A COUPLE say a contractor tried to charge £350 for laying tarmac on their drive without permission, then asked to use their car as a steamroller!

Grandparents Eddie and Dorothy Jones, of Worcester Place in Blacon, are warning other house-holders.

Mrs Jones says her first 'mistake' was in showing a slight interest in having the drive done, but she and her husband insist they never hired the contractor to carry out the work.

The second mistake was to give the man £150 to go away when he returned demanding cash.

Mr Jones, 68, a former taxi driver, said he told the contractor who turned up on their drive that he and his wife would discuss whether they wanted any work doing.

The couple were surprised when they woke a couple of days later to hear a banging noise at about 8am being created by a young man working for the contractor.

Later the same day the tarmac was dumped on the drive then laid out.

Mr Jones dialled 999 because he didn't know what else to do.

'The woman who answered said it's not a police matter,' he said. 'She said it's a civil matter and you will have to phone a solicitor and get the solicitor to come out and order him off.'

He said the contractor even had the cheek to ask him to drive his car on the asphalt to pack it down.

Mrs Jones, 64, who used to work at WHSmith in Chester, and now works in a charity shop, said the man came back on a day he knew her husband was out and asked for payment.

She said she paid him £150 to end the saga, and said: 'I was stupid. I shouldn't have paid him anything.'

The Joneses have called the police twice over the matter, including over a claim that the man was parked nearby in what they viewed as intimidation.

'Why should I let him get the better of me?' said Mrs Jones.

The couple, who have three daughters and nine grandchildren, say the tarmac is only half an inch deep and uneven.

Cheshire Trading Standards officer Tony Collard said the service was receiving 'quite a few calls' of a similar nature from across the county and was liaising with police.

'Our advice is not to deal with people who cold-call trying to sell roofing work, tree-felling work or tarmac work,' he said. 'Don't give the slightest interest because they will be there at 7am the next day.'

The Chronicle made numerous attempts to contact the contractor on the phone number Mr Jones had but the mobile was switched off.