Your warranty - how to keep your cover

The sooner you let us know about an issue, the sooner we can help. Please have a careful look around your new home and try to alert us to any issues as soon as possible. There are certain things, such as damaged items, that you must let us know about within 7 days of legally completing (or, in Scotland, moving in) to comply with the terms of your warranty.

These include:

• Kitchen units and appliances – such as oven, hob, hood, waste disposal, water-softening devices and white goods.
• Sanitary ware, the shower tray and cubicle.
• Wardrobes and other furniture.
• Decoration and tiling.
• Doors, windows and other glazing.
• Floor coverings.

There are a number of items and systems in your new home that need a regular service. This ensures they are working properly, safely and meet all mandatory standards. It also keeps them fully covered under your warranty.

These include:

• Boiler and cylinder – these should be serviced annually. Please note that a cylinder inspection on its own is not sufficient. This must be a full service by a properly qualified, unvented hot water system engineer.
• Gas fire (if fitted) – again you must use a Gas Safe-registered engineer for an annual service.
• Solar panels (if fitted) – your panels should be professionally cleaned annually and serviced in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.
• Appliances – these should be serviced in accordance with the manufacturer’s guidelines.
• Smoke and burglar alarms – you should follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for servicing these items.
• Sprinkler systems (if fitted) – refer to manufacturer’s guidelines.

Refer to your user manuals for full service details.

Your home is built to a very high standard. But there may be a few minor issues that you are responsible for under general household maintenance.

These include:

• Sealing normal shrinkage cracks caused by a new property drying out (where they are no wider than 2mm, or 4mm on stairways).
• Nail pops which can be dealt with during normal decoration.

You should also:

• Maintain and repair grout or mastic seals to prevent leaks in your kitchen and bathroom.
• Avoid any careless or wilful damage.
• Clear gutters.
• Maintain external paintwork with products in line with the manufacturer’s guidance.
• Oil garage doors and all door hinges.
• Maintain lawns and landscaping.
• Clear shower traps of hair and other debris.