help! I exchange Friday

mandy · 20th February 2007, 20:00

As i have previously mentioned, i did your snagging check and sent them to the builder. I also phoned nhbc to check what they cover and they said 'defects'. Now not everything on your list is a defect, some I thinks must be just good practise, and I'm prepared to forgive a few crooked items. However there are 3 things that i think are important that he has rejected and said that if i want the things replaced i will have to pay and that the other minor things he thinks the discount of £3ooo will cover. The 3 thing are:1. scratches on 2 windows ( 1 french) that can be seen from 3m away. 2. outside door handle to said door tarnished ( he says natural weathering!!! it's new???)3. the white velux windows have a sort of black gully near the edge and you can see the screws fixing it on all the sides. surely they will rust in the bathroom if not elsewhere. He says they are fitted normally - presumably by the builders and not window fitters. What should I do? I pay a penalty if I don't exchange on time. solicitor is on hols till thurs,. all suggestions gratefully received.:dry:

martynh99 · 20th February 2007, 22:09

Scratches on windows should be replaced by the builder. We had 7 when we first moved in.

Tarnished handle, again if you're buying brand new, you expect brand new - I would say they should replace.

Velux - not sure, hard to tell without pictures. Our Velux windows are made by Keylite and have a recess with the screws in and a plastic cover over them

Tony · 20th February 2007, 22:57

Martyn's comments are spot on.

With regards to delaying completion this will only be possible if you have a significant number of defects. Normally the contract will explicitly state that you cannot delay because of minor snagging issues. If you do this without the agreement of the developer's solicitors you will be liable to pay daily interest charges, which can quickly add up.

They are able to delay completion as long as they like without penalty. It is hardly fair, an interesting read

Tony wrote:

Quote:

From OFT Web site

Quote:

The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 (UTCCRs) superseded the UTCCRs 1994, and apply to standard contract terms used with consumers. The UTCCRs protect consumers against unfair standard terms in contracts they make with traders. The OFT, together with certain other bodies, can take legal action to prevent the use of potentially unfair terms. A term is likely to be considered unfair if it causes a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations under the contract, to the detriment of consumers. The UTCCRs say that a consumer is not bound by a standard term in a contract with a trader if that term is unfair. Ultimately, only a court can decide whether a term is unfair

OFT Site

The Office of Fair trading took action against Barratt Homes in March 2005. See Barratt Homes

mandy · 20th February 2007, 23:52

thanks for the comments guys, nice to know there's support. I won't know my completion date till Friday when we exchange. all i know is that it says in the contract that the developer is not liable for any defects. my solicitor says it's a standard contract. Do you think the NHBC would back me up over the scratches? reading about your windows Martyn they sound like mine although they haven't covered the screws and I'd have thought that they'd just say that there was going to be a cover. If there is a problem and I put in in writing again after exchange, then I'd be covered by NHBC? Is the door handle classified as a defect? Although I was niggled by a slightly crooked shower control panel mounted on the wall by the bath and reported it, he wont do anything and I can see that I wouldn't be covered for this sort of aesthetic stuff, but do you reckon the other stuff is covered? Is a tarnished handle just aesthetic? i brought to their attention out of line brickwork as it was one of the things I was directed to look at on the snag list - of course without pulling the house down I know that they can't rectify this but thought i should just list everything. I think this may have got his goat. Basically when is a defect a defect? Maybe I should leave the money under the matress!

Tony · 21st February 2007, 00:45

The NHBC should back you up re the scratches and the tarnished door handle is not acceptable - it wouldn't take much for them to polish it. You wouldn't expect a new £6000 car to be delivered with tarnished chrome. It is the easiest thing in the world for them to say that this is normal or within tolerance. Ultimately to get a decision on a defect you would need to use the NHBC resolution service, but they are an insurance company and the client is actually the builder so you might not get an impartial decision. Alternatively, you can get the opinion of a surveyor or snagging inspector for impartial professional advice.

Tony · 21st February 2007, 00:48

Is you wall like this?
Wandering Perpendiculars

martynh99 · 21st February 2007, 11:34

The wonky wall photos are mine. The builders construction director came out yesterday and said it's 'one of those things'. I'm submitting a claim to the NHBC on this as the other 11 properties on the development are in line. There's also a section on the back of the property where 10 courses of bricks are half a brick out of line.
Anyway, sorry Mandy for hijacking the thread there.

mandy · 21st February 2007, 19:58

Be my guest Martyn. Fraid I can't comment on the walls as OH looked at them, but I don't think they are nearly so bad, also it's got more roof than walls so not a lot of brickwork to look at. Just heard that as a gesture of goodwill he'll replace the handle which is great - still worried about the window scratches but hope they will be covered by NHBC. Do you have to pay for their arbitrator? Hope your walls get sorted

Tony · 21st February 2007, 22:17

Quote:

Gesture of good will

- it is their job :evil:

Good luck with the wall Martyn, was yours the last house to be completed on the site?

Tony

martynh99 · 21st February 2007, 22:32

I don't know the order of build, all 12 properties were finished including roof when we first visited, all that was left was interior fixings like kitchen.

That end of the site was closed off to the public at the time we purchased and the gates were only removed the day we moved in as the site office was in the back garden of one of the other properties. We weren't allowed a 14 day pre-inspection as it hadn't been NHBC'ed (was the excuse). We got to see it the afternoon before we moved in.

In your opinion, would you expect them to fix the walls ? It sounds like a major piece of work to do so, virtually a rebuild of affected external area.