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INSURANCE Features Understanding your NHBC certificate


If you are buying a brand new flat, the chances are it will have a 10-year Buildmark warranty and insurance cover from the National House Builders Confederation (NHBC). The NHBC is the UK's leading standard-setting body and provider of warranties and insurance for new homes. It insures more than1.6 million homes - a share of approximately 80% of the new homes market.


NHBC cover is split into two periods:


Any damage or defects to your home which occur during the first two years from the date of legal completion; and Damage to specified parts of your home (essentially the structural elements), in years 3 to 10.


If you sell your flat within the 10 year period, the balance of the cover can be transferred to the new owner.


During the first two years after completion, homeowners are covered for putting right defects or damage to the home and its common parts, caused by a failure to build to NHBC Standards. Your house builder must do this within a reasonable time and at their own expense and the NHBC provides a resolution service to help settle disputes.


From year three onwards, the NHBC provides insurance via your Buildmark guarantee to cover the cost of putting right physical damage in specified parts of the home. These include:


Foundations, walls, external cladding, curtain walling, external render and external vertical tile hanging, roofs, ceilings, balconies, load-bearing parts of the floors, flues, chimneys and access steps, to the main structure.


Staircases, floor decking and screeds, to the inside of the main structure, if they fail to support normal loads. Retaining walls, if they are necessary for the structural stability of the main structure. Double- or triple-glazing panes to outside windows and outside doors, to the main structure, if newly installed at the completion date. Below-ground drainage for which you are responsible.


You are also covered for alternative accommodation costs if you need to move out of your home while repair work is being done. However, your Buildmark guarantee does not cover general wear and tear, condensation, normal shrinkage, cosmetic damage or damage arising from failure to maintain the property.


What is minimum claim value?


Unlike most insurers, the NHBC operates a minimum claim value rather than a policy excess. This means that if the cost of your claim exceeds the minimum claim value NHBC will pay the cost in full and you will not have to make any contribution.


However, if the cost of your claim does not exceed the minimum claim value no work will be done or costs paid.


The amount of the minimum claim value will depend on when your home was built. You should refer to your policy document or call NHBC for confirmation of the amount of the minimum claim value that applies to your home.


Issue 20


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