How are complaints dealt with?

Under the Code, home builders are required to have, and keep to, a system for dealing with complaints and explain this to you prior to purchase. If you have followed your builder’s complaints process and are not happy with their response, you can contact your home warranty body in the first instance. They will either deal with your complaint under the terms of the warranty or, if your complaint relates to a potential breach of our Code requirements, they will provide you with an application form and adjudication scheme rules to enable you to make a claim via the Code’s free Independent Dispute Resolution Scheme (IDRS).

Some Code requirements and the maximum amount you can claim differ depending on when you reserved your home:

Disputes can be escalated to the IDRS from 56 calendar days after your complaint was first raised with your home builder and no later than 12 months after your home builder’s final response. Disputes are resolved using an independent adjudication process. Find out how the IDRS works.

Did you know, until the Code was introduced, a home buyer who felt that they had a claim against their home builder as a result of their builder’s action or inaction, would have to had to take a case to court if the matter was not covered by their Home Warranty scheme? 

During 2023, small claims of up to £10,000 pursued through the court system were taking on average 52* weeks to conclude, rising to 80 weeks for complex small claims or those over £25,000. By comparison, 100% of cases raised through our IDRS were resolved within 90 calendar days, over 70% of which were completed within eight weeks**.

Thinking of making a complaint?

Check our complaints process tool to see how the process works and what it covers.

Complaints Process Tool

_{*Correct as at Jan-March 2023, Ministry of Justice. **CEDR Annual Report 2022}