Building work: The high cost of cheap alternatives

12.12.2017

Blog Post

We all get frustrated at losing work to someone who's quoted significantly less. Even worse, you know that the job can’t be done for that price even if you were prepared to lower standards or dumb down the quality of your service to win the building work. But should the end result of that ‘cost saving’ decision be a huge pile of rubble where a house once stood?

Unimaginable? Well this recently happened to a property in Manchester.

Manchester City Council building control officers received a complaint from a concerned resident and found there was no planning permission or building regulations approval for the project.

When they visited the site, they found a huge excavation seriously undermining the existing house foundations. They also found that all of the ceiling joists and purlin props had been removed leaving the roof liable to collapse.

So great were the concerns that a team from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) were also called in and immediately issued a prohibition, ordering all work at the site to stop.

The city council’s building control team were left with no option but to serve a Section 78 Dangerous Building – Emergency Measures Notice on the owner of the property.

Because of the very limited options available, contractors were called in to safely demolish the building before it collapsed on its own.

The owner will also have to foot the bill for the demolition work and the concrete used to flood the basement to secure the undermined party wall.

How to avoid disaster

Councillor Angeliki Stogia, the Council’s Executive Member for Environment and Skills, said: “The risk to life at this site was very real and we will have no hesitation to intervene with any building that is being refurbished in an unlawful and dangerous way.

"Building owners need to be mindful of the potential risks associated with inappropriate alterations without guidance from professionals such as structural engineers, surveyors and architects.

"The council’s building control team is always willing to discuss the type of work property owners want to carry out. Because the owner of this property failed to do so, the costs to make the building safe are likely to be considerable.”

Further information

How LABC helps you avoid cowboy builders

Comments

VAT

Submitted 5 years 7 months ago

As a builder with quite a few years experience under my belt I totally agree with the above. so just to address a few points. How can a professional builder NOT be registered for VAT ? only takes a few decent contracts to reach the registration threshold. No VAT maybe read "cowboy" In America I believe you have to have a construction licence to carry out any work over $150 dollars so essentially anyone without said licence is restricted to small jobs unlike the one mentioned in this article. We need something like this in the UK and we need it right now. I also get sick to death of being undercut by amateurs playing at builders. The customers have been educated enough I think with all the tv programmes showing what can go wrong so in my opinion they are as much to balme.

Designers

Submitted 5 years 7 months ago

It is just the same with the designers, I'm an architect, a potential client complained about the service they'd had previously from an 'architect', came to myself having seen we'd won awards and design/build to the highest standard - they asked us to match the previous guys price, shown to us in an email - so unprofessional copying someone else email - the email must have been altered by knocking a zero off the cost - £350 to design all the construction information, structural design for floor structure beams and a pitched roof over an attic living volume, plus tender the job and deal with B'Regs and then manage on site - I thought my eyesight was conning me - no, it is the end user always thinking they know best and there is a cheaper way ................. I just told them politely why I was not interested and that it was unfeasible. The regulation should also cover the client, there should be a requirement to enter into a contract in a 'truthful' way - otherwise its just fraud !!! Its not only the cowboys it's the punters who are to blame as well........................

(No subject)

Submitted 4 years 11 months ago

An architect responded on here suggesting that builders should undergo CPD, learning the regulations etc. - that would be lovely.
I'm a building control surveyor and if I had a pound for every time a builder had pretty much asked me what to do, I'd be rich. It seems anybody can wake up one day and decide to be a builder. There are thankfully many who have an awareness of the regulations and requirements and can actually do their own job well. The licence would be a great thing, but it would probably lead to more unauthorised and dangerous works.
The 'skills shortage' probably isn't helping matters.
There's no quick fix unfortunately.
Maybe schools could offer construction type courses alongside IT, business studies, creative etc.