Leasehold Flat has a design fault – Who do I pursue?

I would submit a claim to the NHBC and let them investigate. The warrantee is normally 10 years, but from experience they shout a lot but solve nothing. Your buildings insurance may be another avenue to consider.

John, I assume the building has a standard 10 year NHBC warranty?

Generally speaking the Developer is responsible for defects occuring and reported in the first 2 years even if the problem has not been fixed within that time. Therefore the developer cannot just walk away from his responsibilities in year 3.

How has the developer come to the conclusion that it is a design fault? He will need more than just the say so of a self appointed sub-contractor.

My advice is to contact the NHBC and explain the situation. Ask them to contact the developer, visit the property and substantiate the claim that the fault is with the design. They will then either compel the developer to put the problem right or they will have to find a way to overcome the design fault if there is one.

Good luck

That does sound like a bit of a challenge. Thoughts that immediately come to mind are, as above, have you spoken to NHBC and if it’s a design flaw, other flats with the same layout will also be affected, knock on their doors and ask them if they are seeing the same problem.

Look for solutions rather than who is to blame and you’ll get a resolution that much quicker.

Re: NHBC
I have a good friend who has a four bed detached house which was covered by an NHBC “warranty”.
In one night it suffered major upheaval and simultaneous subsidence which proceeded to get even worse over the following months.
The NHBC proved to be utterly worthless and the situation dragged on for over two years during which the house was clearly unsellable.
Finally his insurance company decided on who to seek compensation from and he was moved into a rental flat for six months.
Major underpinning was done but the work which involved gutting the downstairs of this modern property on a housing estate, was never completely finished.
My friend gave up and resolved the last of the matter – completely the kitchen refit and redecoration, himself.

Please ask 118 to pass on my details and I’ll be able to give you some pointers on this matter.

Unfortunately you are not alone, there are thousands of developments that have these issues and there is a set process you must follow if you are to avoid wasting months of your precious time and money.

Took the management company of our block nearly 10 years and a court case to get NHBC to accept their responsibilities and it is still going on, rectification work was not properly done as NHBC did not inspect and has to be redone.