For New Home Builders

All developments are different and involve different types of developer, contractor and professional team. We use our knowledge and expertise to show you how to obtain competitive terms from several warranty providers, allowing you select the most appropriate new home warranty policy for the individual specifics of each of your developments. We know that for simplicity most developers just work with one latent defects provider for their new build warranty and we also know that one size does not always fit all as well as a bespoke solution. Let's work together so you have all the information you need to obtain the right, carefully selected, product for your next development. 

With our many years' experience in the market we can share with you how best to position your development with potential new build warranty insurers to ensure that the best possible rates and terms are offered for your latent defects insurance. 

Having worked for latent defects insurers and new build warranty providers we know exactly what they require of you during the underwriting and development registration process. The information we will provide you with will ensure you achieve certainty your development is underwritten and registered correctly and any specific requirements or endorsements are clearly articulated to you.  

We can manage the day to day relationship between you, your site team and your selected new build warranty provider / latent defects insurer partner. Our ability to understand the challenges faced on site at the same time as knowing what the insurer will require will make sure everything is ticked-off at the right time every time, giving you confidence your warranty policy and insurance certificate will be issued when required, in time for legal completion.

With over 30 years' of experience dealing with the last minute rush to reach practical completion and get all new build warranty documents issued, the quality of the finishes can be overlooked and certain items missed. Often these are only picked up by the buyer post-handover. The vast majority of these minor items are so much quicker and cheaper to remedy whilst the property is still empty. We offer a service to inspect the homes shortly before practical completion and to advise you on any visible latent defects and finish standards that are not likely to meet the new snagging standards detailed within the New Homes Quality Code. 

Once you have sold the home and your buyer moves in you are responsible for many issues that may arise for the next two years. Often these issues are left for your site team, who are still working to finish other new homes in time for sale, to deal with. It can be complicated to review a long list of items presented by a homeowner and understand which category each is within:

• Latent defects warranty policy liability
• Consumer code obligation
• The developer's own snagging policy obligation
• General maintenance requirement
• Normal wear and tear or occupational accidental damage

We can help you to understand which reported items fall in to which category and why. There are differences between new build warranty policies and between consumer codes so our depth of understanding can be extremely beneficial.  

Dealing with new build warranty complaints from new home owners is a vital part of the business of being a developer and is a great opportunity to create a life-long supporter of your brand. How you handle a latent defects complaint regarding response speed, accuracy, detail and understanding is absolutely critical. So is delivering to the letter on what you agreed with your customer as the remedy. We offer a complaint handling service to become the interface between the developer and the homeowner. We are fair, impartial and not emotionally involved and bring an options based resolution style to the discussion. 

There are several different consumer codes in the new home building sector and most new build warranty providers are affiliated to one or other code. Therefore the latent defects provider you select will determine which consume code rules you have to adhere too.

The main consumer codes, in no particular order, are:

• Consumer Code for Home Builders (CCHB) - the longest established code which currently represents the largest share of the new homes market.
• Consumer Code for New Homes (CCNH) - a more recent code which represents several of the smaller warranty providers.
• New Homes Quality Code (NHQC) - the recently set up code which aims to be the only consumer code in the new homes sector in the future and has the involvement of Government Ministers and the support of the Home Builders Federation (HBF). 

Most consumer codes are affiliated to one or more of the warranty providers and representatives from the warranty providers are usually on the board of that consumer code. The NHQC is different as it is independent from the warranty providers and is operated by the New Homes Quality Board (NHQB), details of the board can be found here: https://www.nhqb.org.uk/who-are-we/the-board.html

The NHQC has appointed the New Homes Ombudsman Service (NHOS) to complete independent assessments of any claims under the NHQC, instead of dispute resolution services which are more widely used. You can find more about the NHOS via their website:  https://www.nhos.org.uk

Paul Cooper was involved in the development of the first consumer code to be assessed by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) and which achieved "Approved Code" status. More recently he was part of the working group, Chaired by the Home Builders Federation (HBF), which developed NHQC. He formed part of a separate working group chaired by the Residential Property Surveyors Association (RPSA) to develop a set of industry adopted "Snagging standards" which have been largely incorporated in to the NHQC. Many of the RPSA members offer the pre-completion snagging inspections which are mandated for within the NHQC. Details of the RPSA and their members can be found on their website: https://www.rpsa.org.uk

Based upon this experience we can help you to prepare any formal response to a claim under a consumer code which has been referred to a dispute resolution or ombudsman service.  

Should one of the homes you built become the subject of a large or complex latent defects insurance claim, you may require assistance on what your potential liability could be under the new build warranty policy and/or the Terms of Business / Rules of Registration of the warranty provider. We can help assess any suggested liability the insurer thinks you may have and discuss what impact this could have on your future premium levels and how best to mitigate these effects.