How Long Does a Developer Have to Fix Snags? Your New-Build Rights Explained

You reported a leaking shower three weeks ago. The developer acknowledged your email, a contractor visited, and nothing has happened since. Is that delay allowed? And how long do you have to wait before taking the matter further?

The short answer is that there is no single UK-wide deadline that requires every developer to fix every snag within a set number of days. The appropriate timescale depends on your contract, warranty, consumer code, the seriousness of the defect and the work needed to correct it.

That does not give a developer an unlimited amount of time. Under the New Homes Quality Code, most after-sales issues should be settled within 30 days unless there is a significant reason for delay. NHBC Buildmark, meanwhile, requires the builder to put covered defects right within a “reasonable time”. Urgent safety problems should be handled much faster than a minor paint blemish.

This guide explains what those rules mean in practice, how the common two-year warranty period works and what to do when promised repairs keep slipping.

Is there a legal time limit for fixing new-build snags?

For an ordinary snag, there is not usually a law that says “the developer has 14 days” or “the developer has 30 days” to complete the repair. Instead, the timescale normally comes from one or more of the following:

• The sale contract and any commitments made before completion
• The developer's after-sales policy
• The structural warranty covering the home
• A consumer code the developer has agreed to follow
• A formal complaint or dispute-resolution decision
• General legal rights, where the defect is serious enough to support a claim

This is why two neighbours can receive different answers even when their defects look similar. They may have completed on different dates, be covered by different warranty documents or have bought from developers signed up to different consumer codes.

Start with the paperwork supplied by your conveyancer and developer. Find the warranty certificate and policy booklet, reservation agreement, after-sales procedure and complaints policy. Check the name of the warranty provider and whether the developer appears on the New Homes Quality Board's register of developers.

What does “within a reasonable time” mean?

“Reasonable” is deliberately flexible. Replacing a loose handle is not the same job as investigating repeated water ingress, and the same deadline would make little sense for both.

A reasonable repair period may take account of:

• The risk to health, safety or security
• Whether the defect is causing continuing damage
• The complexity of diagnosing and correcting it
• The availability of materials or a specialist contractor
• Weather or drying conditions that genuinely affect the work
• The access appointments you and the contractor can reasonably arrange

An active leak, dangerous electrical fault, failed heating system in cold weather or external door that will not lock calls for an emergency response. Report it through the developer's emergency channel immediately and take reasonable steps to limit further damage without putting yourself at risk. If there is an immediate danger to life or property, contact the appropriate emergency service as well.

At the other end of the scale, developers may group cosmetic repairs so a decorator or joiner can deal with several items in one visit. That can be reasonable if you are given a firm appointment and the delay is proportionate. Repeated cancellations, unexplained silence or an indefinite promise that someone will “be in touch” are much harder to justify.

The New Homes Quality Code sets a useful 30-day benchmark

The New Homes Quality Code applies only where the developer is registered and the home falls within the scheme's eligibility rules. For covered buyers, it provides a much clearer after-sales timetable.

The current New Homes Quality Code after-sales rules say that snags must be dealt with as soon as possible. In most situations, a developer must be able to settle an after-sales issue within 30 days unless there is a significant reason for delay. When a delay is justified, the developer must explain why and provide updates at least monthly until the matter is settled.

“Settle” does not necessarily mean that every complex repair must physically be completed on day 30 regardless of circumstances. A component may need to be ordered, an investigation may reveal more extensive work or weather may prevent an external repair. But the developer should not use those possibilities as a stock excuse. You should receive a specific explanation, a plan and continuing updates.

The Code also requires registered developers to provide an after-sales service for at least two years from completion. Its main after-sales and complaint milestones are:

These complaint milestones are not automatic repair deadlines. They stop an unresolved snag from disappearing into an untracked customer-service queue.

How the two-year builder warranty actually works

Most new-build homes have a structural warranty lasting about ten years, but the cover changes over its life. Government home-buying guidance describes the common arrangement as two years of cover for general defects followed by longer cover for major structural problems. Your own policy controls, so read it rather than relying on a sales summary.

Under NHBC Buildmark cover, for example, the builder is liable during the first two years to put right defects reported to it where the home was not built to NHBC requirements. The following eight years provide narrower insurance cover for defined problems; they are not an extension of the initial snagging service.

Three practical points follow:

Report defects before the builder warranty expires. Do not save everything for the final week. A report made early gives the developer time to inspect the problem and makes it easier to show when it arose.

Keep proof of the report. An app entry is useful for organising the defect, but also submit it through the channel specified by the developer and retain the email, portal confirmation or reference number. Your record should show the date, location, description, photographs and any effect on the use of the home.

Do not assume every mark or failure is covered. Warranty exclusions can include wear and tear, lack of maintenance, accidental damage, alterations and items covered by a manufacturer's warranty. Some policy versions also impose particularly short notification periods for visible cosmetic damage, so photograph the property at handover and report chips, scratches and stains immediately.

