Please Help (1 Viewer)

Shed_Head

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This is probably a difficult question but I need some advice from guys in the sector.

I called the council to ask for a permit to erect scaffolding which instigated an inspection which then resulted in a dangerous buildings notice. :mad:

The council then arranged for emergency scaffolding to be erected which was in place for 28 days. I have now been issued with a bill for £12,000.:eek:
(7.5 to erect and design 3.5k to take down plus vat)
1days work mornings work
Could this be correct? (i originally thought it was a typo)

Any help or pointers would be much appreciated.
 
This is probably a difficult question but I need some advice from guys in the sector.

I called the council to ask for a permit to erect scaffolding which instigated an inspection which then resulted in a dangerous buildings notice. :mad:

The council then arranged for emergency scaffolding to be erected which was in place for 28 days. I have now been issued with a bill for £12,000.:eek:
(7.5 to erect and design 3.5k to take down plus vat)
1days work mornings work
Could this be correct? (i originally thought it was a typo)

Any help or pointers would be much appreciated.

There's a lot more infomation required to answer this question correctly, however I would recommend you take details of the scaffold type, size and dimensions send it to a couple of local scaffolding firms and ask for a price based upon needing it up by the morning. See what the numbers look like and move forward from there.
 
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Sounds to me like its been treated as an emergency call out, as the council has deemed the building unsafe , so probably price quoted is correct , take some pictures and post them up, but I think you wanna question the councils motives if you were already gonna be putting scaffold up anyway.
 
It has been treated as an emergency job and as such will command more money, however £12k for a days work and 1 months hire is excessive.

Although they have invoiced you for this work, they should have advised you of the estimated costs beforehand and given you the opportunity to provide your own scaffolding. Your best way forward would be as suggested is to get 2-3 quotations from other scaffolding firms and arrange a meeting with the council. Failing this get a solicitor to write to them! Best of luck
 
I think councils have the power to do this now.
If they deem something to be an emergency or immediately dangerous, they have the powers to arrange to have the works carried out at no expense to themselves.
£12k does seem to be a bit excessive though.

Is that the quote just for the scaffolding or are there other fees such as consultants, engineers or someone else?

Is the invoice direct from the scaffolding company that carried out the work?

Had there been any discussions with the council about the property before this occurred?

It does seem that there could be more to it than meets the eye.
 
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You are right Dass but if you look in the pub Teeside posted a story like this in Edinburgh where scaffold was up for months and no one was near it and the locals have to foot the bill which is running in to thousands. As ever there is 2 sides, the locals for not maintaining there property and the councils for not getting the locals value for money and in fact only show's up their own tendencies to squander the tax payers cash. A solution has to be found for this especially with the way the country is heading at the moment. As usual I have more questions than answers but it surely can't be that hard to maintain a fekin domestic roof and chimney.
 
What is a dangerous building or structure?

The term 'dangerous structure' covers buildings or parts of buildings. It also includes garden walls, fences or hoardings, in fact any built structure that because of its condition could endanger the public. What makes buildings or structures dangerous?

Buildings, like people, suffer from an ageing process, which can result in the structure becoming weaker. Buildings or structures can become dangerous as a result of poor maintenance, fire, storm, vehicle impact or explosion.

Dangerous buildings are the responsibility of the building owner but the Council can, under Section 77 and 78 of the Building Act 1984, take action in certain circumstances.

Section 77 is used where a building or part of a building is in such condition or used to carry such loads as to be dangerous.

The Council can apply to a Magistrates court for an Order.

If the court is satisfied that the danger exists then an Order is given and the owner must remove the danger. Or the owner can demolish the building within a stated time period.

If the person does not carry out the work in the stated time, the Council can carry out the work and get back costs from that person.

Also, the person may be given a fine for not to complying with the original order.

Section 78 is used in similar circumstances to the above, but this is when action needs to be taken right away to remove the danger.

The Council carries out work to remove the danger, but in getting back its costs from the owner it may have to show to the court that it could not reasonably have gone ahead under Section 77.

What can be the cause of a 'dangerous structure'?

Neglect, vandalism, fire damage, storm damage, explosion, vehicle impact, unsafe working activities or practices.

Who is legally responsible for removing the danger?

The owner has a general duty of care in law to protect other people from any harm arising from the unsafe condition of their property. The involvement of the local authority does not remove this liability from the owner.

Generally speaking the local authority would only deal with a 'dangerous structure' if the owner; cannot be contacted, is unable or refuses to remove a danger, or is in default of a court order.

How does the Building Control Officer determine if there is a danger?

Recognising a danger can be difficult, but an experienced Building Control Officer is capable of identifying any hazards and making an assessment of the risks they represent to people’s safety.

What sort of emergency work can the local authority take?

When necessary they can: barricade or fence off the danger, have the dangerous structure guarded, erect temporary shoring, remove the dangerous part, or demolish all or part of the dangerous structure.
 
And rightly so, but do it totally against the usual local authority grain and do it cost effectively. A term they will have no knowledge of but if they would like to involve someone from the private sector it could all be explained to them.:idea:
 
Clearly Shed - Head, from Dass's last post its clear they should have given you the option of repairing the problem yourself, providing you carried out whatever was necessary to remove and danger from the public etc. Did they do this? if not it strengthens your argument. You have not indicated what was wrong with the building in your intial post, why did they have to get scaffolding in straight away, how long was it from the inspection the the scaffolders turning up?
 
I am only guessing mind but I would suggest it would take years of neglect for a council to act. With home owner ship as with everything else come responsibility.

I think Edinburgh are one of the quickest to act after some years ago a chimney simply fell off in the middle of summer through a cafe roof killing a waitress. Get your roofs maintained. :idea:
 
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