In future the NHBC will adopt a consistent approach to determining what will and what will not prevent the necessary confirmation that a warranty is in place. In order to facilitate this, any outstanding information, defective design or non-compliance with standards on site must be classified as either RED (prevents warranty) or GREEN (will not prevent warranty) by applying the following sequential logic test:

Will the outstanding issue result in:-

1. A risk to health and safety?
2. A claim against the warranty?
3. Significant disruption to the occupier (in order to rectify the issue)?

If the answer to any of the above questions is yes then the item will be classified as RED and confirmation that a full warranty will be in place will be withheld until the relevant issue is resolved. If the answer to the three standard questions is no then the item will be classified GREEN and confirmation would be provided. It remains the builder’s responsibility to address any outstanding Green issues.

In relation to design issues, inadequate or unsatisfactory information is generally the reason preventing a warranty being in place. Hazards where information will normally be requested by NHBC Engineering include:-

High water table, Made Ground, Mining or other Cavities, Multiple Hazard, Peat, Soft Ground, Steep Slopes (more than 1 in 10), Sulphates, Landfill gas and Peat, Contaminated Land other than Landfill Gas.

Example:  
Geotechnical site investigation report, gas test results and proposals for gas membranes received from a builder for a site with known made ground, past shallow mining and within 250m of a landfill site.

Mining report and foundation proposals not received, therefore fails the logic test and hence would be classified as RED until such information is received and approved.