Bungalow’s bungle row

Jun 29 2008 by Mr Justice, Sunday Sun

A BUILDING survey was not all it was cracked up to be, I can reveal.

The investigation missed a gap between the house and an extension for laundry, where wall ties had not been fitted.

The survey took place when Keith Dunwoodie moved into a bungalow and it was carried out as part of the mortgage agreement.

Keith, of Killingworth, North Tyneside, said: “I bought a two-bedroomed bungalow and took out a mortgage with Newcastle Building Society.

“The survey was done by surveyors chosen by them.

“Since moving in, I have found several faults which, in my opinion, should have been picked up straight away.

“In the laundry room, one wall is not tied into the garage wall and there is a gap I can see through.”

Keith also said door frames in the laundry room and conservatory were taking some of the weight that could have been borne by lintels.

Keith said: “These jobs do not need a lot of materials but they are labour-intensive.

“Whoever does the work will need to hire equipment to cut between the old brick courses and tie in.

“These jobs should have been spotted and now I face a large bill to put it right.”

When Keith asked for my help, no decision had been taken by Newcastle Building Society.

The complaint had, however, been passed on.

I looked into Keith’s concerns and had good news for him. The building society chased up the complaint following my intervention.

And they told me their surveyor had agreed to pay the costs of building work to rectify the faults.

It means Keith won’t have to pay an estimated £650 in repair bills.

A spokeswoman told me: “I now have confirmation that this was resolved today.

“Following Mr Dunwoodie’s original complaint, the society referred the matter to our surveyor.

“Since receipt of Mr Dunwoodie’s letter to you we again contacted the surveyor.

“They revisited Mr Dunwoodie’s property last week to re-inspect.

“It appears that the original survey did not pick up the fault and it was agreed today that the surveyor would pick up the costs of approximately £650 to carry out building work to the property.”

Keith confirmed the complaint was now settled and he was making arrangements to have the work done.

The building society spokeswoman added: “I would like to stress that Mr Dunwoodie has called to confirm the matter has been resolved.

“Newcastle Building Society followed up the matter swiftly once alerted that things hadn’t moved along as soon as the customer would have liked.

“The length of time to resolve the matter was well within our regulatory obligations in relation to responding to complaints.”

The survey was carried out by Ray McIntosh, of McIntosh Thompson, Newcastle.

He admitted the gap was not spotted when the survey was carried out because of obstacles. He said: “It was a non-supporting wall on its own foundations and could have been sorted with a mastic compound. However, I have agreed to tie it in.”

He also agreed to put metal supports on the doors to comply with modern building regulations, not in force when the house was built.