Small claims against surveyor for non notifcation of GBR on septic tank

ESM_newbie58

Hi, sorry if this has been posted before - I can't find anything on a search.

My surveyor did not inform me of the General binding rules (2015) re septic tank and the need to upgrade to sewage treatment plant if they discharge to a water course. Even if they could succesfully argue they are not responsible for saying if I met the rules I think they have a duty of care to at least tell me that the rules exist (they advised a "condition report" but specialists at the time were not mentioning GBR either - and even if the conditon was perfect the tank would still need to be upgraded so the advice was incompetent IMO!)

Has anyone taken a small claims court action against their surveyor/solicitor and hopefully had a successful outcome?

Please help me Obi-one!

davilown

What did the survey say about the septic tank?

Doozergirl

They told you to consult a specialist?  

There's an idea people have that surveys are supposed to be categorical.  They're not.  Surveyors are like GPs, if there is a question mark over something, they'll refer you to a specialist. 

The recommended condition report was more likely to tell you about the rules and non-compliance.   

davidmcn

I would have thought this more of a solicitor point than for the surveyors to explain to you. So, what (if anything) did your solicitor advise?

greatcrested

Surveyors are not drainage or sewerage experts. They know about buildings.

As others have advised, it would helpif you quote exatly what the surveyor's report said regarding the septic tank, but I'd be amazed if it were not along the lines of 'consult a specialist' just as they do regarding gas and electrics.

Your solicitor might have advised you (assuming you brought to his attention that there was no mains drainage), though my experience is that conveyancers other than local rural ones, also have limited experience/knowledge of this area given that it is not run-of-the-mill.

Did you not arrange an inspection similar to this:

https://wes.uk.net/off-mains-drainage-home-buyer-surveys/

Small claims? As said, quote the report. But ............

Rankin21

When did you buy the house? As you mention I your original post at the time it the experts were not mentioning it? The deadline for tanks to be changed was 1st of jan 2020 so it’s been over a year now.

In all honesty  if they’ve advised you see a specialist condition report id say that would cover their backs. As part of those surveys they tell you the condition of the tank/soak aways and if it meets the current legislation as other things could also affect this eg. if it’s leaking or whatever. 

We’re currently in the process of buying a house with a tank and our solicitor is doing a really good job at ensuring it meets all the guidelines etc. So I am surprised it’s not been picked up at that stage of your purchase. 

DairyQueen

This is the solicitor's job. Our surveyor didn't mention the new legislation either but our solicitor did, and he made further enquiries with the vendor. We are fortunate that our private system complies.

Davesnave

It's the solicitor's job to find out about the legal aspects of drainage and no surveyor is likely to attempt an assessment of a septic tank system any more than they'd produce a substitute for an EICR.

Our solicitor highlighted that we were forever tied to the property next door for drainage, declared that an unacceptable  situation for both houses and achieved a variation to both title documents, freeing us. That subsequently proved extremely fortuitous, but she was used to country property and knew what to look for. We certainly didn't and the neighbour also had no idea how the offending clause might have negatively affected her property.

greatcrested

Davesnave said:

...

Our solicitor highlighted that we were forever tied to the property next door for drainage, declared that an unacceptable  situation for both houses and achieved a variation to both title documents, freeing us. That subsequently proved extremely fortuitous,....We certainly didn't and the neighbour also had no idea how the offending clause might have negatively affected her property.

out of interest, how were you 'tied', what was 'unacceptable' about it, and how did varying the Titles untie you physically?

ESM_newbie58

The surveyor wrote :-   

"The property has a private drainage system shared with the neighbouring property. Thedrainage flows to a septic tank situated in the neighbours garden. This is merely a means ofstorage that needs regular emptying and further enquiries are necessary to establish itscapacity and costs of emptying. Due to the nature of this particular type of drainage system,it is not possible to make any specific comments as to its overall condition, efficiency orcapacity. The drainage system should be checked by a competent specialist contractor"

I sent the report to the solicitors but tthey just said in an email that it is the sellers responsibility to follow up on anything in the report. (this was not specifically said about the drainage but about all the recommendations made).

If I decide on small claims my arguement would not be that the surveyor should have told me that id did or did not meet the GBR, but that the GBR existed and that any report I got from a competent specialist should make specific reference to meeting the GBR or not.

I find it inconceviable that if the surveyor knew about the GBR - which was a new thing back when the report was done in April 2015, that they did not say anywhere in the report that there was this new requirement and that we should check our compliance with it. They mentioned electrical, asbestos, building and oil tank regulations but not sewage?

davidmcn

No general disclaimer on their report about statutory compliance etc? After all, I wouldn't expect surveyors to comment on compliance with planning or building regulations (or even look at relevant paperwork), and not convinced that the absence of a specific disclaimer implies they're confirming everything is compliant.

Did your solicitors give you a report on title or other sort of general overview on their due diligence?