Stories about hidden defects in a broken roof?

Questioner

Almost a year ago (02-12-2021) we bought a house. In this house the kitchen is located in an extension. During the purchase process we were told that there was 'a new roof' on this extension, which visually looked neat. Furthermore, at the time we decided not to have a building inspection, due to the state of the housing market last year. Now, almost a year later, this roof is starting to leak and it turns out that the construction of the entire roof is not sound and the only reason it is only starting to leak now is that all the roof tiles were sealed together with waterproof sealant. Apparently the roof is at too shallow an angle to place roof tiles on it, which means that the water can be blown up by the wind under the roof tiles, causing a leak. Because of this, we have been advised to have the entire roof replaced with a flat roof next summer. In the meantime, we are not only left with a bill from a plumber who carried out an emergency repair, but also with the prospect that the entire roof of the extension will have to be replaced, at a cost of €6,000-€7,000. The purchase contract for our home contains an age clause, but the seller must have known about this leak. After all, he sealed the roof tiles together himself. Now I wonder to what extent this defect falls under our duty to investigate (certainly if verbal communication suggests that the roof is new and neat, even though we have no hard copy that they promised this), or whether this is a hidden defect that can be recovered from the seller, since it is plausible that he deliberately covered it up. In the event of recovery from the seller, would this apply to the emergency repair, or also to converting the roof to the condition in which he promised it would be?

Lawyer

Good evening, In principle, the purchasing party has a duty to investigate. On the other hand, the selling party has a duty to report. An old-age clause may apply, but there have already been several legal cases in which this was set aside by the judge in the case of an extension. If the seller has renovated injudiciously, he cannot rely on the old-age clause. However, it depends on each case how this is judged. In case you start a procedure, you can in principle recover the damage suffered (and yet to be suffered). This also includes the costs for an emergency repair (damage limitation obligation), but also costs that must be made to permanently repair the roof. A specific answer depends on your specific situation, what has been communicated between the parties and also what is stated in the purchase agreement. Please contact us without obligation to discuss your case further (06-49175526). Kind regards, Silvienne Leito FerLei Legal