NHBC Guide to your new home
A practical guide to looking after your new home. Buying a house is probably the largest investment you’ll ever make, so choosing a new home built by an NHBC registered builder is a wise decision.
The warranty will cover you in the unlikely event of problems arising from defective workmanship or materials as defined by the recognised NHBC standards.
Under the warranty, we are responsible for any queries, emergencies or defects in the two years following legal completion on your home. During this time, you can use the 24 hour emergency contact number or your dedicated representative for any snags or problems that you encounter. This is underwritten by the NHBC warranty.
From year three, the NHBC will take over the administration of your policy and will be your point of contact for any issues that arise up until the tenth anniversary of legal completion.
All new buildings undergo a period of acclimatisation as they settle into use. Your home needs to dry out and naturally mature and it's normal that some shrinkage will arise. This can result in minor cracking to plaster. This is easily filled and painted over and it is not covered by your warranty.
We also do not cover minor variations in brickwork or plaster, general wear and tear, condensation that is caused by a failure to dry out the property correctly or damage that may be caused by a failure to maintain the home.
Unfortunately, we also cannot cover loss of keys.
Electrical and kitchen appliances are covered by the manufacturers' warranties, guarantees and service terms. Most are covered for two years.
If you experience a problem, please contact the manufacturer's customer service department.
When you reserve your home, we will provide the manuals and service guarantee documents for all your home appliances so that you can complete the relevant guarantee and service registration cards to activate the manufacturer warranties.
Our homes come with a 10-year NHBC Buildmark policy which includes deposit protection from exchange of contracts, a two-year builder warranty from legal completion, and then eight years of structural defects insurance cover.
The buildmark warranty is only issued when the NHBC inspector is satisfied that your home has been built to meet NHBC's exacting standards of construction.
Visit the NHBC website for more information or take a look at the NHBC Buildmark leaflet below.
A practical guide to looking after your new home. Buying a house is probably the largest investment you’ll ever make, so choosing a new home built by an NHBC registered builder is a wise decision.