David Wilson Homes appalling finish, customer care and management

swishy87

I have to say that I am in the process of buying a DWH and it hasn't put me off. I will just be more aware I think.

However, I do agree a lot of this is not on and I do feel for you and hope you get it resolved. I have to say every time we have been in ours I'm yet to see anything like this and I do think it is down to the site manager and the quality of his trades people.

MrsTinks

It's just taken me over a year to get DWH to fix a problem relating to floors... NHBC aren't interested until such a time that DWH declare they have "fixed it" and we state it's not up to standard... So long as the builder is "fixing it" there seems to be little interest from NHBC to get involved. Doesn't matter that this is in excess of a year.

This is the 4th new build I have lived in, 3rd new build my husband has bought so we are aware of how things work, but DWH are by FAR the most abysmal I have ever had the displeasure of dealing with! Including nearly killing me and our daughter with scaffolding that went up without warning, no lights, no high viz in an unlit driveway... I had water dripping down internal walls for months because they couldn't seal a fake chimney any quicker. My master bathroom has been out 4 times, floors up 3 times to make them level, parts still creak (well there is no such thing as a silent floor madam... no but there is such a thing as screwing them down!!!!)

We are now contacting solicitors for compensation over the time we have lost due to their incompetence - if anyone has lodged legal action in the past please let me know how you got on!

MrsTinks

swishy87 wrote: »

I have to say that I am in the process of buying a DWH and it hasn't put me off. I will just be more aware I think.

However, I do agree a lot of this is not on and I do feel for you and hope you get it resolved. I have to say every time we have been in ours I'm yet to see anything like this and I do think it is down to the site manager and the quality of his trades people.

No - their customer services teams are even worse... seriously.

They will take a month to reply to you, they have no building experience so book 1 day for work that will take 4 or 5 and then you get left in a building site again. Of the 3 different builders i have had to deal with they are by far the least professional and least caring. Their workmen coming out to fix it are lovely, but they get given the wrong materials, not enough time and no support by management.

3 years in and I just want to sell the house and be done - it's totally destroyed making it my happy home to raise my family in! Not a single house on our estate has been problem free - some minor, but all say the same - would never ever buy DWH again because of their "service".

Actually I might start going to the local sales sites and warning people... maybe then they will start to listen... :mad:

MrsTinks

Our_David_Wilson_Home wrote: »

– Damaged and stained UPVC frames I didn't even bother chasing that... but yes not unusual
– Warped kitchen units happy to say that after 3 years they replaced a couple of warped doors... best of luck!
– Damaged kitchen units Didn't have this but they had to come repair my oven and my hood explodes bulbs...
– Units unfinished Ours was a show home so avoided this one
– Scratched windows Don't think we had this
– Electrical sockets hanging off walls no but several were a little dodgy and we finally got our own electrician to replace a few sockets - fine since
– Some electrics not working They eventually replaced all our ceiling lights to the tune of a few grand
– Carpets stained and house not cleaned prior to completion fairly clean thankfully
– Windows and mastic deeply stained
– Ceramic tiles stained
– Most internal doors not closing CHECK YOUR FLOOR! we've just had upstairs floors levelled (again) as this was the cause for our doors not shutting or binding
– Most window handles difficult operate
– One month for carbon monoxide alarm to arrive
– Missing canopy, finally installed then damaged
– Leaky guttering they rehung all the guttering on our garage - it was running AWAY from the drain...
– Some radiators not working
– Section of banister not attached ours was loose...
– Insulation missing in at least one WC wall cavity I'm starting to wonder about my daughters bedroom now...
– Chipboard floor boards not fully t&g'd, and ridges between boards DWH can't do floors to save their life - 4 attempts to fix our upstairs floors - one gap had been filled with expanding foam and not boards.
– Trade damaged planting, discarding litter in garden, urinating against wall
– Trade damaged kitchen ceramic floor tiles and amtico tiles
– Doors unevenly shaved most of the doors they use shouldn't really be shaved more than a few millimeters - get them to replace as it's more likely your frames are wonky.
– Plugs not stopping water in bathroom our ensuite bathroom shower doesn't drain - sink doesn't hold water - I've given up!
– Noisy water pipes throughout house
– Section of turf dead on completion We're on our second lawn... it's still dying
– Leaking shower
– Leaking water butt
– Radiators not level
– Insect infestation
– Mould in kitchen cupboards check there isn't water seeping from the loft - they aren't very good at sealing chimneys and leave cracked tiles in place
– Creaking floors yep... they told us "well you can't get a completely creak free floor..." - they weren't screwed down, they'd nailed them and sporadically
– Mismatched ceiling paint unless it's a BIG mismatch they won't do !!!!!! all about it

