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Press Coverage
08.04.2008

Indemnity insurance

Mike O'Flynn, FindaProperty.com's Content Editor, has been writing about the housing market for over eight years and has a head full of all kinds of useful information.
So send him your questions - he'll know the answer, and if he doesn't, he'll know someone who does (use the feedback box at the end of this page).  
1. Indemnity Insurance
From Simon: We are in the process of buying a three-bed house that has a kitchen extension. The property is more expensive than surrounding properties because of this kitchen extension.
We have just had a survey completed and it has shown that the kitchen extension does not meet building regulations.
We are now unsure what to do - the estate agents says we may want to explore indemnity insurance, but this only covers us if building regulations are enforced. Should we ask for money off or should we just steer clear altogether?

Mike says:  Best to hand this one over to someone with more legal knoweldge than me, so step forward Duncan Samuel of online conveyancers Convex.net. Duncan says:
"You are quite correct to say that indemnity insurance will only cover the risk that the local authority take enforcement action to require that you remedy the breach of the buildings regulations.
"The amount of work that is covered by these policies varies from insurer to insurer and policy to policy, so the policy that you need will depend upon the nature of the breach. Your survey will explain what the breach is and it should be perfectly possible to find a policy to cover whatever work may be required if the regulations are enforced.
"You must also bear in mind that a major breach of buildings regulations may be required to be disclosed to your buildings insurers, and their underwriter may require that indemnity insurance be taken out to cover the risk.
"You should ask for the purchase price to be reduced by the cost of the policy, or that it the cost be borne by the vendor so that you are not out of pocket. If the breach is major you may want to reduce it still further.
"Bear in mind though, that when the time comes for you to sell, you will have to disclose the breach, and your purchaser may require you to do the same thing!"
 
2. Art Deco

From Jane:  I see that Find a Property sometimes features Art Deco houses. Can you tell me: 
How often do Art Deco properties come on the market, and when they do, how often are they renovation projects?
Where in the UK is it possible to find Art Deco houses? Are there concentrated areas? Why was this?
Mike says: It's difficult to say how often Art Deco houses come onto the site and how many of these are renovation projects. However, this much I can say: we get a lot more Art Deco apartment buildings than houses, partly because more were built and partly because Deco was used for a lot of commercial buildings (factories, cinemas, power stations etc) which have since been converted to residential use. As for where to find Art Deco properties, they can crop up all over the place, but here are a few examples where they are typically found:  
In Central London there were a lot of apartment blocks built in the 30s with an Art Deco influence – mansion blocks and the like (one of the largest is in Marylebone and has a huge garden on the roof).
 
30s suburbia and Metroland: You will find Deco houses in 30s suburbia all over the country, typically small enclaves in the midst of more traditional 30s housing. However, in some places whole estates were built in the Deco style. The classic example it the Haymills Estate in Ealing. It might be worth contacting the Twentieth Century Society  to ask them about your area.
 
Deco has always been associated with the seaside and most seaside towns have some Deco developments – either commercial buildings like cinemas and shops or apartment blocks and houses.
 
The Deco style influenced a lot of commercial building – factories, workshops, cinemas, etc - and with loft living and city regeneration, lots of these have been converted (the Deco association has been a good way to market these buildings).