Freedom of speech

MyOnlyPost

GGBoom wrote: »

The banner just says Do Not Buy, Ask Us Why so I'm not sure they have any grounds unless there is a covenant as mentioned. I will have to check on this with my solicitor

I am not a lawyer, I cannot give you legal advice.

The words Do Not Buy imply there is a problem with the houses or the company. If the builder sued for libel / defammation then your complaints would need to stand up to your implications. If a court found that your complaints were the norm for a new build, what most people would routinely expect. then you would be in serious trouble.

As an example of what isn't normal teething I bought a new build 15 years ago. In my neighbours house they had nailed through a hot water pipe in several places. When the heating was turned on for the firt time the nails under pressure were shot out and the house got flooded. Compared to this if your major issue is a leaking toilet that you didn't notice until you were informed about it.......

DaftyDuck

Find another way to deal with the problem. Any good-will you might have had will have gone now.

Just worth realising that they will probably have solicitors "on the book", so taking legal action may cost them virtually nothing.

It might cost you everything you have.

csgohan4

The developer got what they deserve and I say go for it and show them that customers do fight back

davidmcn

da_rule wrote: »

If they could produce evidence from someone saying that they would have put down the reservation fee if the banner hadn't been there then they could argue that at the least they've lost the value of the reservation fee. But this is hypothetical and the onus would be on them to prove it.

Probably easier for them just to enforce the "no banners/signs/etc" covenant.

steampowered

I can't see a legal problem. The statement "Do Not Buy" is entirely one of opinion, not of fact, so I really cannot see how an action for defamation could be brought.

Of course if a potential buyer approached you and you told that buyer something factually untrue, and the builder lost sales as a result, you could then be liable for defamation.

I assume there is no covenant affecting your property preventing you from sticking up a sign.

agrinnall

You seem to be taking a very combative approach to the sort of issues that many new build buyers experience and resolve without going to such lengths. Perhaps you could employ a professional snagging inspector and then you would have something concrete to take to the developer or use as the basis for court action if necessary.

G_M

I'd be very wary in your position about taking legal advice from a bunch of wierdos (well-meaning though they may be!) on the internet.

You are probobly OK, but the person to ask is a solicitor.

Quite how the developer came in without you knowing, I don't understand. If you have evidence, that is a police matter surely for Breaking and Entering.

You did change the locks after purchasing, yes? :shocked:

Or perhaps not

MyOnlyPost

steampowered wrote: »

I can't see a legal problem. The statement "Do Not Buy" is entirely one of opinion, not of fact, so I really cannot see how an action for defamation could be brought.

I think you have that the wrong way around. If something were a fact then there could be no libel as it could be proven to be true. An opinion can be libellous as in "I think ...... is being investigated by operation yewtree"

Miss_Samantha

Before considering whether there is libel or not, you should consider how big/rich they are and how much money they are willing to throw at it.

Sometimes corporations can sue you just because they now that you cannot afford it and so will settle or go bankrupt.

steampowered

MyOnlyPost wrote: »

I think you have that the wrong way around. If something were a fact then there could be no libel as it could be proven to be true. An opinion can be libellous as in "I think ...... is being investigated by operation yewtree"

Libel and defamation both require a factual statement to be made that is untrue.

"I think xxx is being investigated by operation yewtree" is a factual statement dressed up as an opinion. People get sued for such statements when they are alleging that they have a factual basis for believing that Mr xxx is being investigated in the manner described.