Ms Josephine Chong Siew Nyuk appears unaware of the existence of the Building and Construction Authority's BCA Academy ("Set up training school for building trades"; Aug 6).

It is an established technical institution that offers a wide array of building certification trade courses. The BCA Academy, located in Bishan, was set up in 1984.

Over the years, it has successfully trained workers in the various specialist building trades, such as plumbing, pipe-fitting, interior finishing, waterproofing, plastering and bricklaying, just to name a few.

I certainly empathise with her over the ordeal she experienced. Indeed, her contractor had incurred an inordinate amount time for the renovation and reconstruction of her two bathrooms.

The poor workmanship could probably be due to the contractor she engaged not being BCA-certified. It would be prudent for her to first verify the contractor's credentials before engaging one in the future.

In hindsight, it would very much help if Ms Chong could document the defects and claim damages against the contractor under the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act or at the Small Claims Tribunal, depending on the amount.

Considering the fact that the completed works delivered were of a mediocre standard, and the degree of inconvenience she suffered, she certainly reserved the legal right not to pay the amount in full. Closing one eye is akin to condoning and accepting the contractor's actions.

Teo Kok Seah