New Build: Placement of meter boxes - Help

Antony09

Really hoping I can get some advice from anyone with knowledge about property building on here.

I've reserved a new build property, the contracts of which are due to exchange early next week (I have currently put them on hold).

I sold my current property on the back of the purchase of the new one.

On the site where my property is being built, they don't have a show home for the type of property I am buying so I drove down to Stafford to see it, was happy, and was happy with the images in the brochure.

On Monday of this week I walked past the building site, the bricks are around 5 ft high at the minute with the frame work for the front door downstairs and window only just been put in. I noticed two gaps in the brick work, side by side, at the front of the property. I contacted the building company via e-mail to query if it was meter boxes and why they were going at the front of the house.

On the brochure for the site, all of the types houses they are building have shown on the digital images where the meter boxes are, apart from this one I am buying, this left me to presume the meter boxes were side with the driveway at the back of the property (garden is to the right).

I was contacted by the sales woman on Tuesday to inform me yes they were spaces for meter boxes and had been put in the wrong place, and the spaces would be bricked over. I asked her to tell me where they were going to be placed, she couldn't tell me but assured she would get back to me that day. Surprisingly, she didn't.

The exchange on the current property I own completed yesterday.

I walked past the build yesterday evening to find now they've put two large meter box sized gaps directly next to the front door at either side (approx one foot and around four foot high - higher than the previous two) I was completely gutted at what I had seen, this is the only type of property on the whole site with them at either side of the front door. They are literally staring at you in the face. As you probably know, they aren't appealing to the eye and look awful.

Now I'm paying £230,000 for this house and I am absolutely gutted about it, I've made representations to the building company who tell me "they cannot be moved and are placed by the electricity company".

Can anyone can tell me if this is true or not? Does anyone know if they can be moved? Is their placement stipulated by the electricity company? Every other property on the site has them either well away from the front door, to the corner of the front or along the side. I've never seen them on each side of the front door anywhere. It will just look awful.

Ive raised a complaint but would appreciate it if anyone has any knowledge of this, or something I can throw back at them when they come up with excuses.

CGI image of house :
https://ibb.co/25r8WkD

Showhome :
https://ibb.co/zrwsdW6

Where original gaps were when I emailed on Monday :
https://ibb.co/4SCjhFb

Where the new gap is, to the right of door will be the same as the left :
https://ibb.co/SRR6Fw7

Thanks for the help.

Antony

Slithery

I'm not quite sure what advice you want, either continue with the purchase or pull out.

All of the plans that you've seen so far will have been 'subject to change' anyway.

Antony09

Slithery wrote: »

I'm not quite sure what advice you want, either continue with the purchase or pull out.

All of the plans that you've seen so far will have been 'subject to change' anyway.

I think I've made it quite clear what advice I want. I'm not sure why you even bothered to reply?

need_an_answer

So whats the alternative....no gas or electric to the property..

The meter boxes need to be placed somewhere that's easily accessible..the front of your property sounds as if it fits the bill.

Perhaps they could be positioned at the side or round the back of your property but then you'd get all manner of meter readers walking round your garden trying to find them every quarter when they want to take a meter reading.

At the moment everything is very exposed simply because it hasn't been finished off its still in the early build stages so is bound to look out of place...once you've moved in and put a few pots around the front etc then you wont notice the things that need to be there.

Everything has a price to be modified...I'm sure that if you were to contact the utility companies to discuss resiting them then they could look at alternative placements....however that will come at a price that will need to be covered by you and my thoughts are its probably expensive to change their standard configurations...but its your choice.

JGB1955

A couple of bay trees should hide them....

davidmcn

Yes, meters can be moved, though it would be at the customer's expense.

Slinky

Meter readers trying to find the meters every quarter...........lol......... you will have your little joke!


I get a knock at the door maybe once a year to read the meters which are in our garage. Often they only do one of them, despite being dual fuel....

need_an_answer

Slinky wrote: »

Meter readers trying to find the meters every quarter...........lol......... you will have your little joke!


I get a knock at the door maybe once a year to read the meters which are in our garage. Often they only do one of them, despite being dual fuel....

Dependant on which company you are with it can be monthly....

If I don't supply a reading on the given date each month,then I get someone knocking on my door 2 days later.

Antony09

I've just edited my original post to show some photographs to see what I'm talking about...

need_an_answer

Antony09 wrote: »

I've just edited my original post to show some photographs to see what I'm talking about...

You've done a good job of hiding the photos...I cant see them....

kerri_gt

need_an_answer wrote: »

You've done a good job of hiding the photos...I cant see them....

They're there now - took a few mins to update - I thought the same....