Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Oct 30, 2023 10:48 am Hi all, I am in the middle of getting my house built. Frame stage is done and a private inspection carried out (funded by myself) which had a list of 34 items that needed to be addressed by the builder. Some of the private inspection report items contain things like needing justification/clarification from engineer because the engineering plans didn't match up with what was built. My builder is refusing to get the engineer involved again due to costs and asking me to pay for the engineer myself. I refused because the defects were caused by the builder. If they were implemented correctly we wouldn't need to get the engineer involved in the first place. I have already sent an email to the builder and the building surveyor not to start plastering until ALL defects from frame stage are addressed. I didn't want the defects to be covered up by plaster. We have now come to a deadlock because the plastering is not able to start because Im refusing to sign off on the defects list because the engineer certification/justification isn't there and the builder is not willing to pay for the engineer. The builder is now claiming that he will "start counting construction delays caused by the owner soon". Does he have any grounds to do this? What options do I have? Any ideas are greatly appreciated. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 2Oct 30, 2023 1:31 pm The builder's apparent deficiency in quality assurance seems to be mirrored by both his ethical standards and intellectual acumen. 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using siphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost, siphonic, eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 3Oct 30, 2023 1:47 pm erangakm Hi all, I am in the middle of getting my house built. Frame stage is done and a private inspection carried out (funded by myself) which had a list of 34 items that needed to be addressed by the builder. Some of the private inspection report items contain things like needing justification/clarification from engineer because the engineering plans didn't match up with what was built. My builder is refusing to get the engineer involved again due to costs and asking me to pay for the engineer myself. I refused because the defects were caused by the builder. If they were implemented correctly we wouldn't need to get the engineer involved in the first place. I have already sent an email to the builder and the building surveyor not to start plastering until ALL defects from frame stage are addressed. I didn't want the defects to be covered up by plaster. We have now come to a deadlock because the plastering is not able to start because Im refusing to sign off on the defects list because the engineer certification/justification isn't there and the builder is not willing to pay for the engineer. The builder is now claiming that he will "start counting construction delays caused by the owner soon". Does he have any grounds to do this? What options do I have? Any ideas are greatly appreciated. What state are you in? In NSW I would be contacting the certifier and sending him a copy of the report making sure he is aware of the issues so he doesnt issue his frame inspection certificate. I went through something similar in 2018 and the builder refused to fix all of the serious items so we had no choice but to terminate for breach of contract as the HIA contract stipulates that the work must be carried out in accordance with the national construction code therefore is they aren"t building in accordance with AS1684 they are in breach. Architectural Homes & Duplexes - specialising in custom designing homes to your budget Get a Free Onsite Consultation Today or send a PM for information, questions or advice. Re: Need clarification on 4Oct 30, 2023 2:13 pm Ashington Homes erangakm Hi all, I am in the middle of getting my house built. Frame stage is done and a private inspection carried out (funded by myself) which had a list of 34 items that needed to be addressed by the builder. Some of the private inspection report items contain things like needing justification/clarification from engineer because the engineering plans didn't match up with what was built. My builder is refusing to get the engineer involved again due to costs and asking me to pay for the engineer myself. I refused because the defects were caused by the builder. If they were implemented correctly we wouldn't need to get the engineer involved in the first place. I have already sent an email to the builder and the building surveyor not to start plastering until ALL defects from frame stage are addressed. I didn't want the defects to be covered up by plaster. We have now come to a deadlock because the plastering is not able to start because Im refusing to sign off on the defects list because the engineer certification/justification isn't there and the builder is not willing to pay for the engineer. The builder is now claiming that he will "start counting construction delays caused by the owner soon". Does he have any grounds to do this? What options do I have? Any ideas are greatly appreciated. What state are you in? In NSW I would be contacting the certifier and sending him a copy of the report making sure he is aware of the issues so he doesnt issue his frame inspection certificate. I went through something similar in 2018 and the builder refused to fix all of the serious items so we had no choice but to terminate for breach of contract as the HIA contract stipulates that the work must be carried out in accordance with the national construction code therefore is they aren"t building in accordance with AS1684 they are in breach. I am in Vic. When you certifier do you mean the building surveyor? If so I have