Is my builder liable?

Rosa_Klebb

We have been in our new build house, built by a small developer/builder for 5 years now and we have had the render fall of the entire side of our house, compromising the waterproof envelope of the house.  It has also previously done so on 3 of the other properties on the development which the builder has helped the owners to repair.  

So clearly there is a problem with the quality of the render and/or the way it was applied.  But the builder is refusing to help us with our repairs, unless we pay him in full for the repair, saying it is outside of the the initial two-year liability period, and our structural warranty company does not want to know (render is excluded from the structural warranty apparently).  We have had a quote from a local builder (not the house builder) and the estimated cost to repair, since scaffold is needed, is approx £5-7k.  We await a quote from the original housebuilder.

So what is the best next move?  We urgently need to make repairs to avoid further damage and cannot wait until a court or other dispute resolution, or appeal to the insurers to slowly grind through the process.

It is our opinion, as it was of a structural surveyor who visited, that poor workmanship is to blame for the damage.  Should we threaten our builder with court unless resolved?  Are they likely to be liable for this?

user1977

No and no, respectively. No liability beyond whatever warranties you got. Did you have the property surveyed before you bought? 

grumpy_codger

user1977 said:

No and no, respectively. No liability beyond whatever warranties you got.

Is it for building work only? I'm asking because for other goods and services there is Consumer Rights Act that doesn't depend on any warranties.

user1977

grumpy_codger said:

user1977 said:

No and no, respectively. No liability beyond whatever warranties you got.

Is it for building work only? I'm asking because for other goods and services there is Consumer Rights Act that doesn't depend on any warranties.

They haven’t commissioned building work, they’ve bought a house. Normal consumer rights aren’t implied into the contract (on the basis you’ve got legal representation and can negotiate the terms).

silvercar

did it did it have a 10 year NHBC warranty or equivalent?

eddddy

silvercar said:

did it did it have a 10 year NHBC warranty or equivalent?

In their original post, the OP seems to be suggesting that they have a 10 year warranty, but they are now in the "year 3 to year 10"  section. So the defect in the render isn't covered.

(But it would have been covered in the first 2 years.)


Obviously, this suggestion is no use to the OP - but for others, it might be useful to have a snagging survey just before the 2 year period is up. To see if there are any emerging problems.

In this case, a snagging survey might have spotted the render defect - especially as 3 other houses in the development had already needed repairs to render defects within those first 2 years. 

Rosa_Klebb

user1977 said:

No and no, respectively. No liability beyond whatever warranties you got. Did you have the property surveyed before you bought? 

It says on the Home Owners alliance website that, in relation to what new build warranties cover, that:

"During the structural insurance period years 3-10, the builder is only responsible for major problems with the structure of the house. This includes foundations, the external render, roofs, ceilings, chimneys and load-bearing parts of the floors".

Does this not apply?

Also regarding litigation, primary limitation periods are: Claims for breach of contract: 6 years from the date the contract was broken.

It is in our contract of sale that "the seller will construct the property in a good and workmanlike manner".  We have written proof from a structural surveyor who inspected the damage that this was not the case, so potentially we have a case here?

Does this apply whether we have a new build warranty or not?

TroubledTarts

Looking around and searching it appears render won't be covered from years 3-10 under NHBC unless it's linked to a structural issue.

user1977

“Good and workmanlike manner” might help, but we’d need to see the whole contract. Was there a two year deadline?

Also, does the seller still exist and have assets? Often it’s a separate company for each development, so if Bloggs Builders (Meadow View) Limited has sold all the properties and emptied their bank account, there’s little point suing them.

Rosa_Klebb

user1977 said:

“Good and workmanlike manner” might help, but we’d need to see the whole contract. Was there a two year deadline?

Also, does the seller still exist and have assets? Often it’s a separate company for each development, so if Bloggs Builders (Meadow View) Limited has sold all the properties and emptied their bank account, there’s little point suing them.

Thanks, no mention of anything regarding a 2 year deadline in the contract.  Regarding the warranty, it just says that "The Seller shall provide to the Buyer with the AHCI 10 year Structural Defects Warranty for New Homes for the Property".  The warranty covers 1: Defects insurance for a period of up to 24 months after completion, and 2: Structural insurance after 24 months have elapsed from completion.

The builder is still trading (same company number) and has assets, and we are aware of where many of these assets currently are, on another development site they are working on.

Rosa_Klebb

TroubledTarts said:

Looking around and searching it appears render won't be covered from years 3-10 under NHBC unless it's linked to a structural issue.

No, our insurance have said that render or wall finishes are not covered by the policy, hence we need to see if the builder can resolve.  We have been informed that render of this type (K-Rend) should normally last in excess of 25 years.  Ours has completely failed and detached itself entirely from the structure of the house at 5 years.