Problems after completion

Ivy82

eddddy wrote: »

With property transactions, all contractual terms and conditions must appear within the single written contract.

Anything the vendor says, writes, emails, etc does not form part of the contract.

If you had asked the question as a pre-contract enquiry (via solicitors), and the seller had given a misleading reply - that reply would have formed part of the contract. So you might have a basis for claiming from the seller.



You mention that the property is an apartment.

So I guess you are claiming on the Freeholder's block buildings insurance policy for damage to buildings caused by escape of water.

It sounds like the insurers are declining the claim on the basis that you knew of the water damage before you bought.

I'm no insurance expert, but I would say firstly that you did not know of the damage (it was not mentioned to you by the seller or the mortgage valuer), and in any case, ask which term in the policy allows them to decline the claim on that basis.

(But TBH, if they come back and see that the seller has done a botched repair, they will then decline the claim on the basis that the leak results from bad workmanship - so perhaps it's a waste of time anyway.)

I havent got any reply or update from solicitor its been over 2 weeks and I guess I wont get any.
Its leaseholder insurance that was only transferred, so we covered but they are saying the price negotiation should cover this.I have refuted as reduction in sale price is a normal part of buying a property and since we were not made aware of the leak, we should be covered under the scope. Awaiting their response

Ivy82

ashe wrote: »

The trouble with trusting a 'mortgage survey' is its literally a valuation. Is the property worth enough for the bank to lend money on, and a leaking shower even if they spotted that would probably not be much of a concern.

A homebuyers report is about £400 and when compared to the high cost of fixing issues is money well spent.

The first property i offered on about 13 years ago, was decorated in tip top condition with new everything. The homebuyers report I got through the mortgage company AFTER the valuation had been done as changed my mind about it, basically ripped it to shreds and said they had decorated over loads of problems like bad floorboards, damp, uneven floors, there was roof damage that had been repaired cleverly, the list was endless. they put a retention on the mortgage of about 40k so I walked away. But the bank was initially happy to lend based on the quick valuation that was done.

Buildings insurance is for things that happen right now, it does not cover you retrospectively for things that have happened already, otherwise no one would get a survey, they'd buy and then put a claim in. It is like taking out health insurance when you've got a bad heart and trying to claim if you have a heart attack - the issue was already there so you would not be covered. If something happens now thats new, then you are good to claim, but not on preexisting things that you just weren't made aware of or did not discover.

is it worth doing a survey now? to know any underlying issues at all?

winnjaz

My daughter and son-in-law just bought their first family home and so excited, worked so hard to get to where they are. On the first day in laws got there to start decorating there was a leak under the sink. I got a contact plumber to pop in and he got it working but said needs more work in the future soon. It lasted a few days and now flooding, so they are unable to use sink or washing machine and hard with a baby and toddler as well as own clothes etc. etc.
So I contacted an old friend who recommended his brother whos a plumber, he visited and said needs to order parts and will be back either next eve or early sunday morning and guess what didn't hear from him, they text a few times and no response until I contacted his mum who is a friend of mine. he then text my daughter and said can't do any days, basically not going to do it. Now just had another plumber visit and quoted £1k for each job?????
Now reading all these posts I feel so disheartened for my daughter and family as there was obviously issues with this before they bought it and as people have said, you are stuffed as a survey does not necessarily pick that up.
They had a natural reduction on the sale but that is not to cover issues that were not mentioned before they bought.
People really need to go round with a plumber , an electrician, anyone with a skill to pick up on shoddy work and hidden issues.

Cakeguts

winnjaz wrote: »

My daughter and son-in-law just bought their first family home and so excited, worked so hard to get to where they are. On the first day in laws got there to start decorating there was a leak under the sink. I got a contact plumber to pop in and he got it working but said needs more work in the future soon. It lasted a few days and now flooding, so they are unable to use sink or washing machine and hard with a baby and toddler as well as own clothes etc. etc.
So I contacted an old friend who recommended his brother whos a plumber, he visited and said needs to order parts and will be back either next eve or early sunday morning and guess what didn't hear from him, they text a few times and no response until I contacted his mum who is a friend of mine. he then text my daughter and said can't do any days, basically not going to do it. Now just had another plumber visit and quoted £1k for each job?????
Now reading all these posts I feel so disheartened for my daughter and family as there was obviously issues with this before they bought it and as people have said, you are stuffed as a survey does not necessarily pick that up.
They had a natural reduction on the sale but that is not to cover issues that were not mentioned before they bought.
People really need to go round with a plumber , an electrician, anyone with a skill to pick up on shoddy work and hidden issues.

What sort of survey did they have?

jimbog

What specific work needs doing?

lincroft1710

jimbog wrote: »

What specific work needs doing?

Exactly! Even with dishwasher and washing machine connections, there's not much work that would be expensive or need a lot of expensive parts.

winnjaz

they didn't get a full survey, think it was one that came with the mortgage?
I asked them about that but would a basic one include information about dodgy pipework?

winnjaz

I was quite shocked at the cost as they were.
The whole area under the sink looks like spaghetti junction, its a mess, too many valves and joints as well as pipes.
I have asked her if the guy that came out today gave a written description of works needed so not sure if she has that yet.

winnjaz

will try and add images shortly.

Cakeguts

winnjaz wrote: »

they didn't get a full survey, think it was one that came with the mortgage?
I asked them about that but would a basic one include information about dodgy pipework?

I don't know about the dodgy pipework being picked up on a survey but they would almost certainly have picked up if there had been a leak from the dodgy pipework before.


It is never a good idea to just get the survey that goes with the mortgage unless you are a builder or there is a builder in the family. Buying a house is the most expensive purchase that most people ever make so to cut corners on a survey is just plain silly. You need to know what repairs are coming up so that you can budget properly for them. If you can't afford a proper survey then actually buying a house is going to be too expensive for you because many repairs can cost a lot more than a survey.