Browse Forums Building Standards; Getting It Right! Re: Water Leak issues 6Nov 06, 2016 6:35 am Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Water Leak issues 9Nov 06, 2016 9:54 am Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Water Leak issues 10Nov 08, 2016 2:42 am Not a viable avenue as most pre purchase inspectors basically have a get out of jail free card because they ask you "what are your concerns" and only look at things that are clearly visible. The interesting thing here is that there was a whole page they wrote about the stairs but not once did they put a tape measure on it and basically the summary was based on the visual standards eg: plaster finish on stair going poor...etc. I had them complete it early 2005 and had them come back for a more thorough report in 2009 where they did not pick up on the stairs again! They did however point out the fact that no overflows where cut into the railheads in 2009. The BC inspector also opposed several of the items that where pointed on the 2005 and 2009 which also contained photographic evidence however the BC inspector stated that "due to the age of the house bla bla bla" when I argued this point with the conciliator demanding another inspector they closed my case. The BC report did include builder liability issues however the builder was not held responsible for them. The builder (who I actually believe in this instance) told me that he only spoke with the conciliator on one occasion in 3 years!! I would ring them at a minimum every fortnight in an attempt to obtain updates. I was even requested to provide extracts of the building code and acceptable tolerances to support my complaints. The evidence I had kept and accrued over the years currently takes up 4 draws in a filing cabinet. I'm still left scratching my head trying to figure out how in hell they where not made accountable or responsible and I have been left footing the bill and undergoing major repair works with so much evidence of negligence, **, deception, defective work and any repairs undertaken by the builder where of a lessor standard than original and never resolved the issues. I am aware that the builder is in the final stages of a 4 townhouse development in the next suburb! Re: Water Leak issues 11Nov 08, 2016 2:58 am I should also add that the surveyor who issued the OP was removed from my suit as the company was de registered by ASIC for not paying their fees so they created a new holding company that took over all the assets of the old company but not the liabilities. Also they do not use the holding company name, only the trading name which states in their web site that they have been operating since 2001, no mention of any changes to the company in 2009. Apparently it's impossible to attempt to get the company reinstated let alone the cost to do so.. No home owner I know could afford to fight these fights let alone the time factor and the information needed before you can truly consider taking it to court. I find it incredible that you would have more luck returning a broken dishwasher than you do making the people responsible for building a property that is not up to code on what would be the largest investment in most people's lives.......there is something terribly wrong with this picture! Did I mention that neither of the bathrooms had any waterproofing and where not even caulked!!! Yes there was damage and rot on the frames behind the villa board in both showers! The downstairs shower also contributed to the floorboard damage and gaps in excess of 5mm! I've had to rebuild both bathrooms and replace the floorboards as they where beyond repair. Re: Water Leak issues 12Nov 08, 2016 8:16 am Voice_1 I should also add that the surveyor who issued the OP was removed from my suit as the company was de registered by ASIC for not paying their fees so they created a new holding company that took over all the assets of the old company but not the liabilities. Also they do not use the holding company name, only the trading name which states in their web site that they have been operating since 2001, no mention of any changes to the company in 2009. Apparently it's impossible to attempt to get the company reinstated let alone the cost to do so.. No home owner I know could afford to fight these fights let alone the time factor and the information needed before you can truly consider taking it to court. I find it incredible that you would have more luck returning a broken dishwasher than you do making the people responsible for building a property that is not up to code on what would be the largest investment in most people's lives.......there is something terribly wrong with this picture! Did I mention that neither of the bathrooms had any waterproofing and where not even caulked!!! Yes there was damage and rot on the frames behind the villa board in both showers! The downstairs shower also contributed to the floorboard damage and gaps in excess of 5mm! I've had to rebuild both bathrooms and replace the floorboards as they where beyond repair. Things you are saying don't make sense to me. If your pre purchase inspector had PI insurance it would be easy to contact them to make a claim. They have not even seen your complaint.Why? Building surveyor should have PI also and regardless of the status of the company, insurer should come good.Have you checked with surveyor's insurer? I cannot help but think you case has been mismanaged. Perhaps you got dud advice. