The contractor has slammed customers who called him a “cowboy trader” and said he’s “lost everything”.

Michael Brennan, from Preston, Lancashire, claims he has lost his business and family after customers attacked him on social media for defective work, causing them to lose thousands

A builder claims he “lost everything” after dissatisfied customers “ravaged” his business by branding him a “cowboy builder” on social media.

Michael Brennan, from Preston, Lancs, said he not only lost £100,000 in arranged jobs and all his clients, he also lost his wife and children after allegations surfaced on Facebook that he was a fraudulent trader.

Brendan Conlin, 56, and Luke Parkinson, 39, had both separately hired Mr Brennan to complete extension work on their homes last year.

But after alleged time delays and faulty work, the pair demanded their money back and took to social media to warn others that he was a “rogue” trader.

Now Mr. Brennan has said it LancsLive that a handful of bad experiences and scathing reviews have “blown everything out of proportion.”

He said: “I didn’t deserve that, losing the business, no problem, but losing your wife and boys is no good.

“As for building, that’s never going to happen again, I’ve lost friends, family, kids, everything, absolutely everything.”

Mr Conlin claims he has agreed to pay Mr Brennan’s company, Ruby Constructions and Renovations Ltd, £12,400 in installments of £4,133 to begin an extension to his home in November 2021.

But shortly after work began, Mr. Conlin claimed there were clear problems with the work, including the application of cement to drain pipes and the work’s failure to have a building inspector review it.

When the building inspector arrived, Mr Conlin claimed he had been told the work being carried out would have to be demolished before any other construction, but he had already paid Mr Brennan the first installment.

After Mr Conlin asked for his money back and claimed he had received nothing, he said he had taken to Facebook to name and shame Mr Brennan.

He set up a Facebook group to find other customers who have had similar experiences with Mr. Brennan’s company.

Luke Parkinson, 39, was one of those clients who joined the group and claimed he hired Ruby Constructions and Renovations Ltd in July of the same year.

This time the total prize was £20,000, divided into three payments of around £6,666, Luke said.

During the first phase of the work, Luke claims the contractors asked him to pay a further £800 over a complication with the pipes, which he agreed to.

But less than 24 hours after handing over his second installment, Luke claims his brother-in-law immediately spotted a problem with the brickwork.

After contacting a building inspector to set up an urgent meeting, Luke worriedly claimed he was told there were several issues with the job, including an unstable inner layer of the wall and incorrect installation.

Luke said after leaving £14,000 out of pocket with a half-built annexe and a damaged driveway, he felt Mr Brennan “needs to be stopped”.

Other allegations have also surfaced against the group, including a mum who says she lost £11,000 to an “appalling” kitchen extension in November 2021.

But after taking these allegations to Mr Brennan, the business owner says he moved to ax his own company and the allegations even ruined his personal life.

He said: “To have it all taken away in less than two days and I will never forgive Brendan Conlin and Luke Parkinson for that.

“They shot themselves in the foot with all that stuff on Facebook because now — if it ever goes to court and the deal closes, they’re not going to get anything at all.

“They should have let me keep working and just let me keep going.

“My clients left me in a week, I lost over £100,000 in a week.

“It’s not like I took that money and can’t pay it back, that’s not true — it’s only happened twice, one being Luke Parkinson and the other being Brendan Conlin.”

In response to the allegations, Mr Brennan claimed his clients had told him the jobs weren’t going “fast enough” and admitted he had “spread too thin” and taken on too many jobs.

But when he addressed the fact that they had asked for money back, he claimed he replied: “My people don’t work for chocolate buttons.

“The next minute I’m all over Facebook – and my wife calls me and asks me what’s going on.”

After hearing his replies, angry customers told LancsLive they still believe he has “no intention” of ever paying back the money.

But now Mr Brennan insists he has stopped working as a contractor forever and fears it will be a long time before his bad reputation is cleared.

He said: “Half the people want to kill me and hate me and the other half say I don’t think that’s you.

“Even the customers say you’re one of the nicest guys we’ve met, you’re just a crap builder, that’s it plain and simple – I stopped building, I don’t build anymore.

“You’ve caused me more problems, it’s not going away anytime soon.”