Where Does the Cladding Crisis Stand? Since the Grenfell Tower disaster, repairs have been
required to buildings with unsafe cladding. This created an affordability
crisis, with many facing large bills for renovations. The British Government
promised to protect people from costs. However, where does this stand?
This month’s blog at Denfords Property Management looks
at the cladding crisis. For more information, call us in Southampton on 023 8038 6970 .
What is Cladding? Cladding is the outer skin applies to a high rise building
to improve thermal energy efficiency, weather protection or to improve the
building’s overall appearance. However, some has been found to be combustible,
which caused the Grenfell fire.
Since then, we have been in a building safety crisis that
has affected thousands of property owners.
My Building Has Cladding Under the Building
Safety Act , most flat owners are exempt from covering the removal costs of
unsafe cladding. However, they must fit the following criteria:
You live in a building above 11 metres high or at
least 5 storeys high, including the ground floor.
You were living in the building on 14th
February 2022 and it was your main home. You won’t qualify if you owned more
than three properties in the UK at this time.
You can check whether you are eligible here .
What About Other Safety Measures? In addition to cladding costs, many leaseholders also face
bills to pay for other safety measures that are not covered. This includes new
balconies, safety doors and sprinkler systems.
However, you can check this again. In the first instance,
the developer or owner of the building will be legally liable to cover costs.
This does depend on whether they pass a wealth threshold.
If the developer or owner of the building isn’t legally
liable or doesn’t pass the wealth threshold, the cost may be passed to you.
Costs will be payable over 10 years and will be capped, depending on the
threshold.
How Many People are Affected? According to the Government, 407 buildings have had cladding
removed with a further 70 still with cladding as of 30th November
2021. However, this only covers buildings over 18m tall with the same type of
cladding used on Grenfell Tower.
48 of the biggest housing developers have already pledged to
take responsibility if they had a role in developing or refurbishing in the
last 30 years.
Find Out More
For more information about the cladding crisis, contact
Denfords Property Management in Southampton. Call us on 023 8038 6970 . Alternatively, fill out our contact form and we’ll
be in touch.