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Water Leak issues 13Nov 08, 2016 9:00 am The pre purchase inspector was fully aware of the claim as they where involved all the way through and thoroughly questioned in regards to the items missed. Note that the 10 year timeframe expired 3 weeks after I lodged with VCAT. The VCAT administrative staff had also given me bad information when I needed to amend the parties names therefore 4 parties where successful with strike out applications and 2 remained. The building inspector who completed the 13B report who had already lost his license and the owner builder. Unfortunately due to the timeframe I was not able to then add them again as they would be classed as new parties. The pre purchase inspector and surveyors claim wouldn't be successful as I had asked this question many times from legal and friends who work in the insurance industry. I was also up against the non existence of documents that had been repeatedly asked for since 2009. Casey was not given an updated underground sewerage plan and I had no evidence as to who completed the connection of underground sewerage. Apareny this is illegal yet no one ever took responsibility. The council didn't even have the mandatory architectural drawings or soil report and their response to me was that it was not their responsibility to chase the documents up. The only way I would have had any success at a PI claim was if I fell down the stairs and injured myself. I was sick for 6 weeks due to the exposure of black mould and so was my cat yet I was told it would be hard to proove. Only this year has it been recognized due to a recent case that only involved a tenant and landlord. As a homeowner you are offered no assistance whatsoever by any government department and must pay for your own legal costs. One of the hearing days was spent arguing about which documents where submitted at the time of my application to VCAT because of the amount of staple marks on the page. What that had to do with the defects is beyond me but $4k just for that day is ridiculous!! The problem is that there is no clear line when it comes to responsibilities of each party. Each one argues that the other person is at fault and when your suing your responsible for providing the proof yet two legal councils (had to sack the first one) where unsuccessful at obtaining missing documents and even the plumbing commission would not furnish me with original copies of certificates when asked directly (however managed to get a friend to "lie" which is why I had evidence of ** yet this was swept under the carpet. I tried to complete a claim against the plumber who completed the roof plumbing compliance certificate in 2011 (you have 6 years from the date of issue) yet he did not have a valid insurance company in 2011 and the information given to me by the plumbing commission did not list the plumber as an insured party however he did work for the company. The insurance company he had in 2004 denied any ability to claim due to the date on the certificate. I've written multiple emails, letters, conversations with consumer affairs and many many others including victims of crime!!! None of this makes any sense whatsoever but I have found s small group of people who have undergone the same type of issues. One family lost everything and father/husband committed suicide because he felt like a failure. This was 2 years ago at Christmas. Certainly didn't see that story in the news!! Re: Water Leak issues 15Nov 08, 2016 9:59 am Voice_1 I also spoke with 27 different legal companies before my initial selection A very very sad case and unforgivable failure from those who take home thousands of dollars every week for nothing. I have been doing my best to help people with building problems over the last 12 years and generally it works out ok. Even so keep in mind that by the time you have a dispute you already loose. Your biggest enemy was that you run out of time. However not once have we gone to VCAT where I did all the stage inspections during the build, we managed to resolve all the issues. You still have not told me who was PI insurer for your pre purchase inspector. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Water Leak issues 16Nov 08, 2016 10:43 am I'll have to double check but the downfall is the fact that settlement was not dependent on the report. It was only undertaken for my own peace of mind and raised "questions" with some minor items requiring resolution, the balcony leak was identified and required investigation. My conveyancer was given a copy of the report and basically stated that the 13b insurance certificate covered any potential issues because it listed nil defects and nil incomplete works. It completely astounds me that the best choice and only choice I should have made was to go to VCAT in the first instance and not waste time with the BC or PC even though it is written on the VCAT and BC websites that you are recommended to do so and that it would be seen as favorable. It was not even taken into account by VCAT. Another issue when lodging with VCAT is determining who to sue, a company, an individual, if u complete the trading as and list the individual then there is a strong possibility of strike out. I have had builders and other trades people over the years look at my house and can't understand how it passed and the surveyor is not a small company. Interestingly the auditor generals audit completed in 2011 clearly describes all the failings that are applicable to my townhouse. It was only last year that the government decided to make a change. Unfortunately that change was to give the building commission more authority over builders.......unfortunately based on my experience, I fear the effects of this decision in years to come as there appears to be a corruptive presence in the industry. Re: Water Leak issues 17Nov 08, 2016 12:39 pm This is why we always recommend purchasers have inspection and report done within 3 days of signing purchase contract. That way you can cool off without giving a reason if there are major issues. The next step is competent inspector that can do building and timber pest inspection and has PI insurance. