Northamptonshire residents slam house-builder over list of problems with new homes

Joanne Carlin moved to Moulton in October 2015 and has experienced a catalogue of errors in her home, which include her stud wall ‘not being secured properly’ claiming she only needs to touch it for it to move.

In the summer of 2016, Mrs Carlin was in her kitchen when she heard a loud crashing noise.

She said: “When I looked out into my garden, a roof tile had come loose and crashed from the second storey roof down into the garden.

“Had my children or dog been outside, it could have caused serious injury or worse. "

Mrs Carlin has reported a number of errors to Taylor Wimpey Head Office after her family upsized to a four-bedroom house.

She added: "A few months after we moved in, myself and two other residents set up a residents group to tackle Taylor Wimpey on site as individuals were at the end of their tethers trying to get any issue sorted.

"One of the big issues was a children's play-park that was a smelly swamp at the front of our house for several months."

It is understood that Taylor Wimpey didn't install the correct drainage system. A Taylor Wimpey spokesperson said: “We addressed concerns about the development’s play park by importing an improved specification of topsoil which is more suitable for drainage.

"Following the completion of the development, residents of Countess Manor were informed that the council would contact us directly if there were any further issues. To date we have not been advised of any further issues with drainage at the play park.”

“We addressed concerns about the development’s play park by importing an improved specification of topsoil which is more suitable for drainage. Following the completion of the development, residents of Countess Manor were informed that the council would contact us directly if there were any further issues. To date we have not been advised of any further issues with drainage at the play park.”

But with house prices starting on the estate at around £300,000 some residents thought they were buying their ‘dream homes’.

Another resident, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: We have had no end of problems for the first two years in our home.

“I don't even know where to start but imagine moving into a kitchen without a single cupboard being able to open because it is so poorly fitted. Imagine a flood because the dishwasher and washing machine were put in the wrong place and forced in to look like they could work.

“We had gaps in windows that were so big you could put pamphlets through them. These are just a handful of complaints that were so poorly dealt with and full of empty promises. We would never ever buy a Taylor Wimpey home again.”

The Countess Manor resident has said that all of her problems have now been resolved but she had to wait up to two years before her final window was repaired last month.

A third resident told the Chron that they have had "numerous battles" from the offset.

She said: "Here are some faults that you would not expect to find.

"The front did not fit, so you could see daylight when the door was closed. The cooker hood was not fitted properly and it was loose. "

"Our en-suite shower plughole was blocked due to no hair catcher in the plug and we have been told to use Mr Muscle drain and pipe un-blocker every couple of months."

A Taylor Wimpey spokesperson added: “We sincerely regret the issues that Mrs Carlin has experienced at her home and would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

"A number of remediation works have already been completed and we would like to reassure Mrs Carlin of our full commitment to resolving outstanding matters as soon as practically possible."