COWBOY workmen ran piping from a hairdressers to the funeral directors next door without permission so they could use its water free of charge.

Workmen renovating the Co-operative Funeralcare shop, in Wickford High Street, first walked into neighbouring Images hairdressers two weeks ago.

The men asked manageress Michelle Small, 22, if they could check how the plumbing system worked, because the funeral directors had been closed for months and they could not work out how to restore its water supply.

She was happy to allow them to do this and left the men alone in a kitchen at the back of the salon.

But after the men left, Miss Small and owner of the business Andy Morris, 50, were shocked to find they had connected a copper pipe to their water supply, which ran up the kitchen wall, into the ceiling and was connected to another pipe leading next door.

Mr Morris said: “No-one I speak to can believe they had the cheek to do it. I had this horrible pipe up my wall and they were using water I was paying for, for their toilet and bathroom.

“It got worse because I kept turning off the water supply to their pipe, but they would come into the shop while I was out, ignore my staff who tried to stop them, and turn it back on.”

The workmen also tried to cut a channel into the pavement behind the Co-op to a stopcock in the pavement, because they wanted to connect a water pipe to it.

Another shopkeeper, who was worried they might damage an underground gas main, complained to Essex County Council which forced the workmen to stop.

After being contacted by the Echo, the Co-op apologised, took down the pipe yesterday, re-painted the kitchen and agreed to resurface the rear drive between the two shops as a goodwill gesture.

Co-op spokeswoman Ruth Rowan said: “Unbeknown to us, a subcontractor did connect the water supply to Images hairdressers on a temporary basis.

“We have dismissed the subcontractors concerned, apologised to Images for the inconvenience caused and agreed to repair any cosmetic or structural damage.”

Essex County Council spokesman Michael Page added: “Essex County Council was made aware that an unauthorised contractor was attempting to gain access to the water supply on Wickford High Street.”