Garden room seems to be taking forever.

Section62

priuklondon said:

Would it make sense for an independent surveyor to come and check the build over?Not too dissimilar to what a surveyor would do if you are buying a new house.  If the survey identifies any significant problems then its up to the new builder to confirm whether he is able to address and complete the build and/or use legal remedy to have the original builder rectify.  If the survey does not find any obvious problems then at least there will some comfort that the structure will not collapse on me one day. 

It depends. Are you actually concerned there could be significant structural issues with the build?  If the builder had finished the job to your satisfaction, would you have contemplated getting a surveyor in to check the structure before using it?  Did you get building control involved in the project?

If the answer to those questions is 'no', then do you think you still need a surveyor to give you that comfort?

On the other hand, someone like an independent snagger could give you a third-party report on problems with detailing and the finish quality of the work so far. A surveyor could do the same, provided there was a clear understanding about the purpose of the report and the level of detail needed.

But there is also the question of cost.  Paying for professional inspection and reporting will add to the bill, and there is no guarantee you will be able to recover those costs, nor get the builder to pay you back any money.

As tough as it can be, there are times where you have to stop throwing good money after bad and swallow a loss.  Whether or not that applies in this case is essentially a personal judgement that only you can make.  None of us here know enough about the builder or the project to come anywhere near close to being able to predict the outcome if you decided to take legal action. And if the builder goes bankrupt the chances are you will get nothing back.

priuklondon

As the builder has said he won't complete the remaining work and lets say I decide I don't do anything and leave it at that, will this come back to bite me in the future? Will he have any legal recourse or if the building falls apart in few years, will I be able to chase after him for poor quality under limitation period for simple contract claims or defective workmanship?

Rosa_Damascena

priuklondon said:

As the builder has said he won't complete the remaining work and lets say I decide I don't do anything and leave it at that, will this come back to bite me in the future? Will he have any legal recourse or if the building falls apart in few years, will I be able to chase after him for poor quality under limitation period for simple contract claims or defective workmanship?

If he has been paid in full and the work remains outstanding, you could always take it down the small claims route. Its funny how a letter of intent can concentrate the mind.