If you are still preparing your first report, our step-by-step snagging inspection guide explains how to inspect and record the home systematically.

Does the developer remain responsible after two years?

Possibly, but not for every problem and not through the same route.

If you reported a justified, covered defect during the builder warranty period, the developer should not be able to erase that responsibility simply by allowing the calendar to pass the two-year anniversary. The exact protection depends on your warranty wording and the evidence showing when you notified the developer. Under some NHBC Buildmark policies, justified concerns reported during the builder warranty period remain the builder's responsibility after that period ends.

A defect first reported after two years is different. You may still have cover under the later insurance section of your warranty, but that cover is normally limited to specified elements and types of damage. A cracked foundation causing structural damage may qualify where a minor decorating issue will not.

Longer legal limitation periods should not be mistaken for an extended snagging warranty either. In England and Wales, the Defective Premises Act 1972 may support a claim where work connected with providing a dwelling leaves it unfit for habitation. Changes made by the Building Safety Act extended the relevant limitation period to 15 years for work completed on or after 28 June 2022 and, retrospectively, to 30 years for earlier work. The government's explanation of these extended rights makes clear that this route concerns homes unfit for habitation, not ordinary cosmetic snags.

The law and limitation periods differ across the UK, and other contractual claims may follow different rules. If you are facing substantial loss, a safety issue or a defect that could make the home uninhabitable, get advice from a solicitor experienced in construction or property disputes before a deadline approaches.

What to do when snag repairs are taking too long

Chasing repairs is easier when each step creates a clear written record. Use this sequence rather than restarting the story with a different customer-service adviser each time.

1. Send one complete written report

Give every defect a unique number. State the room or external location, explain what is wrong, attach dated photographs or video and note when you first observed it. Separate urgent problems from cosmetic work.

If your list is still growing, use a complete new-build snagging checklist to reduce repeated submissions.

2. Ask for decisions and dates

Ask the developer to confirm:

• Whether it accepts each item as a defect
• Whether an inspection is needed
• What corrective work is proposed
• The target attendance and completion dates
• Who owns the action

Avoid accepting “logged” as the final answer. A reference number proves receipt; it does not tell you when the repair will happen.

3. Follow up after a missed commitment

Refer to the defect number, original report date and promised appointment. Explain any continuing damage or loss of use. Ask for a revised date and the reason for delay. Keep the tone factual: a clean timeline is more valuable in a later complaint than a long exchange about who is at fault.

4. Make a formal complaint

If the after-sales route has stalled, label your message Formal complaint and follow the published complaints procedure. State the outcome you want, such as an inspection by a named date, completion of specified work or reimbursement of an evidenced reasonable cost where the applicable process permits it.

For developers covered by the New Homes Quality Code, an eligible dispute can generally be referred to the New Homes Ombudsman Service after 56 days from the complaint start date. The Code gives customers two years from reservation or completion, whichever is later, to make a complaint and refer it to the Ombudsman, subject to the scheme rules. Homes and reservations outside that Code may fall under another consumer code or redress process.

5. Contact the warranty provider

If the developer rejects the defect, fails to respond or does not complete accepted work, check your policy's resolution or claims process. Warranty providers usually expect you to have notified the builder and used its complaints procedure first. Send the provider your snag report, correspondence, photographs, appointment history and final response.

Do not commission extensive remedial work and assume someone else will pay without first checking the policy and taking advice, except where immediate action is reasonably needed to prevent danger or further damage. Unauthorised work can make the cause, scope and cost of a claim harder to establish.

A practical deadline to put in your first report

Where your documents do not supply a fixed period, it is still sensible to ask for a response date. You might request acknowledgement within five working days, urgent contact sooner where safety or continuing damage is involved, and a repair plan with proposed dates within 10 working days. Those are reasonable requests, not universal legal entitlements.

For straightforward work, ask whether completion within 30 days is possible. For a complex defect, request an investigation date, written findings and a staged plan instead of naming an arbitrary final deadline. The aim is to replace an open-ended promise with actions you can track.

Do not let the clock replace the evidence

The question is not only how long the developer has had. It is whether the response matches the seriousness of the defect, the applicable warranty or code, and the explanation given for any delay.

Report problems promptly, use the developer's official channel and keep a dated record of every promise, visit and attempted repair. If a straightforward snag remains unresolved after 30 days, ask why and move to a formal complaint where the answer is inadequate. For urgent defects, do not wait for that benchmark. For major or disputed work, involve the warranty provider or an appropriate adviser before your reporting or claim window closes.

This article provides general information about new-build snagging and consumer routes, not legal advice. Your contract, warranty terms, location and the date you reserved or completed your home may change the position.