I've just paid for a new roof that I didn't actually need. Advice sought.

Crabclawhands

Hello everyone,

I've found the advice on the forums here very useful after years of lurking - I could do with some specific help though!

We moved into a house three years ago, where the previous owners decided not to tell us the roof on a small extension (with skylight) had serious leaks. We've tried a range of options to deal with this, nothing has worked including in the last few weeks a completely new roof. Several builders and roofers had said that the tiles were incorrect for the pitch of the roof, so they've all come off and have been replaced with lower profile ones. It still leaks. This likely means the issue is with the skylight installation, as that's the one thing that's been left alone.

Anyway, long and short of it, we've paid nearly two grand, under advice for a roof that we didn't need, as it's made zero difference. Is there any possible option for ever seeing some of that money again through insurance or any other suggestions you might have? Myself and Mrs Crabclawhands are not best pleased.

Thanks!

Furts

There are two ways to pursue this. The first is the legal route to seek redress from the builders. The second route is to be brutally honest with yourself and say " Mr and Mrs Crabclawhands have been complete fools and may never see the money back". I say this because where was your architect, or your Chartered Building Surveyor or your Clerk Of Works before going down this route?


How do you know if the roof ever complied with Buildings Regulations or good practice to start with?


But if you follow the legal route you will need assistance from a professional, such as those I mention, which will cost you. So why did you not incur this cost before engaging the builders? Had you done so your problems would not have arisen. Equally, you have not saved any money by deleting this stage as I am sure you can now see.

teneighty

It depends what was requested and what was agreed.

What is the pitch of the roof?
What were the original tiles and what are the new tiles?
What is the rooflight and flashing kit?

Sometimes these defects/leaks are not obvious and remedial work can just be a matter of trial and error so it could be tricky.

Have you spoken to the roofer to discuss the continued leak? It might be quite a simple fix to repair/modify/replace the flashing kit for the rooflight.