A British man outraged over how his kitchen was reportedly poorly remodeled is protesting the work by parking a decommissioned Cold War-era weapon in a home improvement store’s parking lot – and is refusing to move it.
“I intend to stay as long as it takes for justice. I find it bizarre that Wickes can choose which bits of the law they will obey. The tank is there as a peaceful protest. If they wish it to be moved, there is a simple solution: Pay me back what they have of mine and my out-of-pocket expenses,” Paul Gibbons, 63, said of his protest against U.K. home improvement store chain Wickes.
Gibbons said his kitchen ordeal started last year in February, when Wickes installed a new kitchen in his Kingsclere home for £25,000, or roughly $31,700. He told British media that he had scouted other home improvement shops and contractors before settling on Wickes to carry out the job.
Gibbons argued he’s been left with a nightmare kitchen that has led to mold growing under his sink, drawers that don’t close, and one drawer that nearly fell on his dog.
“The finish throughout is so poor, and half of the kitchen doesn’t fit as it should. I agreed to the contract and what I was told would be two weeks of work, and 10 months later I am still left with a kitchen which I can’t even use as you should,” he said in December, according to the Telegraph.
He said the store has not rectified the allegedly shoddy kitchen, and he is “making a stand” by parking a 1963 decommissioned Abbot self-propelled gun outside of a Wickes’ location in Basingstoke.
“The worst thing about it is that Wickes refuses to accept that the quality of the kitchen is nowhere near the standard it should be,” he said late last year. “They should deal with these issues when they arise rather than palming people off, and I’m making a stand simply to say that it’s not right.”
Gibbons said he borrowed the artillery piece from his friend, who loans out the vehicle to people protesting big stores, and parked it outside the store on Dec. 27. He’s demanding the store refund his money.
“Warning Incompetent Complacent Kitchen Equipment Supplier,” a sign on the vehicle reads.
This month, Gibbons said a note was posted on the gun warning it would be removed “within 14 days,” as of Jan. 23.
“This vehicle/item has been notified to us as being abandoned and/or not having valid road tax and will be removed within 14 days of this notice being issued,” the note states, SWNS reported.
“If this vehicle is not abandoned, please contact us on the below number immediately and/or arrange for it to be removed from site.”
If it’s not removed, the vehicle will reportedly be “sold or destroyed.”
Gibbons shot back that he has no intention of moving the vehicle until he is refunded. He added that he plans to contact local police if the store attempts to move or destroy the vehicle.
“I am not looking for huge amounts of compensation, I just want to be back to where I was last year when this debacle started,” he said, according to SWNS.
A Wickes spokesperson previously told local outlets they are aware of the vehicle and are working “to resolve the issue.”
“We are aware of the situation at the Basingstoke store and would like to apologise for any inconvenience that has been caused to shoppers visiting the store today,” the spokesperson said. “Our Customer Relations team is in contact with the customer to discuss their installation and help to resolve the issue.”
