Shoddy building work outside of warranty

Iamdave

Asking for a relative.

He Bought an upstairs 2 bed flat about 4 years ago with 2 year warranty on it. In the last 18 months or so they have noticed that at the top of the stairs the concrete is breaking away and crumbling indicating very shoddy building work.

It was a new build by Bovis but they have said that as it is outside warranty there is nothing they can do, this was about a year ago and since then they havnt really had time to chase it up further due to birth of extremely premature baby.

recently on a phone call to Bovis again they tried to fob them off saying that the cause is subsidance or something similar which would only occur in a ground floor flat (as said by relative who has experience in building trade)

Chasing it up recently a housing inspector from the NHBC has been round and said that they only carry out repairs of greater value than £1300 and basically said that although the work is shoddy they dont carry out repairs unless above that value. It was stated to them that if they inspected the rest of the flooring not just the rest the top of the stairs they may find more and this would probably drive the price up which they refused to do.

What action would you take? Would you ring up Bovis and threaten legal action, contact the omsbudsmen or what?

Thanks

Dave_the_Ginger_Cat

Is the damage in a shared area or inside their flat?

Iamdave

it's inside their flat at the top of their stairs

Furts

Normally it is a ten year warranty with NHBC, but the first two years are with the builder - Bovis in this case. NHBC are responsible for structural defects in years two to ten. Hence you would need to pursue NHBC having first read the policy regarding excess and definitions of structural defects. In others words, carefully prepare your case. Expect a battle.

It is for you to prove your case. NHBC are an insurance company that does not like to pay out. You can get professional help if they do not co-operate. If you win your case the fees, if reasonable and agreed in advance with NHBC, should be refunded.

teneighty

Bear in mind that the NHBC is run by the major house builders, including the likes of the Chief Executive of Bovis Homes so don't expect them to roll over and concede defeat.

It is up to the homeowner to fight for any remedial works which may require employing an independent expert to provide the evidence.