Who is liable for the leaking ceiling on our extension?

We finished our flat roof extension three years ago, but the ceiling is now leaking. A private building control company signed the works off at the time of completion and we recieved a certificate for a ‘single storey side/ rear extension and new roof’.

We feel that the rooflight upstands were not efficiently insulated, and that this is causing condensation, which is precipitating the leak. Can I sue the building control officer for signing off poor construction? The builder voluntarily liquidated last year.

Flat roofs are notoriously fickle things and are prone to all sorts of problems. In this case, I think you have been unlucky and your roof has failed early. e building control inspector would have signed it off against current Building Regulations to the best of his judgement at the time, but you can’t hold him responsible for its failure over three years later.

If the work was covered by an insurance backed guarantee, then you might be able to make a claim against that. However, it looks like there’s no guarantee in place and the builder who installed it has gone into liquidation, so I’m afraid that’s it, you’ll have to pay for it to be repaired. Have the roof assessed by a member of the National Federation of Roofing Contractors and seek quotes for repairs based on this.