Building Warranty (Defect) Inspection
The excitement that comes with building a new home can turn into disappointment when your later identify defects. It is common place for natural building materials as a home settles over time, where a drying frame may warp causing minor hairline cracking in an attached wall and ceiling sheeting and cornices. Similarly, slab settlement may cause minor cracking in tiles. Our builders are familiar with what's minor and to be expected and can explain our findings to you in context so you'll be less alarmed.
At iSPECT Building Inspections we can help you ensure you are protected by completing a Building Warranty Inspection. Our local, building inspectors will conduct the inspection with focus upon detail, using detailed checklists to produce a comprehensive report. This allows us to specifically look for any changes which have occurred in the interim, and helps to identify defects so you can have the building contractor to rectify the defective building work if:
- structural defective building work is within 6 years and 3 months of the building work being completed;
- non-structural defective building work is within 12 months of the building work being completed.
Following the inspection you must lodge a formal complaint with your local State regulatory authority as soon as possible, but no later than within 12 months of becoming aware of the defects. This does not extend to manufacturers' product warranties such as white goods. It is imperative to schedule your iSPECT Warranty Inspection as a follow-up 11 months after your Building Handover Inspection to meet the 12 month non-structural building defects warranty period.
Warranty Defect Inspection | 'DEFECTIVE' or 'NON-STRUCTURAL'
According to Rectification of Building Work: "Defective building work means building work that is faulty or unsatisfactory" which:
- does not comply with the Building Act 1975, Building Code of Australia or an applicable Australian Standard;
- involves the use of a manufactured product where that product has been used, constructed or installed in a way that does not comply with the product manufacturer's instructions".
And in particular, "Non-structural defective building work means defective building work (other than structural defective building work or residential construction work causing subsidence) that is faulty or unsatisfactory" because:
- it doesn't meet a reasonable standard of construction or finish expected of a competent holder of a contractor's licence of the relevant class;
- it has caused a settling in the period defect in a new building such that the building work that does not perform at a standard reasonably expected of work carried out by a competent holder of a contractor's licence of the relevant class".
Sample Report
You can download a Building Warranty (Defect) Inspection sample report from the link below.
* Raw photos of your inspection with embedded Geotag and date/time are also available with the report ON DEMAND
