Nightmare of new £300,000 family home that’s totally riven with faults
ADREAM home turned into a nightmare for one family as more than 80 faults and damaged areas plagued their new build.
Janine Walton moved into the house at Hawtree Grove, Banks, earlier this year but soon found issues with plumbing, electrics, joinery and brickwork.
The family believe only a handful of the ‘snags’ could be expected at a new house, with the vast majority attributed to poor workmanship. The problems even included loose wires and litter concealed in unseen areas.
Along with her husband and four children, Janine was the first to move into the Seddon Homes development sited on the former Greaves Hall grounds. After spending a few years living overseas, the family spent £312,000 to move into the detached, four-bedroom house and moved in on March 20, just before lockdown hit the country.
But that dream move quickly turned sour and while the family accepted that lockdown meant repairs couldn’t easily be done, they have since endured more than seven weeks of contractors piling in and out to fix a seemingly endless list of issues.
Janine said: “I’ve bought a new build before and had a few snags so we always expected a few but what we’ve got is shambolic.
“They send a person to fix it and then make a new problem or need to get another person instead.
“The first problem was the joinery. The bannister was loose at both ends and the painting and decorating was shocking.
“I ended up repainting the bannister myself.”
Weeks after the family moved in, water began dripping through the ceiling from an en-suite bedroom and when they complained, they claim they were accused of causing the problem by flushing wet wipes.
But when they argued that they didn’t use them, the problem was investigated and was found to be caused by building foam blocking the pipes.
One of the more shocking discoveries was damage to the top of the oven and when it was pulled out, loose wiring was disovered behind it. Another unexpected finding occurred when repairs in a bathroom led to cans, bottles and cigarette papers being uncovered.
Further problems include loose plug sockets; electric surging because of a nick in wiring; damage to three internal doors, skirting boards not joining and a cracked tile.
Janine continued: “The rocks that were left under the topsoil have started coming up through the grass. I can’t let my four-year-old play out there in case he trips over and bangs his head.
“We paid for a landscape garden and what we’ve got is Brecon Beacons.”
The family have since chosen to pay for the garden to be redone as well as to hire other plumbers and electricians to fix issues that they no longer believe will be done to an acceptable standard.
She said “I have now refused their electrician to enter the property. I’ve got my own electrician because I don’t believe they’re any good.
“I’m getting a plumber in to check their work because I want to know it’s safe.”
The house is part of an estate of