problems after buying a house

phil1986_2

I recently bought a house that in the property information form filled in by the seller showed the central heating as in good working order, the seller had ticked the box for yes. I moved in an got a gas safe expert to check it and was instantly condemned, not even in a fixable state and to get a new boiler at £2500 was best option. Where do i stand on this legally.

I am in the middle of passing this to the solicitors, the first response ive had stated it was up to me to check this, but how can i check something like this before i bought the house and why would i when they stated GOOD working order.

Am i in the right to ask for compensation if not the who thing payed for by the seller?

Also if worse came to it and had to take to court would law be on my side?

geoffky

happened to us..bought in march and never checked until late aug when we moved in...The boiler was working when we had the viewing and i am sure it was because it was left for so long that caused its demise...did we have any comeback..no because the previous owner will just say it was working when we left...we did not try though and just got a new boiler...its buyer beware i think and if they produce a certificate with a recent date on what will you do as its your word against theirs...good luck

MrRee_2

There is also a question which asks when it was last serviced - when was that?

cajef

MrRee wrote: »

There is also a question which asks when it was last serviced - when was that?

Agreed, and we had to provide invoice/proof of last service to the buyers solicitor.

Leon_W

You only have to provide proof if the buyers solicitor asks for it. This would come as a request from the buyer to ask the question. If it wasn't asked then there is no come back on the solicitor or vendor.

It is not a legal requirement to have a boiler serviced.

It is up to you to ensure that what you are buying is fit for purpose and an engineer should have been engaged to check the system BEFORE you agreed to purchase.

I'm afraid the law will not be on your side.

DVardysShadow

phil1986 wrote: »

...
I am in the middle of passing this to the solicitors, the first response ive had stated it was up to me to check this, but how can i check something like this before i bought the house and why would i when they stated GOOD working order.

You could have checked this by sending in your own gas safe inspector before buying. If it was British Gas, then perhaps you should get an independent view, because they seem very ready to condemn a boiler.

ziggyman99

It is feasible that the boiler was in "good working order" but on closer inspection needed condemning. Some issues would not be picked up by anything short of a full service. A Home owners gas safety check may miss some problems as it does what it says on the tin - checks the safety of the gas. There is more to it, i.e. combustion analysis, but there is no requirement to open up the boiler. I can see a scenario were the insulation was broken for example, not affecting the readings, but obviously needs changing. If that was obsolete then the boiler is condemned. This wouldn't be picked up by a visual inspection.
As a gas engineer I am getting more requests to carry out a Homeowners Gas Safety inspection and a full boiler/gas fire service on properties for sale. This often comes from a request from the buyers. People are getting more and more savvy these days. Please remember though that these reports don't give any idea on the condition of the appliances, just that it's safe and working. One week after the reports are written a component could fail which results in a new boiler.

alexlyne

When we bought, the service certificate was on the standard list of things that our solicitor asked for from the seller... and is usually a fairly common thing to ask for AFAIK - but I guess it depends on the solicitor. Ours were very good (though sometimes lacking a bit in the communication dept).

phil1986_2

thanks for your responses everyone. well for the last service it shows on the fire 1992 so 20 years. the house itself has been empty for 5 - 6 years and sellers claims regular testing which i dont think they can prove. the back boiler was not condemned for just a few faults it was completly rusted through and wouldnt have past a service within the last 2 years.
the main thing im going to fight this on is because the seller mislead information this didnt give me a chance to negotiate the price as that was one of my main isssues i expected everything else to need fixing,
also for services certifacte they have under the box for good working order, they have put not known for boiler service certificate.

also aswell isnt the information provided by the seller a legal document as it is also signed and dated within the last month
thanks people

phil1986_2

Leon_W wrote: »

You only have to provide proof if the buyers solicitor asks for it. This would come as a request from the buyer to ask the question. If it wasn't asked then there is no come back on the solicitor or vendor.

It is not a legal requirement to have a boiler serviced.

It is up to you to ensure that what you are buying is fit for purpose and an engineer should have been engaged to check the system BEFORE you agreed to purchase.

I'm afraid the law will not be on your side.

but the document they signed is under the law society which mean the seller has missold the property does it not. as with any buying and selling the is still trade description act so why does it make the law not on my side

BoGoF

As has been said it's YOUR responsibility to check these things. You have asked why would you when they seller said it was in good working order, 2 things to that

1) Would you accept their word if they said the house was in good order? No you get a survey.
2) It may have been in working order which doesn't make it 'safe' for inspection/service purposes.

By pursuing this you will only incur additional legal fees. Maybe you should be complaining closer to home, i.e. your own solicitor.