upvc windows

worriedtoo

we bought a property at auction which had upvc windows & patio door fitted throughout in 2004. we have the fensa certificate for this, they were fitted by a local company.
a survey by a structural engineer was required post auction (to complete on the mortgage) to look at another issue. This report identified that very few of the windows have suitable lintels fitted which is causing cracking and movement. the recommendation is that the larger windows and patio door have distorted brickwork removed & lintels installed.
Now i know that fitting upvc windows must comply with building regs and that this includes A1 structure, and according to this report that isnt the case with the fitting in our house.

the window company's owner is currently on holiday so i havent had the opportunity to discuss with them as yet.
I rang Fensa for advice, but they werent much help. they suggested that the original contract may not be transferable from the previous owners, or that the fitting of any lintels is a separate contract to the window fitting and that in either of these cases, there wouldnt be any recourse for us from the company, but will need to pay for it ourselves.
that doesnt really make sense to me if the movement is caused by a lack of lintels, ie incorrect installation of the windows???
the person i spoke to then went on to say that the company involved should sort it out, but if not to send the info to them to investigate, although he went on to admit they dont have any powers to enforce anything???

so the question is, are the company who fitted the windows responsible for this issue and therefore should rectify the issue under their guarantee??

silvercar

I'd love to see where this one goes. Personally I doubt whether FENSA would pay out. Otherwise anyone could get their windows done on the cheap then produce a report to say the lintel is missing and FENSA would have to pay out. It could be that the previous owners chose to risk not paying for a lintel, in which case the window company should have refused the job.

worriedtoo

hi Silvercar,

we werent thinking that Fensa would pay out, but that they would provide some support in pursuing the company that fitted the windows originally.

they offer a 10 year guarantee, surely that is for the windows themselves, not merely for the purchaser of said windows?

I know that they say their surveyor undertakes a report prior to any owrk to determine whether lintels are required, so they should still have this information available?
As you say, if the previous owners refused to pay for lintels which were required to maintain the structural integrity of the house, then the company could NOT instal safely to comply with under buildng regs and should not have done so, and they didnt need to get building regs approval after fitting as they are fensa certified so they could self certify. we have a report produced by an ISA reg'd chartered structural engineer which says they are not. in that case, they are in breach of building regs and should therefore be liable??

i'm waiting for the owners to return from holiday to pick this issue up with them but based on the conversation i had with the person working the owners absence, the response was that the guarantee was only offered to the purchasers (ie previous house owners)

silvercar

As you say, if the previous owners refused to pay for lintels which were required to maintain the structural integrity of the house, then the company could NOT instal safely to comply with under buildng regs and should not have done so, and they didnt need to get building regs approval after fitting as they are fensa certified so they could self certify. we have a report produced by an ISA reg'd chartered structural engineer which says they are not. in that case, they are in breach of building regs

I agree with all this. As to who is liable, the owners could have said to go ahead and take the risk, in which case the owners should be liable.

Homersimpson

Do the windows have a soldier course of bricks above (bricks end on)? It was the case in old houses that they didn't have lintels but used bricks in this fashion instead.

I doubt that a window installer would be required to provide a lintel if there wasn't one before, they may have a duty of care to tell the occupier before they start work that a lintel isn't present (assuming they can see that it doesn't). I doubt that a lot of window installers would be able to install lintels anyway and of course building control would need to be involved.

I've fitted my own windows and changed the soldier bricks above for steel lintels, of course its not going to be certified by a fensa installer but its not going to fall down either!

I'm afraid I don't think you have any redress against the original installer but best of luck anyway!

G_M

A key lesson here is to investigate properties fully before buying at auction! You are commited to buying now, so I hope your mortgage company is not refusing to lend?

Window guarantees are usually transferable, but you'd need to read the small print. as for lintels, I'm not sure, but reputable installers can sign off Building Regs to say the installation complies. Did this happen? Have you seen a Building Regulations consent form? If in doubt, visit building control at the local Planning office.