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I am campaigning for better quality new homes and better protection for new home buyers when (not if!) they find or have problems in their new homes. I am currently campaigning for:
- A fully-independent, government appointed New Homes Ombudsman This will give new homebuyers access to support, help and an independent process for redress for any dispute with house builders and/or warranty providers, with the New Homes Ombudsman ordering house builders and/or new home warranty providers to pay consumers justifiable compensation awards.
- A mandatory legal right that new homebuyers, or their professional representatives, are allowed unimpeded access to fully inspect their "completed" new home at least five working days before legal completion.
- Proper enforcement of the CML Final Inspection requirements. House builders should be prevented from serving notices or offering buyers cash to get buyers to legally complete on unfinished homes.
- Fully independent electrical and gas inspections. There should be an end to the current box-ticking, self-certification by those installing. An engineer from the boiler manufacturer should inspect and sign-off all newly installed boilers.
- A Carbon monoxide alarm to be fitted to all new homes with gas boilers.
- Specific new rules to make it illegal to pressurise or offer cash inducements to encourage buyers to use a particular firm of solicitors specified by a house builder. Together with proper legal enforcement of the Consumer Protection Regulations 2008.
- The sale of leasehold new houses should be made illegal. Escalating ground rents on all leasehold new properties should be banned.
- A withdrawal of state-funded subsidies such as Help to Buy from any house builder that is failing to deliver improvements to either the quality of the homes they build or levels of customer service for buyers finding defects and issues with their new home.
- Fully independent "New Home Customer Satisfaction Survey" for EVERY new home built, conducted by a totally independent and autonomous government-appointed body such as the OFT, with all results and a house builder league table made public.
- House builders to be responsible and liable for all defects occurring for the first FIVE years after completion, not two as currently required by the warranty providers.
- More stage inspections with every home independently inspected at least ten times during the construction process. With records and photographs taken at each inspection made available to buyers.
- Introduction of mandatory workmanship standards and lower tolerances for defects with reference to 'Quality' in the Building Regulations and Warranty Standards.
- The introduction of a standard form of contract to redress the balance between homebuyer and house builder in Sale contracts such as the Law Society Standard Conditions of Sale.
- A legal requirement for qualified inspectors (Professional Snagging Inspectors), chosen by the buyer and paid for by the house builder to independently snag and inspect all new homes before legal completion.
- Minimum build durations in Building Regulations and Warranty Standards. More time to build will result in better built, higher quality new homes. No new home should be built in under 12 weeks.
- Regulations to force house builders to build larger, healthier new homes. Britain should not be building the smallest, darkest new homes in Europe.




