How to report snags to your housebuilder, and what to do if they stall

The two year window, and who is behind it

Three things usually sit behind your developer’s obligations:

• Your warranty. Under NHBC Buildmark, the first two years from legal completion are the builder warranty period, when the builder is liable to put right defects reported to them. Years three to ten are insurance for damage caused by defects in certain parts of the home, with a minimum claim value, and cosmetic damage is not covered. Premier Guarantee calls years one and two its Defects Insurance Period. LABC Warranty says the builder period is typically one or two years, if provided, so check your certificate.
• The New Homes Quality Code, if your developer is registered with the New Homes Quality Board. It requires an after-sales service for at least two years after completion and sets complaint timescales.
• The Consumer Code for Home Builders, which applies to builders registered with NHBC, Premier Guarantee, LABC Warranty and Checkmate where the New Homes Quality Code does not cover the home.

The practical lesson is the same under all three: report everything you find in writing before the end of year two. Items that only show after a winter of heating, such as shrinkage cracks, sticking doors or a slow leak, are worth a deliberate check at around 18 months.

Report snags so they can be fixed in one visit

Developers’ customer care teams send trades to snags from your list. Anything the trade cannot find or understand becomes a second visit. Every item should have:

1. A number that stays the same in every later message.
2. The room and exact location: “Kitchen, base unit left of oven, door”.
3. A factual description: what you see, not what you think caused it.
4. Two photos: one wide to show where, one close to show what.
5. For anything measured, the reading and the standard you are comparing it with.

Send one numbered list rather than a stream of messages. Many developers have a customer portal: use it, but keep your own copy of the full list and the date it went in. The guide to new build snagging tolerances covers measured items.

An email you can adapt

When repairs are done, check each item, mark it fixed or still open, and reply with an updated list using the same numbers. The snagging report email templates include versions for chasing progress and confirming repairs.

What the developer must do, and by when

Under version 2 of the New Homes Quality Code, developers must acknowledge snags as soon as possible and be able to settle an after-sales issue within 30 days, with at least monthly updates if it takes longer. If you raise a formal complaint, the Code sets this timetable from the complaint start date:

The Consumer Code for Home Builders asks builders to deal with snags reported in the two years after legal completion as soon as possible and within a mutually agreed timescale.

When the developer stalls

Escalate in order, and put each step in writing. Which routes are open depends on your developer and warranty:

1. The developer’s formal complaints procedure. Ask for it if you were not given it at completion. Say clearly that you are making a complaint, list the item numbers, and attach the history.
2. The New Homes Ombudsman Service, if the developer is registered with the New Homes Quality Board. A complaint that arose within the first two years after completion can be referred after 56 days from the complaint start date, even if the referral itself is made after year two.
3. Your warranty provider’s resolution service. NHBC’s service is available once you have been through the builder’s complaints procedure and had a final written response, or no response within 30 days. NHBC investigates whether the builder met NHBC’s requirements and decides what they must do. Its resolution report is binding on the builder but not on you. Requests must be made no later than three years after the end of the builder warranty period.
4. The Consumer Code dispute scheme, where that Code applies. Disputes can be referred from 56 calendar days after the complaint was first raised and no later than 12 months after the builder’s final response.

Every one of these routes will ask for the same thing: what you reported, when, and what the developer said. That is why the numbered, dated list matters more than any single email.

Keep the record from day one

Keep the pre-completion snag list, each list you send afterwards, every reply, and before and after photos, all under the same item numbers. Note the date of every visit and what was done.

Site Audit keeps that record on an Android phone. Each snag holds its photos, location, status and notes, the numbers never change, and the app produces a dated PDF each time you send an update. One home, with all its follow-up visits, is free. See the UK snagging app page.