Party wall (firewall) in the roof.

Leighthal

Can anybody tell me when it was regulation to have one of these? I have an end terrace house on the market that does'nt have one.It was'nt a problem when I bought the house in 1991 (so I thought) but I've just been informed that it was regulation before 1991 and therefore I've never been properly insured all these years. :eek:

Doozergirl

If a property is built before the appropriate legislation it does not mean you aren't insured! There is never a point in time at which new legislation is introduced and you then have to comply with it - it would be impossible! We'd all be working constantly on our houses!! Any new building will have to be separated from any other dwellings and any planned, new work carried out would need to comply with current building regs; that's all.

If you sell the place, then a decent surveyor will recommend that the gap is closed to provide a firebreak for safety.

Some houses have no foundations to speak of - doesn't mean they aren't insured properly or that you have to start underpinning it to comply with current regs.

gemma.zhang

It's all getting me confused now..
We're buying a 1880 Victorian Cottage, and there's NO FIREWALL in the loft at all... and really wondering do we have to put one there in order to be insured once we move in ?

Doozergirl

No. But you should put one in to be safe!

Leighthal

Thanks Doozergirl.The house was built Circa 1900.The info came from a salesman who has just been around to check the house for damp-proofing as recommended by our purchasers mortgage company surveyor.He highlighted some rendering that needed to be rectified and also quoted for the party wall.This will be passed onto our purchasers and we will await their revised offer.His comments about the insurance just freaked me out and was probably down to salesman BS.

Leighthal

gemma.zhang wrote: »

It's all getting me confused now..
We're buying a 1880 Victorian Cottage, and there's NO FIREWALL in the loft at all... and really wondering do we have to put one there in order to be insured once we move in ?

Not sure for an 1880 cottage,but the quote for a 1900 end terrace was 980 + VAT.Thank goodness we are not in the middle of the terrace!:j

Doozergirl

£980 +VAT? :eek:

You only need a load of thermalite blocks and some mortar. DIY - it doesn't need to be tidy or pretty! Odd job man should do it for waaaaay under £300 including the materials.

gemma.zhang

Leighthal wrote: »

Not sure for an 1880 cottage,but the quote for a 1900 end terrace was 980 + VAT.Thank goodness we are not in the middle of the terrace!:j

:eek: for one wall. Faint !!!.. We are in the middle of the terrace, does it mean that nearlly 2k's gone to the water. !!! faint !!!..

We're getting a quote tonight.. I am very tensed now.. really scared that we won' be able to afford all those extra repairment thing.... our vendor's dropped by 2k - well. that's it.. otherwise, they will put it back to the market. !!! ..
Which means, if we want the house, will have to bite the bullets, and suffer whatever costs ........

2k for two walls.. that's my one month salary.. HOW UNFAIR.. maybe I shall re-train to be a bulder.

mlz1413

Leighthal wrote: »

Can anybody tell me when it was regulation to have one of these? I have an end terrace house on the market that does'nt have one.It was'nt a problem when I bought the house in 1991 (so I thought) but I've just been informed that it was regulation before 1991 and therefore I've never been properly insured all these years. :eek:

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I bought my first house in 1991 an old terrace cottage and it was pointed out on the survey that the firewall needed building up. So i'm really surprised in the same year you didn't get the same advice.

I got quotes from general builders and i'm sure i paid about £150/200 (i know it's a long while ago) but can't see why it would be more than £300/400 as it's less than a days work and materials really aren't that expensive.

Leighthal

Doozergirl wrote: »

£980 +VAT? :eek:

You only need a load of thermalite blocks and some mortar. DIY - it doesn't need to be tidy or pretty! Odd job man should do it for waaaaay under £300 including the materials.

Then I deffo need to get a couple more quotes!

Leighthal

mlz1413 wrote: »

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I bought my first house in 1991 an old terrace cottage and it was pointed out on the survey that the firewall needed building up. So i'm really surprised in the same year you didn't get the same advice.

I got quotes from general builders and i'm sure i paid about £150/200 (i know it's a long while ago) but can't see why it would be more than £300/400 as it's less than a days work and materials really aren't that expensive.

I did ask the salesman how my mortgage company (Yorkshire Building Society back in '91) would lend to me if they knew this was an issue(hence my question if this was post '91 legislation).He replied that the YBS surveyor might of overlooked the loft at the time.Which made me wonder if I had any case to complain of negligence.I remortgaged back in 2002 with the Halifax and again this was never brought up.It is only now in 2007 that it has become an issue.