Double Glazing - regulations

Rachylou1981

I wonder if anyone can advise on my situation, my joiner and the internet information is about as clear as mud (I am not the best at understanding rules and regulations and the legal jargon so I think the problem is me being a bit clueless not their explanation).

I have just had double glazing installed by a local joiner. I chose top openers for all windows and he advised me one of the upstairs windows needed a fire escape and so we (joiner and I)chose the landing to be a bottom opener window.

On installing them, I got a phone call to say joiner needed to change the fire escape to the bedroom because if there was a fire on the stairs then I needed to get out of the bedroom. He was therefore going to swap the windows over, I agreed verbally not really understanding that this meant that my two upstairs windows which are side by side were going to be different (put on the spot). So when I saw them, I was not happy and neither was my partner. We therefore told the joiner this and he didn't give much in the way of options to solve the problem but he said that we would need to contact the council to approve them. I was alone and didn’t quite follow why this was the case. He swapped the windows back to original plan (fire escape window with bottom opener is now on the landing) and he is still continuing with the rest of the house.

Is this against regulations? Will the council make us change them? I am assuming the council rather than my joiner will be who will issue a certificate for future buyers? We haven’t paid the joiner yet but I will be so angry if we have to replace the bedroom windows when I would have chosen all similar correct regulation windows in the first place had it been explained better and had he told me in the first place that the landing could not be an escape route.

From what I can gather though, the fire escape is more an advice note rather than a lawful regulation?

Can anyone confirm whether we will need to change our windows back to comply?

Doozergirl

Hae you given notice to the council of work that requires building regulations sign off or is this joiner FENSA registered?

Habitable rooms all need a form of escape when you replace windows. I *think* that you can replace like opening with like, but common sense should dictate that it's best if every room has a means of escaping through the window. If there is a fire downstairs, your preference is going to be to leave the bedroom door shut and climb out of that window.

http://www.certass.co.uk/news/view/means-of-escape-windows-in-dwellings-answering-customer-questions

straas

So the joiner advised you of the regs and did work according to them, you decided you didn't like the look, and he changed them at your request but advised you you'd have to look into getting the regs as he didn't think they'd be approved?

CLAPTON

straas wrote: »

So the joiner advised you of the regs and did work according to them, you decided you didn't like the look, and he changed them at your request but advised you you'd have to look into getting the regs as he didn't think they'd be approved?

it would seem that the joiner didn't know the regs or apply them in a common sense way

Annie1960

From what you say, it seems to be the joiner's mistake, so he/she should rectify the situation so the windows comply with the regs.

Rachylou1981

In answer to all questions:

1. I did not inform the council at all as wasn’t sure I had to. I did not know anything about regulations or FENSA etc. Nothing was properly explained other than I needed an escape route on at least one window upstairs.

2. Joiner informed me the landing window was fine then once windows were ordered, had arrived and he started the work THEN he told me he was wrong and the bedroom window had to be the escape route. He then did the installation accordingly.

3. I changed the windows because I didn’t like the look but tried beforehand to discuss options before he did the rest of the work i.e. he could have changed the spare room window to a bottom opening one too but this would have meant a whole new window to be ordered. He did not give this as an option, he just offered to swap them back and I should ring the council.

Rachylou1981

Annie1960 wrote: »

From what you say, it seems to be the joiner's mistake, so he/she should rectify the situation so the windows comply with the regs.

Agreed, but the fact he said I need to inform the council makes it sound like he has installed the windows to my specification but it is up to the council to agree to them rather than him?

My thought process is that a proper tradesman would not have agreed to do the work/change them because of me if it did not follow regulations but judging from the internet, the fire escape is more of an advisary

Annie1960

Rachylou1981 wrote: »

Agreed, but the fact he said I need to inform the council makes it sound like he has installed the windows to my specification but it is up to the council to agree to them rather than him?

My thought process is that a proper tradesman would not have agreed to do the work/change them because of me if it did not follow regulations but judging from the internet, the fire escape is more of an advisary

It is of course up to you what you decide to do about this.

If it were me, I would refuse to pay the joiner until the work was satisfactory, which should include fire escape being in an appropriate place.

Ultimately it is your responsibility to get a certificate from the council, but the joiner needs to take responsibility for the work he has done, and he is required to use reasonable skill and care in this. It seems to me, from what you say, that he has failed to use reasonable skill and care, so I would not pay him until he has remedied the situation.

WestonDave

The problem really is that the joiner has tried to cover his own mistake by swapping the unmatched fire escape window with a window in the bedroom which would have balanced the others on that same frontage. This meant the OP was left with a mismatched look. Instead on realising he needed a fire escape window he should have re-ordered the bedroom windows so that they matched - either with both being fire escape windows or both looking the same whether having the extra opening or not.

Rachylou1981

WestonDave wrote: »

The problem really is that the joiner has tried to cover his own mistake by swapping the unmatched fire escape window with a window in the bedroom which would have balanced the others on that same frontage. This meant the OP was left with a mismatched look. Instead on realising he needed a fire escape window he should have re-ordered the bedroom windows so that they matched - either with both being fire escape windows or both looking the same whether having the extra opening or not.

Yeah I think I should have forced this but being alone and confused and not understanding what the options were and if this was a legal requirement, I just told him to swap back. Now I am reading these websites and getting myself stressed out.

The good thing is we haven't paid yet and so unless I get an approval certificate then I guess I have that as my bargaining tool - even though this is going to be horrible

Do I HAVE to comply though or does this just mean I won't get a certificate to pass on to future homeowners? I am unsure what is the legal implications if I just stay as I am

Rachylou1981

This website is what is confusing me. The means of escape part seems to say it is not a requirement but more an advisary. The windows now are better than they were previously.

http://www.tameside.gov.uk/buildingcontrol/replacingwindows