Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jan 26, 2009 9:40 am Hi Im very new to this site. It was recommended to me from a friend of mine. I was wondering if anyone has had to have any dealings with vcat? We are thinking of using them as our house is still being built since November 2007! We signed a contract in Oct 2007. Building did not start till may 2008. Many issues that I wont bore you all with that has happend since then. We have a contract that states 26 weeks to build. But basically I just want to see if anyone else has had dealings with vcat and if it was successful.
Thanks Elley Re: Anyone dealt with VCAT? 2Jan 26, 2009 9:59 am It's very simple, costs very little and not too formal. I have only had success - against customers
You prepare a case and present it - the other side presents theirs, you bring in witnesses, question them, you get to ask their witnesses questions and the man asks questions. Then he decides and it's over. I recommend the process... it is very fair and non-threatening. I won against stupid claims... don't worry. Ed Re: Anyone dealt with VCAT? 3Jan 26, 2009 12:29 pm Hi Elley,
I like the fact that you can talk about this and do a smiley face. Do bore us with the details. Information sharing on this website has taught me so much. Good luck! Fi has moved in!! Re: Anyone dealt with VCAT? 4Jan 26, 2009 2:16 pm VCAT is a delegated court facility for people who want their complaint heard as soon as possible and for as little cost as possible - so out with the wigged judges and barristers. It is still official and usually binding, but you will be guided the whole way and they will tell you how to prepare a complaint in order to achieve your goal. THey will ask what you want - and I wonder what you will say here. will you ask for compensation, how much and how will you justify that request? That is your first hurdle.
Any experiences I've had at VCAT have come down to common sense decisions rather than the law. And I say that in a good way, obviously it is about the law, but anyone who knows the bigger courts (County, supreme) will tell you that the decision was based on the law, and sometimes unfair in practice (you know when someone says "blah blah won because of a loophole" that's what I mean). VCAT often avoids that situation with their decisions, which is really great for people like us who don't have "legal" angles (or legal eagles representing us), but just common sense. Give them a ring and check out their website: http://www.vcat.vic.gov.au/CA256DBB0022 ... g~&2=~&3=~ good luck and let us know how you go... Annie A thankful person is a happy person. [/color]My hobby design blog: http://aviewondesign.blogspot.com/ Re: Anyone dealt with VCAT? 6Jan 26, 2009 6:51 pm When we signed the contract back in 2007 October, we were told after soil testing and the builder confirms the plan etc, land size etc we will be ready to go. I wasnt expecting anything to happen until January 2008 as you know they go on hoildays dec to jan. But I was expecting soil testing and a cut out done. Our 1st house so maybe wishful thinking on our behalf. Builind didnt start until May 2009. We had a letter sent out to us in JAN 2008 stating that they had building permit and to clear land of rubbish as they were ready to start. This is where is got yukky.
1: They state the builing permit wasnt given to them until april even though they stated in the letter they had it in JAN. They said there was a delay but on the copy we got it looked pretty standard and I called the building permit people who insisted there wasnt a delay. 2: The builder called us and told us we had to then put in a permit to obtain a eletrical pit. We did this and kept asking the builder about this and when it was going in. We kept getting told it was on the list by the builder. I called TXU ( now called something else) and they said the regulation for putting in power to a sub divided block had changed and the builder contacted them about this and put the order o hold until further notice. This was now 3 months after we put the application in. I called the builder to ask why this happend and he said I have no idea but you best get it sorted out. Back to us again to fix his mistake! The neighbour had been supplying power to the site so they could build in the mean time. 3: The block is on a hill and the builder has not cut out the the area and depth as per building plan. 4: Several added things such as a wall, paint and tiles have not been put in the house but are on the plan. The house is currently at fixing stage. 2 letters have been sent to us. One stating a 3 week delay in building due to weather and the next letter was sent after we called the builder and demanded a completion date. In this letter they state that due to the block not having any power they can no longer build on the property and will wait until this issue is resolved (This is the builders fault in my eyes) This happened as the neighbour ahd not been compensated as she thought she would for usage of her power and cracked it one day ( and I dont blame her) and told them she wasnt giving the site power any longer. The next day she gave them power again. That was the day we got this letter. There wasnt a time on it as far as to say when the would commence building again. But they have been building during this time. The power issue was sorted as I went to the electricity ombudsman and filed a exclusion to new power regulation. And yes there is the compensation trail. This house should have been built and ready to go, including all delays in writing and building permit which had a 3 week start from issue and I added the whole 3 weeks. It does state in our contract about liquidated damages but not the amount and we had a 26 week building period from issues of permit I thought I wanted blood cos we are so severly finanically disabled and the delays are puttin huge amounts of pressure on us as im sure you can all imagine. This seemed to to be the best avenue. And I smile cos its better than crying Re: Anyone dealt with VCAT? 8Jan 26, 2009 7:39 pm supa,
It looks like you're in good shape. The builder has said that there have ben various delay due to external sources, but you've got a message otherwise. This along should be enough for VCAT to support your claim. Collect everything and put forward your case. Make VCAT order the builder to pay you the outstanding liquidated damages immediately. I wouldn't be too aggressive. You've still got to keep the builder on side. Gather your evidence and let the builder know that it's just taking too long and you'll refer the matter to VCAT for determination. Good luck, Casa. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Wish you all the best. Once you signed the contract, they will find millions excuses to charge you. And have seen their sites unfinished for a long time. 4 24824 As title suggests, looking at using the interlocking Pentablock stacked stone products to replace failing timber retaining… 0 17865 I am building in claymore NSW and this is shown in the building envelope plan. … 0 10034 |