Should I buy a flat which has cladding?

Ash_29

I am a first time buyer and I have started contemplating backing out of a purchase due to cladding fear. 

I'm looking to buy a flat in a high rise which is covered with cladding. The building has the EWS1 certification with a "B1" rating, which is defined as "Combustible materials present but risk is sufficiently low and no remedial work is required". 

My concerns are as follows:
- With EWS1 form being the first step towards improving fire safety in buildings, a new style of test could be released in future which could result in cladding being rated as unsafe. 
- EWS1 form only lasts 5 years and needs to be renewed upon expiry. If the cladding becomes damaged / deteriorates overtime, this could possibly cause issues?

Does anyone have any advice / has anyone been through a similar situation? 

Thank you in advance.

Stubod

..if in doubt, back out....unless it is priced accordingly and you feel you really want it and are prepared to take the risk?!

davidmcn

Even before Grenfell, there were probably enough reasons not to buy a flat in a high rise - they've always had a risk of expensive works needing done at some point (as well as other reasons for being avoided by buyers and mortgage lenders).

Apart from cladding issues, I would be wary about other improvements to fire safety which might be required in the future - retrofitting/upgrading sprinklers, alarm systems, fire doors etc - none of which is likely to be cheap.

Ash_29

@davidmcn
Thanks. The solicitor did recently tell me that there are major works planned in next 2 years. I believe there are multiple contracts going out, one of which is fitting and maintenance of fire alarms throughout the building. 

I do understand your point but I can't afford a house at the moment so the next best alternative is a flat.

Do you think the concern is more that the flat is in a high-rise or the cladding?

annetheman

Ash_29 said:

I am a first time buyer and I have started contemplating backing out of a purchase due to cladding fear. 

I'm looking to buy a flat in a high rise which is covered with cladding. The building has the EWS1 certification with a "B1" rating, which is defined as "Combustible materials present but risk is sufficiently low and no remedial work is required". 

My concerns are as follows:
- With EWS1 form being the first step towards improving fire safety in buildings, a new style of test could be released in future which could result in cladding being rated as unsafe. 
- EWS1 form only lasts 5 years and needs to be renewed upon expiry. If the cladding becomes damaged / deteriorates overtime, this could possibly cause issues?

Does anyone have any advice / has anyone been through a similar situation? 

Thank you in advance.

I would be very wary if it is over 18m. I do not think the requirement for EWS1 will go away for 18m+ but things are likely to be streamlined below 18m as the regulatory (law) requirements are different for buildings over 18m; the govt doesn't really take a risk-based view of it all, they just have that as a cut off and I imagine that should they eventually take action to sort out the EWS1 mess, they are likely to focus any regulatory amendments on buildings over this height.

That being said, I am buying a B1 rated <18m flat and have scrutinised the accompanying report with the EWS1 before I bothered continuing with the purchase (been going on since March). Turns out that the 100% brick cladding (almost all modern residential buildings have cladding, by "no cladding" people usually mean 100% brick cladding or non-flammable) is compliant, compartmentation is compliant and insulation is of non-combustible  -- the B1 is due to timber composite material floor boards on the balconies.

Having looked at the industry costs for this per flat, I decided that *should* the goalposts change, I can live with the £2-4,500 fix, rather than the many tens of thousands to fix e.g. insulation or other.

So I'd advise you scrutinise the actual report before you decide if you're willing to take the risk on a B1 building because that is what it is - a risk in that the goalposts could suddenly change, as they did in Jan 2020.

And your specific questions:
- With EWS1 form being the first step towards improving fire safety in buildings, a new style of test could be released in future which could result in cladding being rated as unsafe. 
Exactly why you need to see the actual report and scrutinise. Research the types of materials found, research the companies, everything. Read read read and if you don't like something, be very prepared to walk away.
- EWS1 form only lasts 5 years and needs to be renewed upon expiry. If the cladding becomes damaged / deteriorates overtime, this could possibly cause issues?
Not sure about this; this is down to the management company in situ and how proactive they are. If they perform checks regularly, not just every 5 years, or at the very least respond to concerns about damage to the external walls, it should still be compliant in 5 years, should the goalposts not have changed again on what constitutes a compliant external wall system.
Best bet is to ask the seller/agent how quickly they respond to repair requests/maintenance requests, that should be a clue but with such a huge job like the external wall, it might not mean anything. Luck of the draw!

I honestly feel like this level of risk is similar with any type of building - e.g. a house could require a new roof upon discovery of asbestos or the entire central heating system could require replacement due to a gas explosion etc. The big big difference is that due to leasehold law, your level of control is zero in a building with a non compliant external wall system. So I don't see it as any more risky, but rather a different type of risk, a more unfair one because you're liable for parts of a building you will never own...

