Potential House Re-wire - who's responsible?

lunalyra

At no point did I pin the blame on the seller, I fully accept that it is something that I have overlooked, and I am prepared to pay out. I only asked because so many people have advised to pursue the course of going back to the seller, and that didn't seem right to me.

SplanK

...the only time you can claim is if the seller deliberately miss-sold the place, but that would be very VERY difficult to prove costly and time consuming....


You live and learn. Suck it up to experience, get a sparky out and move on!

27col

If anyone did indeed tell you that houses needed to be rewired every 10 years. They were an idiot or a liar, or both. Even in the days of VIR( Vulcanised India Rubber) wiring the installations would last much longer than that.
The introduction of new wiring codes were not retrospective on existing installations. If there is a shortage of sockets then it is due to the poor specification and the norms of the period when the original wiring was installed.
I cannot imagine any surveyor actually testing anything.
All they do is to cover themselves by suggesting that you get a proper inspection done.
Whatever shortcomings have become evident, were there when you looked at the property. As you bought it in that condition, you have a bit of a cheek even considering going back to the vendor.
Your property, your responsibility.

G_M

You did not get the electrics inspected by a qualified electrician thus saved yourself that cost.

You thus gambled that the electrics were OK, and lost the gamble.

HappyMJ

lunalyra wrote: »

I had a buildings&structural survey (or at least that's what I thought I'd paid for), who later turned out to not be fully accredited, so we got a second structural survey done by someone who was accredited..


All that came back was:
some re-wiring will be necessary in the not too distant future


I was advised that this was common, and that houses should be rewired every 10 years anyway..there was no advice on further action for this point


I'm reluctant to go back to the seller at this point anyway, it certainly doesn't look like her fault (although how she lived with so many holes in the walls and faulty plug sockets I don't know!!), but it looks more and more like I've been had by my surveyors..


nothing to do but pick up the pieces and get on with fixing it I guess!


Thanks,

Every 10 years....

My mother's house hasn't been rewired ever...since it was built...which was a little over 40 years ago and it doesn't need it now.

pendragon_arther

Your solicitor acting on the purchase should have asked for a recent electrical certificate if they were any good.

Ozzuk

phill99 wrote: »

Struth. Here we have another 'it's not my fault although we didn't undertake due diligence and want some body else to pay'.


When will people learn that its up to buyers to satisfy themselves about the state and suitability of a property. No matter what your well intended but completely mis-guided colleagues tell you, you have absolutely no recourse to the seller (providing you are in England and wales.

The OP has already come back and said it was there fault so your outburst seems a little melodramatic

Though I agree with overall principle.

lunalyra

pendragon_arther wrote: »

Your solicitor acting on the purchase should have asked for a recent electrical certificate if they were any good.

I checked back through all my documents and they did ask for an electrical certificate, but the owner didn't have one. I'm assuming this is because the owner previous to her didn't pass it on, as she apparently hadn't had any electrical work of this type done in the time she lived there.

paddyrg

If there's only one working socket in one room, it's certainly going to be right to get a spark to come in and have a look. You may need a rewire, or all of the wiring might be fine but with poorly fitted sockets and switches and you may just get those all replaced and take the opportunity to get some you like (eg if you like the metallic style ones).

TBagpuss

pendragon_arther wrote: »

Your solicitor acting on the purchase should have asked for a recent electrical certificate if they were any good.

I don't think so. They would ask for a certificate for any works which the seller declares they have had carried out, but it is not the seller's responsibility to carry out an electrical survey or inspection or to provide a certificate. And it would normally be the surveyor, not the solicitor, who would recommend having your own electrical survey or checks carried out.