11 Oct 2013
Peterborough office
48 Broadway, Peterborough Cambridgeshire, PE1 1YW
01733 346 333 01733 562 338 enquiries@hegarty.co.ukStamford office
10 Ironmonger Street, Stamford Lincolnshire, PE9 1PL
01780 752 066 01780 762 774 enquiries@hegarty.co.ukOakham office
66 South Street, Oakham Rutland, LE15 6BQ
01572 757 565 01572 720 555 enquiries@hegarty.co.ukMarket Deeping office
27a Market Place, Market Deeping, PE6 8EA
01778 230 120 01778 230 129 enquiries@hegarty.co.uk11 Oct 2013
Q. I bought a house recently and the seller assured me that the gas boiler / hot water system was in good working order and had been tested regularly. However, three months after we moved in it stopped working altogether, and the engineer says it is past repair and we will need to install a brand new system. Can I reclaim the cost of this from the seller?
A. You may be able to recover this cost if you can prove that there had been a misrepresentation to you. In this case, you would argue that you were led to believe everything was in working order and would continue to be.
However if no misrepresentation was made for example that the boiler system had been regularly tested and was in good working order when it was sold, and you were given evidence to this effect, however subsequently failed due to age, then there is no way to recover the cost of the repair.
When a property is bought, the principle of ‘let the buyer beware’ applies and the property and its contents are sold as seen. Therefore the sellers will not be liable for the cost of replacing the boiler system once the sale has been completed.
