Issues with Buildmark
Protecting Housebuilders, Lowering Standards
How tolerant of them…
Race to the bottom, defined?
NHBC’s tag line on its website is ‘Protecting Homeowners, Raising Standards’. But does it?
In Chapter 2.1 of NHBC Standards (NHBC’s technical manual for how new homes should be built), NHBC defines ‘Tolerances’ as follows:
“All work shall be within acceptable tolerances. Where applicable, account should be taken of Chapter 9.1 ‘A consistent approach to finishes’. In other situations, tolerances will be those currently acceptable in the house-building industry.”
‘Currently acceptable in the house-building industry’? Is that not the very definition of ‘race to the bottom’? As long as most housebuilders turn out substandard homes, the definition is satisfied. At the very least, it is an arbitrary standard that you don’t get a say in.
What about Chapter 9.1 ‘A consistent approach to finishes’? Is that any better? Arguably, it is worse. It specifies tolerances for various aspects of construction (how reassuring for you the buyer), creating the impression that they matter, but NHBC then excludes housebuilders’ and their own liability for non-compliance in the Buildmark policy. It does this in a very subtle way that most policyholders would never realise, by excluding cover for “Any reduction in the value of your home or land”. That is open to interpretation by reference to legal principles relating to measure of damages for things that are out of tolerance but not functionally defective, for which the court may award damages for diminution in value (i.e. reducction in the value of your home) instead. And that is excluded by Buildmark. Bit sneaky in our view.
So how is NHBC ‘protecting homeowners’ or ‘raising standards’ by ensuring its standards are applied arbitrarily or rendered unenforceable by you?
Perhaps its tag line should be “Protecting Housebuilders, Lowering Standards”?
Resolution Service - buyers beware
If you have a Buildmark policy, and a substandard home, and your housebuilder does not want to put it right, you may find that they suggest that you ‘go to the NHBC’ which for most issues that are reported within the first two years, means asking NHBC to offer their Resolution Service.
NHBC can refuse to offer Resolution in relation to some or all issues you tell them about, with impunity. If they do offer it, they will usually send someone to your home to look at the issues you have raised (and that they have deigned to consider), after which they will issue a Resolution Report in which they say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to each issue they looked at. To get anything for the ‘yesses’, you have to accept the ‘nos’, otherwise you get nothing. Your housebuilder will probably then rely on you accepting the ‘nos’ to defend any claim you might want to pursue over those later on.
Thanks for that, NHBC.
Before they offer Resolution, or send someone to your home, NHBC will hold private discussions with the housebuilder: they tell you they will do this in your Buildmark policy. These secret discussions enable them to decide between themselves what you are going to get, if anything. They may well continue their private discussions after their site visit and before NHBC issues your Resolution Report. The driver for this is that the housebuilder has a separate agreement with NHBC under which it is required to deal with or pay for the ‘yesses’, but it can arbitrate against NHBC if it disagrees with NHBC’s decision. That gives housebuilders considerable sway over what NHBC will give you in your Resolution Report.
By contrast, NHBC can reject your legitimate claim with virtual impunity, because the Resolution Service is not a regulated insurance activity so the Financial Ombudsman Service has no jurisdiction to consider your complaint about them rejecting your legitimate claim.
So, which is more likely - NHBC going against your housebuilder, or going against you?
Maybe not quite the ‘independent’ body that housebuilders seem so keen to present them as, then.
Even if you get some ‘yesses’, and concede on the ‘nos’ in order to get them, you are normally then just handed back to the housebuilder (who already refused to deal with these things once) to decide for itself what to do about them - which may well be inadequate, but NHBC won’t help you on that. If the housebuilder does nothing, then with some effort you might get NHBC to take the works on or, more likely, cash settle your claim at commercial rates based on a scope of work that they (and the housebuilder probably, but you won’t know) decide. Result: you are left with a shortfall against the true cost of works and are now on risk.
Thanks for that, NHBC.
The good news is that there is a reliable, affordable, cost effective, proven alternative to getting what you are given rather than what you are due: our New Home Buyer Claims service.
To get a fair outcome in relation to construction defects and problems with your new home, please get in touch with us today to find out how we can help you.
Run by housebuilders, for housebuilders
NHBC is the UK’s leading (almost monopolistic) provider of new home warranties whose tag line is “Raising Standards, Protecting Homeowners”. It is run by its board of directors and governed by its Council members.
So who are they?
As at the start of 2025, board members include:
Steve Wood, who also sits on the board of the New Homes Quality Board (another body under the influence of housebuilders not buyers).
David Campbell, former board member at Telford Homes plc, Berkeley Group, Barratt Developments and Wilson Bowden Developments, and current board member of HBF (the organisation that awards housebuilders with Star Ratings).
Elizabeth Austerberry, former CEO at Moat Homes and board member of HBF.
Stephen Stone, current HBF board member, longtime former CEO of Crest Nicholson and still a non-exec there as well as other housebuilders including Miller Homes and Keepmoat.
No one from organisations that represent the interests of new build homebuyers.
NHBC does not appear to publish details of its Council members on its website, but it did submit those details to the APPG for the Built Environment’s enquiry into the quality of new build homes in 2015 which it revealed that Council members included:
All housebuilders who sell homes with Buildmark cover.
NHBC board members (which includes current and former top housebuilder execs).
The HBF.
Lots of other industry bodies whose interests are aligned in driving volume and profitability within the industry, which isn’t necessarily the same as driving construction quality or customer satisfaction.
No one from organisations that represent the interests of new build homebuyers.
Raising Standards, Protecting Homeowners - brought to you by the housebuilding industry, for the housebuilding industry…
If you are struggling to get your housebuilder to deal with defects and they have told you to refer your issues to the NHBC, maybe this is why.
Instead of using schemes designed and run by the housebuilding industry, for the housebuilding industry, get in touch with us and find out how we can help you get a better outcome.