What was supposed to be a dream home of Pratik Patel and wife Vanessa, soon turned into a house of horrors as they began to discover patches of damp and mould in the living room, water seeping in from the roof and flickering lights. Not only that, the handbasin was cracked and the underfloor heating that came at an extra cost of £7,000, failed to work. The Patels paid almost £450,000 for a new house from Redrow, one of Britain's largest builders. The couple moved into the four-bedroom detached property in Pentyrch, near Cardiff in November unaware of the impending issues. After all, wasn't Redrow's pride “attention to detail in the pursuit of excellence”?
Even the real estate giant accepted that “clearly some things were not picked up and need to be improved.” A three-day schedule of corrective works was soon drawn, but the Patels felt their concerned ignored. They paid £540 for an independent survey, which was conducted by firm Building Logistics. The chartered surveyor found so many problems with the building that he requested an urgent meeting with the company to discuss “structural issues that gave rise to concern.” The calll was ignored by Redrow. The surveyor’s final report in February confirmed “significant and onerous” problems, with not a single lintel or timber beam “free from defect or liability”.
Today, after over five months of moving in, the Patels continue to be in dispute with Redrow over the required works. They contacted Money after not hearing from Redrow since April 15, when Pratik, a business analyst, sent a detailed email to the company outlining the multiple defects to the property. “This is hardly the treatment we expect from a company that emphasises the quality of its buildings. You expect a new-build home to be trouble free. That is not our experience at all. To my mind, we have moved into a home that has been rushed in order to meet certain sales targets.”
Not only them, neighbours on the same Redrow estate have also had problems. IT consultant Philip Barry, 34, had damp in his four-bedroom detached home. And eventhough Redrow fixed it, he still had water leaking through his roof. Now, defects residents are highlighting concerns about the quality of new-build homes as construction firms face growing pressure to build more. “There are clearly problems with shoddy workmanship. Whether that is because developers are rushing their work to meet government targets or simply because these companies want to get their cash and then move on to the next site, with little regard for the people buying the properties, is up for debate,” said Paula Higgins, chief executive of the HomeOwners Alliance, a campaign group for those who own new-build homes.
