Repairing cracked window pane - requires Building Regs?

VodkaSorbet

I am a leaseholder, council is the freeholder. There is a cracked window in my porch which has been like that for years, but recently the crack is starting to move.

Council say this is my responsibility as I can't prove when it happened (if it was like that when I bought the house it is up to me) which is fair enough as I genuinely can't remember.

However, they say replacing it is counted as an Alteration, for which I have to fill out their alteration form which requires Building Regs approval as it is replacement of a window. Just getting the approval costs about £200, plus it will doubtless take them weeks if not months to get all the paperwork processed.

Surely this is not right. It's just a glass repair, I'm not replacing the window itself. If I had reported it has having been broken yesterday they would have repaired it under building insurance.

Any comments?

Thanks in advance!

societys_child

It doesn't sound right to me either. Can you not just get a local glazier who is FENSA reg'd to replace it and by-pass the council jobs worth?

Personally I'd just replace it myself and say nowt . . .

WestonDave

Sounds like someone at the council is confusing replacing the window (i.e. frame etc) with replacing the window pane (which is what you want to do). Ignore them, get a glazier in who deals in broken window panes and get it fixed.


I think there are some building regs around replacing frames etc but not a like for like replacement of the glazing within the frame.

designbyrj

Use an installer registered under the FENSA scheme run by the Glass and Glazing Federation, in which case you do not need to make a Building Regulations application to the Council. Your installer should then ensure your windows comply fully with the Regulations and will supply you with a certificate confirming this when the installation is complete. You will also be offered the option of taking an insurance-backed guarantee. Please ensure that your installer is properly registered under the scheme before placing an order. You can check this and find more details of the scheme by visiting the FENSA website.
Make a Building Regulations application to your local authority, and in most cases the simplest way of doing this will be to submit a Building Notice. You should complete an Application for Building Regulations Approval form, ticking Building Notice at the top, and return it to your local authority together with the appropriate charge at least two working days before removing the old window(s).
If all is found to be satisfactory your local authority will approve the work and provide a completion certificate. This will involve a surveyor calling at your property to check the installation of the new windows.

jamei305

designbyrj wrote: »

Make a Building Regulations application to your local authority, and in most cases the simplest way of doing this will be to submit a Building Notice. You should complete an Application for Building Regulations Approval form, ticking Building Notice at the top, and return it to your local authority together with the appropriate charge at least two working days before removing the old window(s).
If all is found to be satisfactory your local authority will approve the work and provide a completion certificate. This will involve a surveyor calling at your property to check the installation of the new windows.

Building Regulations applications are not required for such work.

Landofwood

Is the property listed?

eddddy

designbyrj wrote: »

Use an installer registered under the FENSA...

It's best to read the post before replying.

It's a cracked pane of glass - and the question was asked two weeks ago.

AdrianC

Landofwood wrote: »

Is the property listed?

It's an ex-council house...

Raggie

AdrianC wrote: »

It's an ex-council house...

so is this one.


http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/oct/25/london-council-houses-sale-2-million-southwark