Building Regs- arghhhh!!

Jojo6

We bought our house 5 years ago. When we bought it, it already had a conservatory. The conservatory doesn’t have a door dividing it from the house- it’s part of the house. The conservatory heating system is the system that we use to heat the whole house. When we bought the house, this didn’t seem to be an issue and we didn’t realise that it is! We have accepted an offer on our house and the buyers solicitors are questioning these two points and state that we may need building regs for it! Argh! Why is this an issue now but not five years ago? What can we do?! Help!!

anselld

It is beyond the timeframe for possible BC enforcement action. It is only a problem for the Solicitors but can probably be solved by them selling you a pointless indemnity policy.

G_M

Again and again and again.

This is the next mis-selling scandal in the making.

Local Authorities can only enforce Building Regulations in the 12 months from completion of the work, so the council is never going to make you or your buyer take down, replace or change your conservatory.

Prosecution (in very extreme cases only) is possible for up to 2 years from completion of the work.

https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200128/building_control/38/building_regulations/3

Yet again and again we hear of solicitors (often driven by mortgage lenders' insistance) selling pointless indemnity insurance policies.

baldelectrician

G_M wrote: »

Again and again and again.

This is the next mis-selling scandal in the making.

Local Authorities can only enforce Building Regulations in the 12 months from completion of the work, so the council is never going to make you or your buyer take down, replace or change your conservatory.

Prosecution (in very extreme cases only) is possible for up to 2 years from completion of the work.

https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200128/building_control/38/building_regulations/3

Yet again and again we hear of solicitors (often driven by mortgage lenders' insistance) selling pointless indemnity insurance policies.

Unless you live in Scotland

Up here if you have no building warrant approval they can and do insist you get some or put it back the way it was.

The time limits are different here- you are required to meet the building regualtions in force at the time they find out about the work- not when the work is done

In other words - do an conversion in 2005 and they find out about it in 2019 you need to meet the 2019 regulations (which are much more strict)


Link taken from local council website

22. IF WORK HAS BEEN CARRIED OUT TO MY PROPERTY AND I DO NOT
HAVE A BUILDING WARRANT, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Where work for which a warrant is required has started without a warrant, an application for a warrant may be made at any time before a completion certificate has been accepted for the building. This is a way of regularising the situation, but it does not remove the fact that an offence has been committed. Importantly, the standards that apply to a late application are those at the time of application, not when the works started, so changes may be required even to complete the work if it does not meet the relevant standards. Full drawings are required, as for a normal warrant application. If construction is well advanced, the Building Standards Service may request parts to be exposed so that adequate checks can be made, and a higher fee is charged to cover such circumstances. This process is not intended to be a penalty (which would arise from any action in relation to the offence) but is necessary to allow proper consideration of the work.

If however you are selling your property and have been asked to produce a completion certificate, you will have to submit one. The certificate may only be accepted if it confirms that the work complies with the standards as they apply at the time of the submission of the certificate. Such submissions must provide architectural plans and specification details equivalent to those for a warrant application so that Building Standards can adequately assess whether to accept the completion certificate. A fee will also be levied equivalent to a late application for a building warrant

Note: The former process of Letter of Comfort for this type of work has been superseded in lieu of the need for a Building Warrant or Late Completion Certificate

Davesnave

Jojo6 wrote: »

When we bought the house, this didn’t seem to be an issue and we didn’t realise that it is! We have accepted an offer on our house and the buyers solicitors are questioning these two points and state that we may need building regs for it! Argh! Why is this an issue now but not five years ago? What can we do?! Help!!

You won't get building regs for your conservatory, unless it's a very posh one indeed. Even super reflective double-glazed glass can't change the laws of physics entirely. If the conservatory is open to the house, it's like having a heat sink stuck on the side of the building, leaching energy whenever it's cold and dark outside. We love our conservatory, and we get net energy gains from it, but there are times when it needs to be shut off from the rest of the house.

It's an issue because your buyer's solicitors are more aware of the matter of non-conformity than yours were.Higher energy prices and climate change are more prominent in the media now than in previous times.

What can sometimes be done is a reinstatement of external grade doors/windows between the conservatory and the rest of the house, but that's not always possible where the 'join' is half way across a kitchen, or something like that.

The other route, in England and Wales is indemnity insurance, which will do nothing useful, especially in reducing energy bills.

Be glad there are still people out there who 'don't see an issue' and want to buy houses with this defect.

silvercar

Your solicitor should have sorted this when you bought. Are you sure your seller's didn't buy an indemnity policy?

Though round here the habit seems to be to build the conservatory with separating doors, get building regs sign off then immediately remove the doors and make the conservatory part of the kitchen. Generally with a breakfast bar or island right where the join should be.

babyblade41

I love my little conservatory, sat in it now..totally ally framed , not a draft or a leak and with a rad connected to house heating system.

My solicitor did pick it up but nothing more as it's been up for years ..we have a door across as when it's very cold it will leak heat but apart from that it's fine.

I expect a totally useless IP will sort it very quickly as everyone stated above ..

davidmcn

baldelectrician wrote: »

Unless you live in Scotland

Up here if you have no building warrant approval they can and do insist you get some or put it back the way it was. In other words - do an conversion in 2005 and they find out about it in 2019 you need to

In theory, maybe. But I've never heard of it in practice. As with other council services, they've got barely enough resources to do the minimum they have to. There are no more likely to be building control enforcement squads roaming around looking for your dodgy conservatories than anywhere else in the UK.

baldelectrician

Most of my work is inspection, testing and certification.

I reguarly come across people who have a house sale held up due to building standards issues.

So it does happen