COUNCIL house decorators have been labelled 'cowboys' after making a mess of a Bulford womans home.

Elaine Robertson (46) returned from a holiday in Greece to find white paint all over the bricks, grass, flowers and even her red Fiat Punto, which was parked outside the house in John French Way.

The workers were supposed to be carrying out routine decorating on the outside of the property. However, they had not told Ms Robertson they were coming.

She said: "When I got back I thought someone was playing a joke on us. They obviously just employed bum contractors who acted like complete cowboys.

"This really is a Salisbury District Council special." Now, a month on, Ms Robertson is still waiting for the council to repaint the windows and pay towards the cost of respraying the car.

She said: "They keep promising they will come back and have even said that a cheque was being sent to the garage to cover the costs of the damage. I have called them many times but they just don't seem to want to know."

Gary Lynch, principal contracts manager, said: "Unfortunately at that time we were stuck with some poor contractors. We are trying to sort all of this out."