rights.

Lived in it five and half weeks

Fiona Johnstone paid £850,000 for her houseboat, but lived in it for only five and a half weeks before the council told her she had no mooring rights to live at the site.

When handing down the judgement, Murray Rosen QC described Djurberg as an 'unusual man, with a complex relationship with the truth'.