SHORT ANSWER - I too am buying a B1, classified due to timber floorboards on balconies. If it were for any other reason, I wouldn't proceed. Check the full report if you can, find out about the management company's response times to repair requests and save for repairs from day one. All purchases are risky but being a leaseholder you have less control and that is the major issue IMO, not really the cladding itself!

NameUnavailable

Ash_29 said:

@davidmcn
Thanks. The solicitor did recently tell me that there are major works planned in next 2 years. I believe there are multiple contracts going out, one of which is fitting and maintenance of fire alarms throughout the building. 

I do understand your point but I can't afford a house at the moment so the next best alternative is a flat.

Do you think the concern is more that the flat is in a high-rise or the cladding?

Do you know how much your share of these major works will be? For example, are you going to be in a position to pay say a £20K bill on demand? Could be less, could be more, but you will get a demand and will be expected to pay up, usually within 30 days.

Ash_29

@annetheman
Thank you!
I haven't been sent the report yet, I was only sent the paper which had B1 ticked. I will request the report right away.

The building is over 18m (12 floors) and it has some sort of metal cladding, they haven't yet sent me exactly what it's made of. Also it has timber flooring on balconies too. I was informed that one of the balconies actually caught fire last year due to lit cigarette being left unattended on the balcony...

There are two different types of cavity barriers fitted behind the cladding. The vertical cavity fire barriers are manufactured by Rockwool. The horizontal cavity fire barriers are products manufactured by Envirograf. I believe the one's by Rockwool are the Rainscreen duo slabs ones which are listed on their website.

Have you thought about getting an indemnity insurance policy? 

Ash_29

NameUnavailable said:

Ash_29 said:

@davidmcn
Thanks. The solicitor did recently tell me that there are major works planned in next 2 years. I believe there are multiple contracts going out, one of which is fitting and maintenance of fire alarms throughout the building. 

I do understand your point but I can't afford a house at the moment so the next best alternative is a flat.

Do you think the concern is more that the flat is in a high-rise or the cladding?

Do you know how much your share of these major works will be? For example, are you going to be in a position to pay say a £20K bill on demand? Could be less, could be more, but you will get a demand and will be expected to pay up, usually within 30 days.

No I definitely won't have £20K to pay. Is there anyway I can protect myself against this? Maybe Indemnity insurance? 

AdrianC

Ash_29 said:

My concerns are as follows:
- With EWS1 form being the first step towards improving fire safety in buildings, a new style of test could be released in future which could result in cladding being rated as unsafe. 
- EWS1 form only lasts 5 years and needs to be renewed upon expiry. If the cladding becomes damaged / deteriorates overtime, this could possibly cause issues?

Yes, and yes.

As for turning "could" into "will"...?


One thing's for sure - this is currently a very hot topic, with the EWS1 situation at the front of lender's minds, and a heck of a lot of time having recently gone into cladding investigation. In five years time, it's as likely to be yesterday's chip-wrapping as it is to have been tightened further. Unless there's another Grenfell.

davidmcn

Ash_29 said:

NameUnavailable said:

Ash_29 said:

@davidmcn
Thanks. The solicitor did recently tell me that there are major works planned in next 2 years. I believe there are multiple contracts going out, one of which is fitting and maintenance of fire alarms throughout the building. 

I do understand your point but I can't afford a house at the moment so the next best alternative is a flat.

Do you think the concern is more that the flat is in a high-rise or the cladding?

Do you know how much your share of these major works will be? For example, are you going to be in a position to pay say a £20K bill on demand? Could be less, could be more, but you will get a demand and will be expected to pay up, usually within 30 days.

No I definitely won't have £20K to pay. Is there anyway I can protect myself against this? Maybe Indemnity insurance? 

You can't get insurance against stuff which is definitely going to happen.

The only way you can protect yourself is by buying at a cheap enough price that you'll have enough put by for all the future bills. 

GDB2222

Ash_29 said:

@davidmcn
Thanks. The solicitor did recently tell me that there are major works planned in next 2 years. I believe there are multiple contracts going out, one of which is fitting and maintenance of fire alarms throughout the building. 

I do understand your point but I can't afford a house at the moment so the next best alternative is a flat.

Do you think the concern is more that the flat is in a high-rise or the cladding?

The  amount of work required could continue to spiral, so that you are never able to increase your equity and are stuck in the flat for a very long time. So, buy it if you have to have somewhere to live, but don’t expect it to be a foot on the property ladder.