Sadly your problems are very similar to ours...

What site are you on?

Our_David_Wilson_Home

MrsTinks wrote: »

We are now contacting solicitors for compensation over the time we have lost due to their incompetence - if anyone has lodged legal action in the past please let me know how you got on!

The owner of mydavidwilsonhome co uk may be able to answer this and has already given us some invaluable advice.

Our_David_Wilson_Home

Not including that list, we've another 43 items now and still waiting for remedial work to begin.

We are on Rydon Lawns.

Just the other day realised that the hallway slopes more than 10mm - thought it was the door that wasn't straight!

MrsTinks

Our_David_Wilson_Home wrote: »

Not including that list, we've another 43 items now and still waiting for remedial work to begin.

We are on Rydon Lawns.

Just the other day realised that the hallway slopes more than 10mm - thought it was the door that wasn't straight!

Yeah our list kept growing over the years - just realized I have another kitchen door that's bowed... *sigh*

Hooray for the 5 year warranty I got!

Sloping floors - it may be a much bigger issue than you think - don't let them fob you off with underlay or "it's in tolerance" - in a new build the floor should be damn well flat! and if I want to play marbles on it they shouldn't all opt for rolling off in one direction by themselves :rotfl:

MrsTinks

Oh and I'm still waiting for them to arrange to fit new internal doors upstairs as they couldn't get a matching replacement for 1 door... it's taken 3 months to order the doors - they MIGHT get fitted before Christmas... and I'm not kidding with the MIGHT...

swishy87

MrsTinks wrote: »

No - their customer services teams are even worse... seriously.

They will take a month to reply to you, they have no building experience so book 1 day for work that will take 4 or 5 and then you get left in a building site again. Of the 3 different builders i have had to deal with they are by far the least professional and least caring. Their workmen coming out to fix it are lovely, but they get given the wrong materials, not enough time and no support by management.

3 years in and I just want to sell the house and be done - it's totally destroyed making it my happy home to raise my family in! Not a single house on our estate has been problem free - some minor, but all say the same - would never ever buy DWH again because of their "service".

Actually I might start going to the local sales sites and warning people... maybe then they will start to listen... :mad:

I mean it's down to the site manager how good the quality of the build is. Ours took us around ours pre plaster then in to others whilst tradesmen were in to see them at work etc.

MrsTinks

swishy87 wrote: »

I mean it's down to the site manager how good the quality of the build is. Ours took us around ours pre plaster then in to others whilst tradesmen were in to see them at work etc.

Our site went through 4 site managers... not whilst we were here btw. I agree a lot is down to a good site manager, but they are not on site all the time, most will have more than one site and they build these houses on the cheap. Having seen the "underbelly" of our house as it were then trust me a lot can be hidden

Regardless - there will always be problems even in a near perfect house - it's snagging and it's normal and acceptable - a 3 1/2 year battle to get my house sorted I would argue is NOT acceptable. They have already offered me a good will gesture over 4 figures which we turned down. That should give you an idea of the hassle we have had. 95% of the problems could have been easily resolved - 1 glass kitchen door - 5 attempts to replace. 2 bowed cupboard doors: 8 months and 5 separate visits to the above... It's not rocket science just pure lack of service or caring at DWH. The workmen are embarrassed every time they have to come out. I feed them coffee and bacon butties because I feel sorry for them for the 2 hour drives most of them have to get here