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OFT

OFT to Recommend Statutory Redress Scheme

The OFT continues to be supportive of industry efforts to implement a code and will continue to work with the code body and stands ready to advise on request. The market study set out a timetable of milestones and deadlines with the purpose of ensuring progress, against the background of previous reports and recommendations about [...]

Consumer Code for Home Builders

Zurich was an original signatory to the industry’s proposal to form an industry code to deal with the issues raised in the market study report. As agreed between the OFT and the industry, the proposal for the homebuilding code envisaged that the code would have provided the ‘established means’ for the control of unfair commercial [...]

OFT Market Study Update: Home building in the UK

In addition to gathering evidence, we have been working hard to ensure that our study complements other reviews across government and minimises the burden on our stakeholders. In particular we have held discussions with the NAO about its announced study into part of the planning regime. The two organisations have worked together to make sure [...]

Housebuilders to launch code of conduct by Easter

The housebuilders, the NHBC and HBF have been consistently stating that the OFT (Office of Fair Trading) will give the industry a clean bill of health once the market study is complete in August. This articleclearly shows that this was just spin from the public relations people.

Callcut Review

While we see partnerships between local authorities and developers as key to unlocking the urban land supply that is needed to deliver housing growth, it is essential not to neglect other parts of the market. In the past, it has been the smaller and medium sized housebuilders who have delivered much of the volume growth.We [...]

Number 10 addresses consumer protection issues

Catriona Bright the managing director of New Build Inspection, said: “We welcome the fact that the Government recognises there is a problem, especially as the housebuilding industry is spending a fortune on professional lobbyists and public relation campaigns claiming their house is in order.” In its response the Government stated that contracts for the sale [...]

Call for buyers of new homes to be given better legal rights

IT IS probably the biggest purchase in anyone’s lifetime – yet buyers of newly built homes have fewer rights than someone buying a loaf of bread. Now the Scottish Consumer Council (SCC) is calling on the government to include new-build houses in the Sale of Goods Act in order to give more protection to purchasers [...]

Building up housing problems for the future

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has launched an investigation into the £20 billion industry amid claims that companies have been manipulating the planning process in a bid to inflate new house prices.

Housing quality must improve

The OFT study investigating the £20bn house building industry aims to improve consumer satisfaction and increase the number of new homes. However, most of the press attention has focused on housing supply rather than the lack of consumer protection and decreasing customer satisfaction linked to poor quality standards.

OFT to investigate housebuilders

The OFT welcomes relevant written submissions on this topic and it would assist the project team if submissions were set out as follows: A summary of the main points you would like the OFT to consider A more detailed explanation of these points Evidence to support the views being made: If this includes data or [...]

Homebuyer protection needs improving

I have witnessed the plight of some of my clients and have also become a victim as well, as I recently purchased a new build at Treetops, Milton Keynes. The list of problems is endless. {mos_sb_discuss:137}