Definition of "Making Good"?

Temrael

We are sold subject to contract and probably will be moving sometime in September (touch wood). :rolleyes:

Long ago we completed the fixtures and fittings forms saying what we were including in the sale, what was not included but we'd consider selling seperately and what we were definetly taking with us.

The fixtures and fittings form (from the Law Society) makes it plain that where any fittings are removed that the areas affected must be "made good".

I have a Home Cinema which my buyer may or may not buy off me, if he doesn't though I wanted to get a clear idea of what is expected of me. What in practice does "making good mean"?

Most of it is just screw holes in the walls and ceiling but there are a couple of inch or two wide holes where cables used to dangle/protrude.

Does "making good" mean that these have to be filled and camoflaged to the point that they are tricky to see unless you knew they are there, or should the "making good" be to such a standard that you couldn't tell there'd ever been anything there even looking right at them?

Filling holes and trying to mask stuff with a rough approximation of paint is one thing by repainting/wallpapering seems a bit extreme.

Any pointers?

ben500

"making good" I'm afraid would generally be interpreted as to fully conceal any previous defect, in the case of your conduit or large hole then it would be expected to be undetectable to the naked eye or you may be adjudged to breach this term by the buyer and they may seek to recover redecoration cost from the sale price, bearing in mind if someone is purchasing the house they are unlikely to want to carry out this work themselves and even less likely to be concerned as to the price of that work in the knowledge they themselves are not footing the bill, if the damage is all to one wall a simple solution would be to patch repair the plaster and then paper the wall with a contrasting colour paper to the three remaining walls turning it into a "feature wall" so long as the job is done to a professional standard then colour cannot be an issue to the purchaser as they the decor itself is not considered to be part of the vending factor, they can always redecorate any room they do not approve of colour schemes once in the property and this would not be considered to be a transferrable expense, I would avoid trying to repaint in matching colour to the rest of the room as the new paint will obviously have a different hue to the existing and this would not satisfy the "make good" request.

HTH

Try to picture it this way if you had an insurance claim "a toddler crashes into wall in walker and makes hole" what standard would you expect of the builders employed by the insurance company to "make good" would you expect, you wouldn't for example be too happy if they turned up filled the hole and painted a four or five inch square to conceal the work and leaving your wall looking like the entrance to some secret passage!

Doozergirl

I'd beg to differ. To me, "making good" means, in your words, 'that these have to be filled and camoflaged to the point that they are tricky to see unless you knew they are there'.

If it were a brand new build I were buying I would expect perfection but your house is lived in and therefore will look lived in. Your house is 'sold as seen' so wear and tear is expected.

The 'done thing' when people sell their home is to fill in and touch up. It's polite and means that redecorating does not have to be the first priority for the new owners. Seems silly to redecorate an entire wall - they might not even like it!

ben500

The term "making good" is an industry term meaning to restore to its previous condition, leaving unsightly blotches in the paintwork would seldom be acceptable, whilst I agree a property is essentially sold as seen in this case a specific proviso has been set that in the event this equipment is removed that the area will be restored, I wouldn't suggest that all blemishes were dealt with just the specific requirements of this sale be fulfilled for fear of a clawback from the sale price.

Temrael

Thanks for the replies guys, I've been away on holiday.

Looking again at the wording on the Fixtures and Fittings Form, what it actually says is...

"If you are removing any fixtures or fittings you must make good any damage caused".

Does that in fact mean that if, for example, I remove a speaker from a wall and leave a screw hole, that in theory I need do nothing to "make good". And that it's only if in removing the speaker and the screw that I rip a chunk of plaster off that I need to make good the damage caused in the removal of the fixture/fitting.

As I say in practice I will be making an effort to disguise any screw holes like that so they are less noticeable, but the idea of redecorating to remove every minor imperfection seems a bit extreme? :think:

Bossyboots

Temrael wrote:

Thanks for the replies guys, I've been away on holiday.

Looking again at the wording on the Fixtures and Fittings Form, what it actually says is...

"If you are removing any fixtures or fittings you must make good any damage caused".

Does that in fact mean that if, for example, I remove a speaker from a wall and leave a screw hole, that in theory I need do nothing to "make good". And that it's only if in removing the speaker and the screw that I rip a chunk of plaster off that I need to make good the damage caused in the removal of the fixture/fitting.

As I say in practice I will be making an effort to disguise any screw holes like that so they are less noticeable, but the idea of redecorating to remove every minor imperfection seems a bit extreme? :think:

This is how I would interpret it. You do not need to leave the place immaculate but as you have surmised, any damage you cause removing things does have to be repaired.