Keith wrote

Hi all,
Apologies for the X-post but the d.i.y guys always seem to know what's
going on with regard to 'building' regs but the real domain of the question
is my 'garden'. Basically, I've bought a new house up in Scotland and the
garden is a bit of a nightmare. The slightest amount of rain results in
pools of standing water and the newly laid turf is apparently about to start
rotting. Now a local landscaper has said that the problem can probably be
rectified but I don't think it should be up to me to pay for this. The
landscaper also mentioned that standing water should be the developer's
consideration. How do you think I should approach this - should the
developer be sorting out the drainage or am I stuck with footing the bill
for this myself ?

Thank for any guidance,
Keith


Nobody has mentioned NHBC yet. During the first two years from completion,
assuming you have Buildmark cover and subject to certain exclusions, the builder
is supposed to correct any defects free of charge. Your first point of contact
is the builder but if there is a dispute or if the builder fails to act then
NHBC Claims will take it on.

The Buildmark policy document http://www.nhbc.co.uk/pdf/policy1.pdf
expressly excludes "loss or damage resulting solely from flooding from whatever
source or from a change in the water table level". However I would argue your
problem is more to do with waterlogged soil and drainage than with flooding.
The NHBC Standards require developers to carry out a thorough site investigation
before commencing on specific design work, and particularly warns about adequate
drainage to cope with waterlogged soil.

This is the URL concerning making NHBC Claims
http://www.nhbc.co.uk/index3.asp?pag...teps&col=green

Good luck
Peter