Buying a house without surveyor - what right do you have in case of the problems?

lincroft1710

You get more consumer rights with a new £10 toaster than a  £100,000 or even £1,000,000 house unless it's a new build.


The Latin phrase when buying a house is CAVEAT EMPTOR which means BUYER BEWARE. Except in Scotland where there is about 5 days to seek redress on certain faults, a house buyer is responsible for the problems associated or inherited with the house they buy immediately upon completion. Only if a vendor was untruthful in their answers on the TA6 would the buyer have grounds to sue. Even then, having grounds does not guarantee a successful outcome.


As others have said it is worth checking your buildings insurance policy very carefully, but it is doubtful you would be covered for the damage caused.

eddddy

lincroft1710 said:

You get more consumer rights with a £10 toaster than a £100,000 or even £1,000,000 house.

Well....

If it's a new build house - so you're buying it from the people who built it (or made it) - you typically get a 2 year full warranty, and a 10 year warranty against major problems. That's better than most toaster warranties.

If it's second-hand house from a private individual, you don't generally get any kind of warranty (same as with a second-hand toaster bought from a private-individual).

theartfullodger

Filq said:

Buying a house without surveyor - what right do you have in case of the problems?

The right to question one's own good sense:

canaldumidi

In most cases, previous posters are correct.

However edddy correctly ponts out that New Builds are different.

When was the house built and when you bought it did you obtain details of a warranty eg the National House-Building Council (NHBC), Local Authority Building Control Warranty (LABC) and Premier Guarantee.

lincroft1710

canaldumidi said:

When was the house built and when you bought it did you obtain details of a warranty eg the National House-Building Council (NHBC), Local Authority Building Control Warranty (LABC) and Premier Guarantee.

The bathroom alterations were carried out 3 yrs ago by the seller, so none of the above apply.

canaldumidi

lincroft1710 said:

canaldumidi said:

When was the house built and when you bought it did you obtain details of a warranty eg the National House-Building Council (NHBC), Local Authority Building Control Warranty (LABC) and Premier Guarantee.

The bathroom alterations were carried out 3 yrs ago by the seller, so none of the above apply.

Then as others have said: your house, your maintenance/repair issue.

74jax

Filq said:

user1977 said:

Your house, your problem.

Do you mean by that that only when buying from business I am covered by guarantee for the product?

Pretty much.  If Person A buys something, then Person B can't claim.  There is no contract with Person B.

Sometimes when you buy a house if warrantees are mentioned you can have your solicitor transfer over to you, but you wills know about this at point of sale. 

AdrianC

lincroft1710 said:

You get more consumer rights with a new £10 toaster than a  £100,000 or even £1,000,000 house unless it's a new build.

You get exactly the same consumer rights with a £10 used toaster bought from an individual as a £1m used house bought from an individual...

pinkshoes

Filq said:

Hello,

I've bought the house this year without surveyor.I have found recently that bathroom wet floor made 3 years ago by previous owner is leaking and wooden space between bathroom on the first floor and dinning room below is all damp and molded. The defect was hidden and I noticed it only when I took down ceiling in order to install wiring for new lamps. 

Who's responsibility it is to cover costs of the repair? My, estate agency, seller or builder who made the bathroom?

Thanks,
Filip 

Are you saying that the seller knew about the leaking floor and has deliberately covered it up? Is there evidence that the damp has been covered up? 

How did you discover the damp between the floorboards and ceiling? If there was mould there, then it sounds like it was a very slow leak over the 3 years so the previous owner is unlikely to have known.

We had a damp smell in our kitchen and assumed it was because of our dogs. When we lifted the floorboards to put cabling through for an induction hob, we found it was REALLY damp under the house due to the mains water pipe leaking, albeit a small amount. The previous owner would not have known about this, and as they were old and had the heating on all the time they wouldn't have noticed any damp smell. 

We didn't have a survey so just found and fixed the leak ourselves, and ran a dehumidifier for a few days to dry out underneath the house. 

You only get a guarantee with a NEW house. As this is a second hand one then it's up to you to inspect before purchasing. 

sheramber

pinkshoes said:

How did you discover the damp between the floorboards and ceiling? If there was mould there, then it sounds like it was a very slow leak over the 3 years so the previous owner is unlikely to have known.

The defect was hidden and I noticed it only when I took down ceiling in order to install wiring for new lamps.