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Water Leak issues 18Nov 11, 2016 2:28 pm Voice_1 Not a viable avenue as most pre purchase inspectors basically have a get out of jail free card because they ask you "what are your concerns" and only look at things that are clearly visible. Pretty well the reason I never use them. Do some research on your own, then use your own judgement, you certainly couldn't do any worse yourself, considering what using "professionals" has put you though. These days, everyone does their best to escape liability, and the system keeps it that way. the "Blameless Society" we now live in, a total farce. Water Leak issues 19Nov 13, 2016 1:03 am If I hadn't gone through what I have gone through then I probably, like most, would disagree but your statement has more reality than the majority would ever even dream to consider as factual and real. The entire system inclusive of so called quality control or even the duty of care is just non existent and unless you have very deep pockets, trying to make any party accountable for "doing their job" is near impossible . If something is done well then everyone puts their hand up proudly and says "yep, I did/built/made that" when something goes wrong it always seems to be the other persons fault. I know I'm still in a state of shock at the fact that I, as a normal consumer, bought their first house, did more than most to ensure I made a sound choice, only to discover the complete opposite. Contrary to popular belief, marketing and anything you read about "sound investments" I can know say that it's not. I wonder how many people read their section 32 in detail? Do they know what documents should be included? What certificates? Not just the certificates but the fine detail. Most of us might use a legal professional or a surveyor for this. That's great but is everyone aware of their purpose and role in buying/selling process? When I talk to others about my 12 year battle, most people judge firmly believing that I must have missed something, that I was not given the right advice or direction. I can assure you that I left no stone unturned and I dedicated every moment over the last 2.6 years full time and then some, researching, reading, investigating various avenues in order to increase my chances of a favorable outcome (and considering the mountain of evidence I collated and recorded over the years one would assume that it would be impossible not to be. The learning and knowledge has become invaluable but the outcome has been devastating financially, physically and emotionally. I question the 10 year timeframe especially when I did not start my battle in the 10th year, that clear evidence existed where I had attempted to resolve the issues with the builder, that multiple complaints where lodged with the BA, BAVC, PA and others. Unfortunately the system saw the 4inches of paperwork including 250 photos, multiple reports and emails, an 8 page chronology in 8pt font and 6 pages of claim items as, "confusing" but the same argument didn't apply when 2 parties where struck out because I ticked individual but wrote t/as the business name but supplied no ABN. One of the parties didn't show up at all in any of the proceedings and is still operating as a director to his company. Something is so terribly wrong when as a consumer, if I don't pay a parking fine, they can take my license, my car or other assets or potentially be placed in custody if I don't pay it, but as a normal consumer, an owner builder/builder/ tradesperson/surveyor etc can effectively send me bankrupt for not performing their job to the most minimum standard and nothing happens to them. And if they have no money, they don't have to pay because it would be "too difficult"........yep, still doing the dig in the window leaning my head to one side trying to figure out "how". Re: Water Leak issues 20Nov 13, 2016 7:49 am Hi Voice_1 I don't judge and I don't know your circumstances and having been through hundreds of disputes yours seems out of the ball park. Perhaps it's just your bad luck and I have seen this before.I have a blog on that. http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog/b ... he-system/ You have my sympathy. If you are buying owner built home you are taking a much greater risk than otherwise. Why? Because your builder is the blind captain. http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/pre-pu ... lement.htm However as experienced accredited and insured pre purchase property inspector I would like to ask you: 1 Have you selected competent and accredited pre purchase inspector? 2 Did your inspector have PI and with whom. 3 Did you read pre purchase agreement that outlines limitations and disclaimers and understood it before going ahead? 4 Did you get and read your report before making a decision to buy and in time to pull out if the report is adverse? 5 Were there significant reportable defects that should have been reported? 6 Did you make a claim against inspector's PI insurer? If you said yes to all 6 above you should have had insurer's payout. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog If you make sure all taps inside and out are turned off, what does the water meter show if you leave it for a while. 2 20228 Hi all, I am hoping someone has some ideas as to what is causing my bathroom leak. The leaking appears to mainly happen when we turn the sink basins on. It takes a while… 0 5075 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Are you doing this with a building permit? Conversion of a non habitable room into a habitable room requires building permit. 3 17311 |