Major House Works - How Long is Normal Guarantee Period?

abankerbutnotafatcat

Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing ok in these difficult times.
We're about to sign a large contract for building works. It includes a 2 storey extension that will comprise about 50% of the total footprint, removal of structural walls and moving the staircase.
We're intending to use the builder's own contract which includes a 5 year guarantee period. We appreciate the guarantee is only as good as the builders remain in business. As new builds come with 10 year guarantees and we're getting so much work done we were wondering whether a 10 year guarantee might be appropriate.
Any thoughts appreciated.
Thank you. BTW I'm no longer a banker. I left it to follow my dream :-)

bris

Nothing comes with any guarantee as standard. The 10 year guarantee you mention is probably NHBC  which most builders use. There are lots of loopholes in it though and it's actually a minefield trying to claim on it. 

Your guarantee is either the builders own or is purchased by them through a third party insurer. 
If it's not insurance backed then it's pretty much useless unless your builder is a major company. Having a long warranty isn't any good if the builder can just dissolve the company and open anew if there is a major claim is against them.

If you trust the builder though then like anything else the warrant period is negotiable, there are plenty of companies who provide 10 year warranties on new builds. I would however be very wary of any builders offering their own warranties whether it's 5 or 50 years.

shaun_from_Africa

Apart from having an insurance backed guarantee, one of the best ways to help protect yourself in the future is to see if you can pay some or all of the cost on a credit card or finance agreement that's linked directly to the building work.
Providing that the total cost isn't above £30k and you follow the rest of the requirements for S75, the credit company becomes equally liable with the builder for any breach of contract.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/section75-protect-your-purchases/

I know that a lot of builders won't take credit card payments but it's worth looking into.

missile

Claiming on any guarantee after 5 years would be very difficult / almost impossible. You would have to prove sub-standard workmanship.