Mortgage without warranty

Keviola

Hi,
My wife and I purchased our first house, a new build property, in 2009. As it was the show house it was originally completed at the end of 2007. We are now in the process of selling the house but have discovered that no 10 year building warranty is actually in place. However, attached to the paperwork passed from our old solicitor to our new one is a letter from CRL, the insurance company, dated 2007 stating that a surveyor has visited and a certificate will follow in due course. We have contacted all revelent parties involved but no record of the certificate can be found.
It now looks like we will have to pay for a retrospective warranty to be issued. I will be making a formal complaint to my old solicitor and the law society if necessary, but does anyone know if this is an issue I should take up with the bank as well? Should the mortgage have been released if the warranty wasn't in place?
Thanks for your help,
Kevin

davidmcn

Keviola wrote: »

Should the mortgage have been released if the warranty wasn't in place?

The bank would (almost certainly) have been relying on the solicitor and wouldn't have known any more than you.
I doubt any new lenders or purchasers will be too bothered about the lack of guarantee for a 7 year old house (standard requirement in the CML handbook is only for houses less than 6 years old).

And why can't CRL issue a duplicate certificate?

Thrugelmir

Keviola wrote: »

However, attached to the paperwork passed from our old solicitor to our new one is a letter from CRL, the insurance company, dated 2007 stating that a surveyor has visited and a certificate will follow in due course.

What did the insurance company say?

Keviola

Thanks for the replies. The insurance company went in to administration but have now been bought over and continue to trade under the same name. They can see the letter in their records but will only deal with cases after their takeover in 2011. They have directed us to the previous underwriters who are saying they have no record of our property.
The buyers solicitor is requesting the warranty certificate so we are unsure where to go from here.