Leaky house victims accuse Government

A leaky home owners' group is planning a rally this weekend after the Government conceded it would investigate lack of help for victims.

After Building Issues Minister Chris Carter said he was examining how the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service could be enhanced, lobbyists said people were outraged at the lack of official assistance.

Leaky Homes Action Group chairman Bernie Fuller said the service was too slow, inflexible and an expensive route for many homeowners facing a wet winter.

"You need lawyers to go to either adjudication or mediation and many people can't afford that," he said. "The current legislation is causing further distress, financially, emotionally and health-wise to innocent owners of leaky homes."

So his group has organised a meeting in Mt Eden on Saturday to rally victims.

"We want to let people know of the injustice and suffering that has been created by the Government's dealing with this saga," Mr Fuller said.

"We will focus on the service's inability to resolve the problems or help us," he said.

Speakers will include National MPs Richard Worth and Nick Smith, Greg O'Sullivan of consultants Prendos, David Gatley who formerly worked for the weathertight service and Michael Thornton, a partner in law firm McMahon Butterworth.

Mr Carter said this week there was a group of people who could not successfully use the service because the builders involved had changed their trading names, gone bankrupt or died.

"I have opened discussions with local government about the possibility of enhancements to services available to assist homeowners with leaky buildings," he said.

Weather tightness issues would be transferred to his ministry from July and more could be done to help homeowners, he said. The service was set up to provide homeowners with a cheaper, more efficient option for resolving disputes around leaky buildings, but some people were dissatisfied with it, he said.

Mr Fuller said the service had failed him because he registered a complaint last February, yet he still had no assessor's report to enable him to progress his case.

His Mission Bay house would cost $300,000-plus to repair and he was facing a $50,000 legal and consultants' bill before his case was heard.

"Perhaps I should just bulldoze the house. Isn't that more worthwhile?" he asked, saying that he knew of some people who were so distressed they had considered suicide.

The action group had hundreds of members, Mr Fuller said, and was formed late last year.

Dr Lisa Ferguson, national manager of the Weathertight service, said that as at May 5 there were 2261 active claims. The service had completed 305 resolutions.

* Leaky homes meeting, 4pm Saturday, Mt Eden Normal Primary.