contacted them making them aware of the situation and have received no email response from them so far. Only responds to phone calls and seems to be scared to put anything in writing. When you had to terminate the contract, did the builder claim or sue for damages? I have been told by my private inspector (been super helpful in this case) that this will open up another can of worms that will drag for months/years. Tbh I would prefer termination at this point but don't want any more issues than I currently have. If its a clean break i could consider it. Re: Need clarification on 5Oct 30, 2023 2:16 pm SaveH2O The builder's apparent deficiency in quality assurance seems to be mirrored by both his ethical standards and intellectual acumen. I have some choice words about the builders intellectual capacity but that would get me banned from this forum 😅 Re: Need clarification on 6Oct 30, 2023 2:43 pm erangakm I am in Vic. When you certifier do you mean the building surveyor? If so I have contacted them making them aware of the situation and have received no email response from them so far. In Victoria, the building surveyor has to be appointed by the owner who he then works for, not the builder. Did you appoint him? Appointment details/requirements can be found on the VBA website. 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using siphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost, siphonic, eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Need clarification on 7Oct 30, 2023 4:00 pm SaveH2O erangakm I am in Vic. When you certifier do you mean the building surveyor? If so I have contacted them making them aware of the situation and have received no email response from them so far. In Victoria, the building surveyor has to be appointed by the owner who he then works for, not the builder. Did you appoint him? Appointment details/requirements can be found on the VBA website. Short answer is that we didn't. Back when we signed the contract (didn't know that we were supposed to get the surveyor ourselves) with the builder we were given a piece of paper that had the surveyors company name and name to sign. Didn't know any better so we did. The builder and the surveyor seem to be friends and are in cahoots. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 8Oct 30, 2023 4:18 pm That is why the VBA banned the practice. 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using siphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost, siphonic, eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 10Oct 30, 2023 6:25 pm Given that the surveyor appears to be reticent to answer questions in writing when requested and the builder's attitude to the issues your private building consultant has raised, it may be cause to question with the VBA whether the building surveyor's position has been professionally compromised by being appointed by the builder. Have you had this discussion with the building consultant who acted as your appointed agent during the stage inspection? Have you read the VBA website re appointing a building surveyor in Victoria? 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using siphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost, siphonic, eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 11Oct 31, 2023 7:17 am Your private inspector identified defects, fine, but now you need to find another bus, because his has stopped together with expertise going forward or else you would not be posting on this forum. Its not hard to find inspectors to do inspection and list defects, but what then? The true expertise is what to do about them and how to handle the builder and the building surveyor to resolve you issues. 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: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 12Oct 31, 2023 1:04 pm SaveH2O That is why the VBA banned the practice. In practice, the OP technically appointed the surveyor by signing that document. The fact its the builders preferred surveyor is irrelevant now. Builders in Vic have been getting around this practice by having the clients appoint them and in discussions telling clients that while there is the ability for a client to appoint their own, the builder doesn't have to accept a contract. In effect they still get their own surveyor because in reality, by this point you've done all the work in getting to contract that you don't want to do it all over again with another builder. Most people are emotionally invested by this point. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 13Oct 31, 2023 2:22 pm @ ponzutwo...So true. 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using siphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost, siphonic, eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Need clarification on "construction delays caused by own 14Nov 01, 2023 10:05 am SaveH2O @ ponzutwo...So true. While i was across this behavior's pre appointing my (the builders) surveyor, I did tell the builder i was aware what they were doing and while i disagreed with it, they were on notice that I wont stand for the BS that that relationship can bring. So not assuming causation, my build was not passed by the surveyor on two occasions throughout my build and issues reported to me independant of the builder, including one failure to resolve within the allotted time frame and a reinspection to verify resolution. This all on top of my private inspections So overall it didnt have a huge impact to me, but at the same time I can see how this change and the subsequent skirting around teh system by builders can make this change literally pointless. I am not based in Victoria however i had a quick look into your question to understand what you were asking. 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