Complaints after settle (Scotland)

s88

Hi, our sale and purchase was finalised seven days ago and moved on the day (thankfully). I've received an email today from my solicitor with some complaints that the new owner has. I'm happy to address some of these in a response to my solicitor as they can be misunderstandings on the purchasers part, but there are complaints relating to windows and a door - none of which were raised in the home report or the viewing (they only viewed once). There is also some slight staining and slight flaking of paint from a leak which has since been remedied, although not redecorated. We're talking about 30cm in length and 5mm in width, running under some coving.

My solicitor has basically copy & pasted the email from the purchasers solicitor stating the complaints and asking my proposals. I actually feel insulted that my solicitor has forwarded this on to me, espeically with the email suggesting I propose fixes - the house was fully cleaned and everything left in working order, yet they have mentioned some days after entry the bath drain was blocked and required unblocking!? I'm amazed the solicitor has even raised it as a complaint.

This has been a rotten process from beginning to end (it's not even ended yet!). I'll not go into specific details, but we have had awful, confusing and questionable interactions with our solicitors (yes plural - we have been passed around), the purchasers solicitors, surveyor and council. We have been lying in bed at night relieved that it's finally over only to receive this email, dragging everything back up. I am really not keen on any sort of good will gesture due to the torrid time we've had.

Where do I stand with this? I do realise the best place to go is my solicitor, but they seem to be terrible at providing legal advice and have suggested I speak to the new owners directly ... the owners who nearly caused a collapse of the entire chain if it were not for the BoM&D!

I am considering addressing two complaints and waving the rest off as issues not raised in the home report therefore not of importance.

davidmcn

The answers are in your missives, so if you hadn't read them before concluding the contract, do so now. Generally you would be unlikely to be warranting much more than the plumbing and electrics would be in working order on the date of entry. It would also be legitimate for the buyers to complain about defects which have arisen after the date of conclusion of missives (or in practice, after the last time they viewed the property). But as it sounds like they're complaining about things which would have been apparent on an initial viewing, it's probably safe enough for you to ignore them.

s88

Thank you for your response.

Will address some of these the best I can and will put down the rest as having no warranty & sold as seen. I'm unsure if the owners of the home have actually viewed the house, I don't think they have ( I'm referring to the legal owners here, not the current occupants). The current occupants offer was withdrawn due to the finance hurdle, to which then the BoM&D stepped in as purchasers (legal owners), resetting the whole process, with the plan to rent out the property to the original offer couple ( their children / current occupants ).

s88

I checked over my missives and can see no breach which would merit litigation as the house was left in the same condition upon viewing.

I will contact the new owner and tell them this.

theartfullodger

Suggest you refer them to the reply given in the case of Arkell v. Pressdram.

https://lettersofnote.com/2013/08/07/arkell-v-pressdram/

Brackenfield

s88 said:

I checked over my missives and can see no breach which would merit litigation as the house was left in the same condition upon viewing.

I will contact the new owner and tell them this.

I would go back via the solicitors personally, I wouldn't give the new owners personal contact details.

AdrianC

s88 said:

I checked over my missives and can see no breach which would merit litigation as the house was left in the same condition upon viewing.

Scotland is different to England and Wales, in that there is some scope for post-completion restitution, but not for trivialities like this, AIUI.

Don't blame your solicitors - they have merely passed the communication on, as you say. They have not answered it or made any comment on its validity. It is not their place to do so.

davidmcn

AdrianC said:

s88 said:

I checked over my missives and can see no breach which would merit litigation as the house was left in the same condition upon viewing.

Don't blame your solicitors - they have merely passed the communication on, as you say. They have not answered it or made any comment on its validity. It is not their place to do so.

I don't think the OP is blaming their solicitors, just frustrated that the solicitors are failing to offer any advice. Bit daft to lead someone through the process of concluding a contract, and then not explaining the basic implications when several clauses in it come into play.

