In a perfect world, you’d be able to have your new home or commercial property built without ever worrying about how to protect yourself in the event of building complaints or disputes. You’d be able to embark on this exciting new journey with no worries about the future of your relationship with your builder; unfortunately, this just isn’t always the case. Here in the real world, building complaints and disputes are an unpleasant truth for some property owners. So, it’s of vital importance that you learn how to manage these issues before they arise.
What are Some of the Most Common Building Complaints and Disputes?
There are as many ways to disagree as there are individual builders and property owners on the planet. While the particulars of each disagreement tend to be unique, the general complaint tends to fall under one of a few common categories:
- Contractual disputes and claims of breach of contract
- Consumer guarantee disputes arising as a result of incomplete or defective building work
- Unsafe construction, or work which is not compliant with Australian Standards
- Violation of the Building Act and other regulations
- Issues with professional conduct
No one wants to find themselves in the midst of a heated dispute with their builder, but the unfortunate truth is that these things can and often do happen. It’s far better to know how to protect yourself and what measures you should take to prevent a dispute than to wait for unpleasantness to raise its ugly head in the middle of your project.
How to Prevent and Address Building Complaints and Disputes
The first and most reasonable choice is actively working to prevent building disputes long before they have a chance to erupt. Investing in stage construction inspections by a neutral third party in the form of a professional building inspector is one such solution. When there’s someone to oversee each stage of your building project as it’s being completed, errors and faults can be rectified long before you assume ownership of the property. You won’t have to enter into consumer guarantee disputes after you’ve taken possession of your home or business.
The last thing you want is to end up being forced to pursue legal action against your builder because of negligence, fault or failure to adhere to building standards. Investing in oversight upon which you can both agree is a good step in the right direction, as is taking an active role in the building process. Don’t just wait until the keys to your new property are in your hands to start looking for potential problems; stop them before they start with a proactive attitude and the assistance of an experienced, reputable and professional building inspection company.
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