Suggesting the OP contact the buyers directly is the sort of thing which could lead to their client deciding to pay something in settlement which they have no obligation to do. I would be tempted just to ignore the buyers rather than get embroiled in correspondence.

s88

Sorry, I've been writing in a bit of a fury. Yes, I'm frustrated at my own solicitor and how lax their approach is. They've been rubbish throughout the whole process of buying and selling and offered little legal advice. Perhaps it's just my method of working, but if the roles were reversed and I was the solicitor receiving the email, I would be instructing my client which complaints are legitimate and what needs to be done.

Two double glazing units on occasion have suffered condensation in-between the glass. Sellers(my) HR & lenders HR (to my knowledge) have not mentioned it. Now maybe it didn't happen on the particular days and I was lucky, but I may offer to replace these units. The third however is a non starter as I think they are claiming for the same, whereas this window only gets condensation sometimes while sleeping in the room with no windows open.

There is a slight issue with an external door catching part of an overhang when fully opened. Again, not brought up in HR and doesn't affect performance unless fully opened. Can offer to trim part of overhang to remedy issue.

Slight staining from leak I'll offer a Dulux sample  to fix, despite leaving the paint in the house.

Handle of a small hopper window apparently broken. Yes it has always been a bit wonky, but with careful operation it works fine. (Not brought up in HR).

Now, some may say it's unethical not to mention these issues in the advert, but in my opinion that's what viewings are for. The price is set, it's then down to the the viewer to find faults worthy of bargaining a better deal. The house is essentially sold as seen and it's the purchasers duty to pick up on anything. Who sells their house on the basis of listing every single negative point about the property? Our new property has a few squeeky doors, the bulb in the bathroom is incredibly dim and the kitchen tap wobbles slightly. Unless these are specifically mentioned in missives, they are purely superficial grievances.

Bare in mind this was one evening viewing with a verbal offer that night, which was accepted on the basis of secured finance, eventually costing me £300 in legal fees as the sale fell through because they lied, whereas I had another offer based on HR waiting. A reminder -  a relation stepped in on behalf of the failed finance couple and purchased on their behalf, effectively renting it out.

So yes, I'm pretty annoyed at it and really want to say no to everything. From what I gather in the missives, I am well within my right to do this as nothing has been breached and the house has been left in the same condition as viewing (out with the small stain) but another part of me is saying give them the absolute minimum to fix the issues and send them on their way. None of the complaints originated in the HR or viewing. I think the new owners/occupiers feel they have a right to a 'snag list' - the property is 60 years old and the windows 15-20!

I've had advice from friends and family which advocate either side (stonewalling Vs fixing) so it's difficult to come to a decision. Legally I must respond, it's just my approach which I'm not sure of. I don't even think the complaints would amount to over £400 in total - who determines what the costs are? There's a big difference between replacing a double glazing unit and replacing a whole window!

They also complained the bath got blocked a few nights after entry. There has never been any issue with drainage, so unless they are victim of an incredible coincidence then I'm of the opinion they are lying. I think they are chancing for new windows and bathroom suite.

davidmcn

The only thing there which might be relevant is the blocked bath, as (assuming the missives use the Scottish Standard Clauses) there's a warranty that plumbing/drainage and appliances will be in working order commensurate with age at the date of entry. Though if it wasn't blocked until a few days after then it sounds more like it was in working order on the date of entry.

Everything else is just normal minor maintenance points which any (reasonable) buyer would expect to take on when they buy something. Whether they were mentioned in the Home Report is neither here nor there.

Not sure why you think you're legally obliged to respond? You can ignore them if you want.

s88

Well the electric shower unit is located in the bathtub. My partner and I have showers every morning and there was never an issue, which is why I find this claim ridiculous. The obvious path around this would be to mention that it was the first time they had used the bathtub. Everything was left in full working order.

I absolutely agree with the 'minor maintenance points' and find these complaints incredibly trivial given the age of the property.

After some harsh probing of my solicitor, they told me I have a period of five working days as per missives to have my own tradesman inspect/repair any defect. After this, the new owner may carry out the repairs and chase me for payment